Electrical advice needed-wiring to hide TV wires and convenient tips
haylo33
3 years ago
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Marie J.
3 years agoRelated Discussions
Please Add MORE 'My Favorite Gardening Tips'
Comments (91)Outsmarting the tree rats (squirrels) around my house is a full time job. This past spring I hit on a new idea. When I plant a container I invert an empty wire hanging basket over the container and the plant gets sun and can be watered but the squirrels can't dig in it. Another idea: I bring in a lot of plants to "over winter" under lights in my garage. I have so many that it is hard to reach my hand under the lights (4 shop lights) to the middle for watering. So I bought a pump sprayer with a long wand and it works great! In late winter I add a little liquid Dawn detergent, few drops, to each gallon of water and not only does the soil get wet easier but the worms that are waiting to hatch into distructive pets just don't hatch. Don't know what it costs me to run those four shop lights all winter but I don't care. It is a small price to pay to be able to "garden" every weekend in the garage. Many people have mentioned that they mark their outdoor plants with a "permanent Sharpie". In my experience there isn't a "permanent Sharpie", they all fade and quickly too. A grease pencil/china marker or expensive "no fade" garden center marker are the only markers I have found that won't disappoint you by fading. Eight years ago I decided to learn about gardening so I tapped into my local library. I checked out nearly every book they had on gardening and learned so much. The Gardenweb forums are also a wealth of information and entertainment. There is always something new to learn and I appreciate all of you who take the time to write in your ideas. One last idea from me...I keep a small notebook on my computer table and jot down any idea I find that's new and I will want to try. Little pieces of paper get lost but I always know where my notebook is and also use it when I order "on line" so I will remember the name of the company and the order date. Tina or Trowelgal...See MoreHiding wires behind wall-mount TV above fireplace
Comments (4)We are also building a new home and plan to have the tv over our gas fireplace mantel. Our builder ran the tubing from above the fireplace to the basement and then from the basement up to the study, which is where the components will be kept. I believe we were only charged $50, so yes, $300 sounds excessive. This Tuesday we have Best Buys Geek Squad coming over to look at our setup and recommend a tv size for our space. We plan to have them do the install. One thing that we were told at BB was to have the outlets (power and tube) located toward the top of where the tv will be installed. Of course, ours are located right in the middle of where the bracket would be installed. We'll see how that is dealt with....See MoreWiring new home for tv, internet, phone
Comments (19)Hi As others have said, it really depends on what you want where. For example, we use Sonos extensively so regardless of whether we are running speaker cable out to wall or ceiling speakers or whether the zone players are located out in the ceiling, we know that we need additional power points for each of the zones so we work out the location and allow for them. With automated lighting/HVAC, there are complicated systems and simple ones that fit behind the light switch/interface with the unit and are simply controlled on an ios device. Again, depending on what is needed or desired we know that looking at the lighting plan and seeing what circuits/zones need to be wired eg two way will often dictate the solution. ie where you go to switch on the main lights to the living area is also a convenient location for the HVAC controls, intercom etc With entertainment, we always do multiple ethernet ports to entertainment locations as you quite often find both the TV, Xbox, cable tv also need connection to the internet and we prefer to hard wire. It is then simply a matter of running it back to a central hub to your signal source. I agree with the others it is how you want to live that needs the thought. Cheers...See MoreSmart Home and wiring and electronics
Comments (22)When we built our current house in 1989 we included a bit of automation with a Stargate automation controller as the core. Installed lighting is all on central dimmers (and many plug in lamps were on X10 dimmers). Not having to run around turning lights off every night was alone worth the money for us. Some lights come on at certain times, others are part of scenes. Overall it works quite well and we'll do something similar in our new house. We've since added a Control4 system for AV, Thermostats, Security system access, garage door (open/close/status), backdoor lock, etc. (Stargate is great but getting old.) The features are useful (like being able to check that doors are locked, garage door closed, and thermostats turned down from iPhone). We'll not use Control4 again though. It's quite antiquated, buggy, and requires a tech to do even the slightest change. Just now starting to research alternatives. Be very careful about wireless anything. Hardwired is more secure, reliable and faster than wireless for computers, security devices/cameras, and other stuff. And wireless is getting increasingly problematic as more of our neighbors add wireless stuff and radio interference increases. You don't need to terminate everything now if you're trying to save money but do run lots of cables and take photos of where they are in the walls for future use. And yes, ethernet to every TV and AV cabinet. Plan for future expansion with a bunch of empty conduits. From wherever your central rack is to; attic, garage, any open spaces in the basement. This will make adding stuff in the future much easier. Automation done well is very useful, automation done poorly is just about useless....See Morehaylo33
3 years agoBrad Smith
3 years agoBruce in Northern Virginia
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3 years agoCarolyn T
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