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skiblet 02-15-05 10:47 PM

Need help with wiring a projector through ceiling-
 
I plan on getting the pannasonic AE700 projector soon, and would like to wire it up with a ceiling mount and have the wires run up into the ceiling , through the attic, and then down the wall to my components/computer on the other side of the room.

I am really hesitant to try this myself. Should i contract someone to do this? How much can i expect to pay for that? Should i just try to do it myself and learn what to do?

Has anyone done this themselves, and how did it go.?

Sonicflood 02-15-05 11:19 PM

See this thread

cseyer 02-16-05 07:37 AM

Its not the easiest thing to do, is the wall you are running down an interior wall or exterior? If its exterior it is more difficult due to the insulation. However if you have good access above in the attic then its a matter of drilling holes in the right places and skillfully using a fish tape to fish the wires down the wall the. And yes I have fished wires in walls before and I have all kinds of fun doing it but always eventually been succesful. I have used a flexible 3 ft. drill bit to get things down the wall to my basement and fish tape to get things up the wall into the attic. If you are willing you can do this it just takes time and patience.

I have no idea what you would pay an electrician/AV installer maybe a couple hundred or more?

skiblet 02-16-05 11:45 AM

see thats what im thinking, im gonna get reamed pretty hard if i hire a professional electrician to come out and do this, when , i have some cautious optimism that i can learn to do it myself.

Unfortunately the wall has horizontal cross bracing, which is what worries me. The only way around this problem is to remove a section of the drywall and then remove a section of that cross brace. :eek:

Thats the part im worried about. Id like to hear from people that have done this -

Sonicflood 02-16-05 04:48 PM


Originally Posted by skiblet
see thats what im thinking, im gonna get reamed pretty hard if i hire a professional electrician to come out and do this, when , i have some cautious optimism that i can learn to do it myself.

Unfortunately the wall has horizontal cross bracing, which is what worries me. The only way around this problem is to remove a section of the drywall and then remove a section of that cross brace. :eek:

Thats the part im worried about. Id like to hear from people that have done this -

Go to Home Depot and/or Lowes and buy a Greenlee flexible drill bit (3'-4' in length) Use this to drill through the horizontal cross bracing. That's what a professional will use and they'll charge you WAY more than the cost of the bit. You should expect to pay $25-$35 for the bit and about $20 for the placement tool. The end of the bit has a small hole in it to allow you to attach the wires or a wire puller such as a fish tape or fish sticks (fiberglass bendable/extendable wire puller) and bring it back through the hole just drilled. You would then connect your wire(s) to the wire puller/fish tape/fish stick and pull them through the hole. You can probably use a piece of nylon string as a a low-cost wire puller.

http://www.lashen.com/vendors/Greenl...es/DVersi6.jpg

This way, you won't have to remove a section of the drywall, thus making the job easier and less expensive than you will run into either DIY removing/patching drywall or hiring a pro to run the wire(s) for you.

You may need a placement tool to help bend the bit as it goes in the wall. Here's what one looks like:

http://www.lashen.com/vendors/Greenlee/images/712P.jpg

Here's a placement tool in use:

http://www.lashen.com/vendors/Greenl...712P-inuse.jpg

If you lived near me, I'd do it for you no charge. It would take me maybe 20-30 minutes from start to finish in running the wire(s).

What type & how many wire(s) are you trying to get from point A to point B?

If you have any other questions, post them & I'll try to reply quickly.

Sonic

skiblet 02-17-05 01:01 AM

Sonic,

Thanks for your advise and encouragement. I hope i can send some additional questions to you when i start this crazy project.

Also, what do you do if the thickness of your wires is thicker than the hole in the cross brace? Like component cables for instance, they are huge-

Sonicflood 02-17-05 07:49 AM


Originally Posted by skiblet
Sonic,

Thanks for your advise and encouragement. I hope i can send some additional questions to you when i start this crazy project.

Also, what do you do if the thickness of your wires is thicker than the hole in the cross brace? Like component cables for instance, they are huge-

You can get a larger drill bit or drill multiple holes. I've done both. If you need to contact me directly, feel free to e-mail me. I'm home for a couple of days due to illness and am checking my e-mail and DVD Talk via my projector ;)

Sonic

dumbdvdtalkers. 02-17-05 08:52 AM

LOL! I am laughing my ass off at you guys with MOST of your responses to this dumb and stupid question by yet another dumb dvdtalker. First he asks if he can do it himself, if he should hire a pro, then says he can sure learn how to do it, ready to cut across a horizontal brace.....Hello STUPID!!!! Ever considered if that brace you are cutting into is a fire plate or a supporting brace of any kind? Only 1 dvdtalker give him a real decent and pro answer....
How freakin dumb and stupid can MOST dvdtalkers be? Is there no end to the stupidity that polulates this forum? LOL

Sdallnct 02-20-05 10:47 AM

Great post Sonicflood,

what type of face plates do you use and when? In other words at the speaker to you just have a hole? At the receiver end I will have six wires (I only have 5.1 now, but want to go ahead and wire for 6.1) coming out of the wall. What type of face plates do you use? I have looked at little at parts express, but really haven't found anything that will take 6 wires.

cseyer 02-20-05 06:29 PM

Leviton Quickports will take 6 per face plate, however remember that you need two ports per speaker ( a + and a -) so you will want to do a double gang box and put 6 ports in each side for a total of 12. I have bought them at home depot or online at www.broadbandutopia.com.

Sonicflood 02-20-05 07:01 PM


Originally Posted by Sdallnct
Great post Sonicflood,

what type of face plates do you use and when? In other words at the speaker to you just have a hole? At the receiver end I will have six wires (I only have 5.1 now, but want to go ahead and wire for 6.1) coming out of the wall. What type of face plates do you use? I have looked at little at parts express, but really haven't found anything that will take 6 wires.

cseyer is correct.

The Leviton QuickPort system is the way to go! It's what I use and it makes all the connections look neater.

Just buy 6 pair of the Binding Post Module pkgs. Here's a picture:

http://store1.yimg.com/I/broadbandutopia_1832_18435324

They snap into a QuickPort coverplate (available in various hole configurations). Here's the 12 port plate that you would need:

http://store1.yimg.com/I/broadbandutopia_1832_13828139

This would allow you to terminate 6 pairs of speaker wires behind your entertainment center, etc..

I use a lable maker to make ID lables for each connection.

Any other questions?

Sonic

EDIT: the Leviton Quickport stuff is available at Home Depot.

Sdallnct 02-26-05 01:09 PM

Ahhh! SWEET! Somehow I missed those custom plates. I was only seeing (or not realizing what I really needed) those pre-made plates that at the most had two or three speakers.

OK, got it. Double box and two of the face plates will take car of the speakers.
I plan on running the power cord into the ceiling and plug in, in the attic.
Will run some sort of component cable and can do another box/face plate for it.
That should take care of it....

Any suggestions on the whole retro fit thing? Do these come with some sort of a template? I'm going to have to cut through a built in cabinet, so I want to get it right the 1st time.

Sonicflood 02-26-05 01:42 PM


Originally Posted by Sdallnct
Ahhh! SWEET! Somehow I missed those custom plates. I was only seeing (or not realizing what I really needed) those pre-made plates that at the most had two or three speakers.

OK, got it. Double box and two of the face plates will take car of the speakers.
I plan on running the power cord into the ceiling and plug in, in the attic.
Will run some sort of component cable and can do another box/face plate for it.
That should take care of it....

Any suggestions on the whole retro fit thing? Do these come with some sort of a template? I'm going to have to cut through a built in cabinet, so I want to get it right the 1st time.

When you buy the outlet boxes (called old work boxes) they should come with a cardboard cutting template. If you don't see one attached, either look nearby for a stack of them or ask an associate to get one for you. You'll most likely see the old work boxes made by a company called Carlon. They will be blue in color and are located in the electrical section of Home Depot/Lowes.

Here's a pic:
http://cache.smarthome.com/images/25411_main.jpg

You want the old work boxes, not new work boxes! Old work boxes are for post construction (retro) work.

Here's a How-To on installing them:

http://www.hammerzone.com/archives/e...oldworkbox.htm

You can also use what's called a old work mud ring (it has no back) if you don't want/need to have a full box or have a shallow wall depth. Here's what one looks like:

http://cache.smarthome.com/images/2552_sm.jpg

There are available in the same place as the old work boxes.

Feel free to e-mail me or post here any other questions & best of luck!

Sonic

Sdallnct 03-04-05 10:13 AM


Originally Posted by Sonicflood
When you buy the outlet boxes (called old work boxes) they should come with a cardboard cutting template. If you don't see one attached, either look nearby for a stack of them or ask an associate to get one for you. You'll most likely see the old work boxes made by a company called Carlon. They will be blue in color and are located in the electrical section of Home Depot/Lowes.

Here's a pic:
http://cache.smarthome.com/images/25411_main.jpg

You want the old work boxes, not new work boxes! Old work boxes are for post construction (retro) work.

Here's a How-To on installing them:

http://www.hammerzone.com/archives/e...oldworkbox.htm

You can also use what's called a old work mud ring (it has no back) if you don't want/need to have a full box or have a shallow wall depth. Here's what one looks like:

http://cache.smarthome.com/images/2552_sm.jpg

There are available in the same place as the old work boxes.

Feel free to e-mail me or post here any other questions & best of luck!

Sonic

I bought all the needed parts yesterday at HD. Hopefully get started this afternoon or this weekend. I ran into a little snag. I thought I had plenty of attic space to move around as the ceilings are only 8' in that room. However, our furnace is blocking my path. I can see where I need to go and where the wires will come up but, I physically can't get there. So I'm going to try one of two things,

1) Go check out the raceway molding they got at HD. I have 1X2 molding all the way around the room, so if there is something small from raceway, I might go that route (but that won't solve my problem of getting power and component cables to my projector). Also, I think those are pretty expensive and I'm trying to stick to a budget.
2) Go up through the ceiling as I had planned and use a fish wire guide to push a string into the attic and then HOPEFULLY push it through far enough to my furnace where I can reach it. I can then tape speaker wire to the string and pull it through. The room is about 12' across, so I'm hoping this will work. And since five of six speakers should be at ceiling height, the speakers should cover any holes.

Also, the furnance is right above the wall I was going to drop everything to go to the receiver. However, luckily, the wall is common with the garage. So I can just drop everything through the ceiling in the garage, then just go through the wall at the right spot.

So to give you an idea, the media room and garage are side by side and have 8' ceilings and attic access is in the garage. All other rooms have vaulted ceiling. However they stuck the furnance right between the garage and media room. And with duck work, wires, gas lines, etc, I cannot get around it.

Sdallnct 03-05-05 10:19 AM

I decided to put boxes on at all spots where speaker wire will come out at the ceiling. I figured this would look good and if I had to do any fishing, the boxes would protect the drywall from getting to chewed up. I mounted all boxes yesterday (except for the projector itself, I still haven't decided where to put its wires thru the ceiling).

BTW, I used the mud rings. Since I will be fishing the wire around up in the attic I think it will be easiest to go with no backs. At HD these came in a "contractors" kit with 6 in a bag and 6 templates for like $6.00.

REL77 03-08-05 12:53 PM

I too am in this problem where I am going to need to pass my Video wires through walls and ceilings, and have no clue how to do it

Sdallnct 03-08-05 07:06 PM


Originally Posted by REL77
I too am in this problem where I am going to need to pass my Video wires through walls and ceilings, and have no clue how to do it

The above mentioned Leviton system is AWESOME! I just finished installing it for my speakers. It is easy and looks very professional. My wife about $hit when she saw 6 14g speaker wires sticking out from the wall. But less then 20 minutes later, I had the Leviton face plate all hooked up. Very quality connections as well. Next to this box, I will be installing a single box for my component cables from the projector. But this system looks so good, I think I'm going to use it right at the projector as well. In other words, I was just going to run the three wire thru the ceiling, but instead I think I use a Leviton box as well and just hook the projector into it, then run a long cable to where I need to go to another Leviton box. I'm also going to replace the existing cable plate with Leviton so it will match.

BTW I used two different systems for running the speaker wire. First I used a fish tape and pushed that thru the ceiling until I could grab is with a long pole with a hook on the end up in the attic. This worke ok. But what worked even better is that I fed the speaker wire thru a 1/2" plumber PVC pipe, putting a loop at end. I then stood the pipe up and thru the hole in the ceiling. Then in the attic, I used my pole with hook to grab it. Worked like a charm.

As mentioned before, I was planning on running the wires in the walls, but due to a number of reasons, I ended up going thru the ceiling. Not quite as clean of look as I had hoped, but nice and the wife is happy (good WAF), all is good!

I'll try to post some photos in the next day or two as I appreciate everyone that helped me, so maybe it will help someone else.

Sonicflood 03-08-05 11:35 PM


Originally Posted by Sdallnct
The above mentioned Leviton system is AWESOME! I just finished installing it for my speakers. It is easy and looks very professional. My wife about $hit when she saw 6 14g speaker wires sticking out from the wall. But less then 20 minutes later, I had the Leviton face plate all hooked up. Very quality connections as well. Next to this box, I will be installing a single box for my component cables from the projector. But this system looks so good, I think I'm going to use it right at the projector as well. In other words, I was just going to run the three wire thru the ceiling, but instead I think I use a Leviton box as well and just hook the projector into it, then run a long cable to where I need to go to another Leviton box. I'm also going to replace the existing cable plate with Leviton so it will match.

BTW I used two different systems for running the speaker wire. First I used a fish tape and pushed that thru the ceiling until I could grab is with a long pole with a hook on the end up in the attic. This worke ok. But what worked even better is that I fed the speaker wire thru a 1/2" plumber PVC pipe, putting a loop at end. I then stood the pipe up and thru the hole in the ceiling. Then in the attic, I used my pole with hook to grab it. Worked like a charm.

As mentioned before, I was planning on running the wires in the walls, but due to a number of reasons, I ended up going thru the ceiling. Not quite as clean of look as I had hoped, but nice and the wife is happy (good WAF), all is good!

I'll try to post some photos in the next day or two as I appreciate everyone that helped me, so maybe it will help someone else.

Congrats! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

I knew you could do it!!! I hope my info was helpful. :)

Post those pics. They'll help others.

Sonic

skiblet 03-09-05 10:41 AM

i would definately like to see more pics of your setup , sdallnct

cseyer 03-09-05 11:18 AM

Glad the Leviton quickports worked out for you!! I used them throughout my house for phone/network/speaker/cable outlets. Very easy to work with and they look great. Another cool product they make is called the Powerjack you can power a cordless phone with this in wall plate that also takes the phone jack. Makes for a clean install with no visible cords. http://www.leviton.com/sections/prod.../powerjack.htm

Sdallnct 03-09-05 11:31 AM


Originally Posted by cseyer
Glad the Leviton quickports worked out for you!! I used them throughout my house for phone/network/speaker/cable outlets. Very easy to work with and they look great. Another cool product they make is called the Powerjack you can power a cordless phone with this in wall plate that also takes the phone jack. Makes for a clean install with no visible cords. http://www.leviton.com/sections/prod.../powerjack.htm

Thanks to you and Sonicflood, everything is going smoothy. I really appreciate it.

Nice idea on the cordless phone. I'm having issues with cordless phones right now. I used 900hz so they would not interfer with my wireless network in my old house. But they were useless in our current house so up graded to 5.8 and they buzz as well. I'm thinking it could by my dishnetwork, but that is another thread I suppose.

I'll post some picks by the weekend, I promise.

Sdallnct 03-13-05 09:48 AM

Photo time
 
OK couple of requests for photos so I'll post some. I'm not sure what everyone was interested in so I'll just post some random and if you got questions let me know.

First however, let me thank all those that gave me input. I have never done home theater install before and really not that much even simple construction. Input here really shortened my learning curve and pointed me in the right direction.

My main goal was to have a decent system but come in under my $2,000 budget (for everything except furniture). I will meet this even when I order a new receiver. I moved into the house in June, but have been working out of town from Aug to Feb, so most of this work is recent. It is not complete as I took a couple of days off and I imagine it will never been done. I want to get up and running and then make changes, tweeks as needed.

Finally this is a free web hosting site that limited me in number of photos and size. Hopefully I compressed the photos enough....

Room before construction starts. Don't you just love the 70's fan and brown track lighting!

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P8120027.JPG

Pulled back carpet and built riser framing (note this is one mistake I made, I went with 2X6's and should have gone with at least 2X8's). Note cut outs for electrical so I can use them if needed.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P8120031.JPG

Finished riser with glue down carpet in place

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P8140032.JPG

Close up of installed mud ring for wire to be run. These things worked great and protected the drywall when I used the wire fish.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3090021.JPG

Mounting, mud rings for projector (yes I used plumbers parts)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3100027.JPG

Here you can see projector mounted and a surround speaker

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3130033.JPG

Front speakers mounted (I'm not sure I like the CC speaker like that, but going with it for now). I also may raise of lower the mains depending on the sound and how big my screen is.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3100022.JPG

Cut outs for terminating speakers and video at the receiver (cable was already in and I had swiched to dish)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3080007.JPG

And speaker wire all in place. Note I wired for 6.1 even tho right now I only have 5.1. Figure any new receiver I get will have 6.1 and I don't want to have ro run wire again. I will eventually replace the AC and plate with white so they all match. The mud ring on the left of the speaker connections is for video which I will run today (sunday) or tomorrow.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3090009.JPG

For actually wiring I ran the wires in the attic and then down a hole in the ceiling of my garage. I wanted to run down the actual wall but my Furnace was just above the wall and I could not do that. Since taking this photo I have wrapped the wires in a plastic conduit I picked up, I will then tack up on the ceiling and down the wall so it will look ok, at least for a garage.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-...0/P3090014.JPG

As I mentioned, today or tomorrow will be running video for the projector and will hopefully build the screen mid week. Once I get the screen built I'll add a photo of it. Lastly after spring break will need to paint the room.

Hope this helps those that are about to starting. I got everything (except poject/receiver/DVD player) at HD or Lowes.

Sonicflood 03-13-05 05:54 PM

BRAVO!!! Excellent work. :thumbsup:

I always love to see a DIY project come together. There is a sense of pride in knowing that you did it yourself.

This thread should serve as an excellent "how to" guide for others.

Sonic

Sdallnct 03-13-05 09:45 PM


Originally Posted by Sonicflood
BRAVO!!! Excellent work. :thumbsup:

I always love to see a DIY project come together. There is a sense of pride in knowing that you did it yourself.

This thread should serve as an excellent "how to" guide for others.

Sonic

Thanks so much, and again really appreciate your help. I worked on it this afternoon and ran four video cables (3 for component and 1 for regular video) and started cleaning up. I got to say right now I'm SO excited. I hooked up my Dishnetwork receiver and surround receiver to the projector and to speakers to make sure everything all worked ok before I started "finish work". It is AMAZING! I have not decided on the exact size of image yet, but just blasting on the wall at anywhere from 82" to 92" is impressive! The quality is far more then I expected for this size of screen and this is only SD!

They have LOR on Showtime (yet again) and I brought my wife in and she could not believe it. She really felt it was a better image then our standard 32" JVC TV! And this is with no screen! And I have yet to throw on a DVD.

And you are so correct. It feels even better to be doing it myself. Sure there are a couple of things a pro would have done quicker and better then me. But I'm learning as I go, nothing is "unchangable" so not only am I saving a ton of money, but really enjoying it as well.

skiblet 03-14-05 11:08 AM

sdallnct, thanks for the pictures. looks like you are doing a great job on it! very nice and clean looking install. very professional-

id love to see any more pics, and especially the finished photos


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