Cable grove in wall

[caretaker]

I need to chase a grove in my bedroom wall about 1 yard just to hide a wall light cable that now is just pinned.
Can I use my router to do a chase/grove in the wall, I have some cheep bits for my router machine.
Reg

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Much depends on how suicidal you're feeling...

 

[Myfordman]

What is the wall made from? Even plasterboard will wreck the cutter and the dust potentially damage the bearings.
Stitch drill with a masonry bit and clean up with a cold chisel - not a woodworking chisel either!!

 

[andersonec]

NO!!!!!! (hammer)

Andy

 

[caretaker]

So that's a no no to that idea then.
The wall is breeze block with plaster about 60 years old.
I'll just keep it as is with cable clips, it will be hidden by the dressing table.
Thanks for putting me strait on that.

 

[woodchip]

Do you have an sds drill? You can get a chasing tool for it, then sell it on ebay.

 

[WillRiseley]

One way is hold/screw a 1x1 batten to the wall where you want the chase then run a grinder up either side of it, remove the batten and chip out plaster between the lines

 

[geordie]

If your not in any hurry drill holes a few inches apart and chiesel inbetween them it will take awhile but not much dust

 

[RobinBHM]

And dont chase it in if a party wall

 

[dm65]

+1 Myfordman if it is a solid wall

If it's a hollow wall, drill

If it is a solid wall, you could just chisel it out all the way - it doesn't take as long as it seems, especially if the brick/block is soft

I ONCE cut the grooves with an angle grinder and no dust extraction Nice grooves, horrible mess and still to knock out with a chisel so don't try this at home !

 

[deema]

You will find that using a cold chisel is the easiest, quickest and produces the least mess.

For the first timer, use a long level of something similar and a Stanley knife and secure the edges of the groove you are looking to make. This helps to stop the plaster cracking when your knocking the rest out.

Down the centre of the groove, and not near either side you have scored, run the cold chisel (electricians bolster is a great tool c£5) down with a steady tap, your looking to create a small recess to begin within, not take anything out. Now, just inside your two score lines run the cold chisel down each side, a light tap as you go with a hammer. The plaster should now start to crack to the centre. Once you have the skin off, it's very easy and you can be a more forceful with your taps. It's just like making a recess in wood with a chisel.

Once you have the hang of it, you will work out which bits you can delete.

The golden rule to begin with is tap gently. If the initial taps don't start to remove the top skin of plaster, go back and tap harder down the centre and then the sides. Don't just hit the sides harder, you need to make somewhere for the plaster to go, otherwise you will 'blow' the sides of the grove.

 

[nanscombe]

You could get a length of plastic trunking to run it through, to make it look tidy.