First Fix Advice for Stud Walls

[richo106]

Hi All

 

A very random question, I have started my first fix wiring.

 

On my stud walls I have plasterboarded one side to allow me to wire, on the walls that haven't been boarded yet I need to get the cables in rough position.

 

What is the best way to fix them to the inside of the stud wall so I can reach them when I cut my back box hole out? I should be ok for the sockets but switches/thermostats I need to fix the cables higher up the wall

 

I know its a daft question but this will help me alot with my wiring

 

I've attached a picture of my stud

 

Many Thanks

Edited August 16, 2023 by richo106

[TonyT]

You get an adjustable metal bracket

for fitting boxes too.

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/FXTWB16.html?source=adwords&ad_position=&ad_id=&placement=&kw=&network=x&matchtype=&ad_type=pla&product_id=FXTWB16&product_partition_id=&campaign=shopping&version=finalurl_v3&gclid=CjwKCAjw5_GmBhBIEiwA5QSMxNrsYt_g9-icT7e-CgMKXXdnRRINr4jPr9oSlZHA1uHPAqvj_ERA6hoCFB0QAvD_BwE

 

 

you can also screw timbers in if you want

[richo106]

24 minutes ago, TonyT said:

You get an adjustable metal bracket

for fitting boxes too.

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/FXTWB16.html?source=adwords&ad_position=&ad_id=&placement=&kw=&network=x&matchtype=&ad_type=pla&product_id=FXTWB16&product_partition_id=&campaign=shopping&version=finalurl_v3&gclid=CjwKCAjw5_GmBhBIEiwA5QSMxNrsYt_g9-icT7e-CgMKXXdnRRINr4jPr9oSlZHA1uHPAqvj_ERA6hoCFB0QAvD_BwE

 

 

you can also screw timbers in if you want

Thank you @TonyT

 

I can use the plasterboard/fast fix boxes on the sides that are already boarded and these on the open ones

 

Many Thanks

[ProDave]

Safe zones dictate cables either drop down (or up) in line with the accessory, or run horizontally.  Either way it is easy to arrange temporary support for a cable so it is there waiting when you cut the hole for the box.

 

When doing my own jobs, i cut the back box hole for the accessory before fitting the sheet of plasterboard which makes it even easier.

[Thorfun]

41 minutes ago, ProDave said:

When doing my own jobs, i cut the back box hole for the accessory before fitting the sheet of plasterboard which makes it even easier.

not so easy for the plasterer who comes after though! 😉

[JohnMo]

1 hour ago, ProDave said:

When doing my own jobs, i cut the back box hole for the accessory before fitting the sheet of plasterboard which makes it even easier.

Our electrician did exactly the same.

 

We are in Scotland - dry lined and taped. Taper expects the back box holes to exist, prior to starting his taping.

 

3 hours ago, richo106 said:

my stud walls I have plasterboarded one side to allow me to wire, on the walls that haven't been boarded

I assume you are insulating, as well to help stop sound?

[TonyT]

Not a fan of plastic fast fix dry lining box on new builds.

 

you have access to the stud so I would put a 35mm deep knock out box in.. just me though

[ProDave]

19 minutes ago, TonyT said:

Not a fan of plastic fast fix dry lining box on new builds.

 

you have access to the stud so I would put a 35mm deep knock out box in.. just me though

Clearly you have never tried Appleby dry lining boxes?

 

I dislike fitting back boxes on studs, then having the fun of cutting out the hole in the PB to match, then finding you would have liked it in a slightly different place etc.

 

But very much personal choice.  Anything in a stud wall is way better than cables chased into a solid brick wall.  So glad not to be doing that any more.

[TonyT]

Yep, tried them all.

 

if there is the opportunity to add a dwang/noggin, it should be done and a metal box fitted as far as I’m concerned.

 

flat plate accessories look better flat to the wall….

 

 

[Mattg4321]

Dry lining boxes look ok if the wall is to be skimmed and they are fitted beforehand so they finish flush to the surface. only downside to this is that sometimes when second fixing you can break off pieces of the multi finish, which then needs repairing. 

 

If it’s a taped finish or after the wall has been skimmed then that to me is an unsatisfactory finish as the box sits proud. If I have to use dry lining boxes then Appleby are probably the best, unless it’s double boarded, in which case they don’t work. 
 

Knockout boxes on noggings is the correct way of doing it in my opinion. You can detail PIR board around them better if necessary too imo. 

[nod]

They are normally left loose 

Most commercial jobs wires are still in the walls when they have been skimmed Then cut out afterwards 

[TonyT]

Not my commercial jobs, we stipulate conduit drops in partitions, but it’s a boring world if everyone is the same!

 

[eandg]

Ours were all loose, either left that way to be brought through later (where we weren't 100% on positions) with annotated plans and photos to confirm locations, or holes cored in plasterboard with cable pulled through prior to cutting out for a socket - as John Mo says this is standard stuff for tapers in Scotland. 

[richo106]

Thank you all, I will using a mixture of all the methods discussed here to make it work for me.

 

Many Thanks 

[richo106]

On the topic of first first wiring, I will be clipping my data cables & twin and earth to the block work

 

All the walls will be dot and dabbed, do people fix cable capping over the cables? pvc or metal?

 

I have fitted plenty of capping in the past and found it painful, what have people found the best way to secure it?

 

Any advice and information would be very helpful

 

 

 

 

[crispy_wafer]

On 16/08/2023 at 15:04, TonyT said:

You get an adjustable metal bracket

for fitting boxes too.

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/FXTWB16.html?source=adwords&ad_position=&ad_id=&placement=&kw=&network=x&matchtype=&ad_type=pla&product_id=FXTWB16&product_partition_id=&campaign=shopping&version=finalurl_v3&gclid=CjwKCAjw5_GmBhBIEiwA5QSMxNrsYt_g9-icT7e-CgMKXXdnRRINr4jPr9oSlZHA1uHPAqvj_ERA6hoCFB0QAvD_BwE

 

 

you can also screw timbers in if you want

 

just had a look at these, what a great idea!  Thanks for posting, its the sort of thing us mere mortals don't know existed till now, just like C stud infill timbers for doorframes.

 

A question to the boarding gurus, you see things like waferhead screws on metal frame, and possibly the metal tabs on these brackets are likely to sit proud of the frame a little bit, is this likely to be a problem for plasterboarding, and finishing or not really, and this can be tolerated?

[Dave Jones]

On 16/08/2023 at 15:04, TonyT said:

You get an adjustable metal bracket

for fitting boxes too.

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/FXTWB16.html?source=adwords&ad_position=&ad_id=&placement=&kw=&network=x&matchtype=&ad_type=pla&product_id=FXTWB16&product_partition_id=&campaign=shopping&version=finalurl_v3&gclid=CjwKCAjw5_GmBhBIEiwA5QSMxNrsYt_g9-icT7e-CgMKXXdnRRINr4jPr9oSlZHA1uHPAqvj_ERA6hoCFB0QAvD_BwE

 

 

you can also screw timbers in if you want

 

those metal boxes are crap, no strength to them at all. noggin wont move, ever.

[Mattg4321]

9 hours ago, richo106 said:

On the topic of first first wiring, I will be clipping my data cables & twin and earth to the block work

 

All the walls will be dot and dabbed, do people fix cable capping over the cables? pvc or metal?

 

I have fitted plenty of capping in the past and found it painful, what have people found the best way to secure it?

 

Any advice and information would be very helpful

 

 

 

 

I always use metal capping on all my jobs. No reason you can’t just clip, especially if dot and dabbed walls, but I think capping is a better job. Gives the cables some protection from idiots leaning stuff against the walls, plasterers trowels etc. You can also often rewire through it, even though it’s not really designed for that. 
 

It is a pig of a job though. My apprentice still hasn’t totally mastered it after 3 years.