Using A Flexible Auger Bit To Fish Wires Through Walls

I've seen these flexible augur bits at

home improvement stores for years, but I

never really bit the bullet and use

those on any of my projects. Now, the

ability to get a hole through a top

plate into the attic or across multiple

floor joist for recess lighting could

save you a ton of drywall work so you

don't have to open up a bunch of access

holes. So, I'm going to put it to the

test today and share with you what I

learned. I have three attempts behind

me. And although I'm staying on this

side of the drywall just like you would

for your application, I'm going to give

you a little behindthescenes look

because I installed plexiglass on the

back of these three example wall

cavities. We'll start easy with a wall

cavity that's wide open and a standard

16 in on center for the studs. Then

we'll step it up with some blocking in

the middle of the wall. And finally,

we'll end with some insulation and

blocking, seeing if we can be successful

punching through a double top plate for

each one of those. So, first attempt,

all I'm going to use is the access point

here, which is the same size as a single

gang electrical box. And then I'm using

a Klein Tools 9/16 of an inch in

diameter auger bit with the screw point,

which will help pull this bit through

the wood. This first extension I'm using

is 54 in long. And then I have another

54-in extension on it, which should give

me plenty of overall length to get up

and through this wall cavity. And I did

make a mark on this extension, which

indicates 74 in, which is where I would

expect that I start to hit the blocking.

And yep, shortly after that, I hit

something. So, that's good. That's a

strong indication that I'm hitting that

double top plate, but I'm trying to

position it a little bit away from the

corner. and then I'll start actually

drilling the hole.

So, first attempt. It doesn't seem like

we're punching all the way through. So,

I'm backing the bit out and I'm going to

try to get a second hole.

I'm going to give it another try and see

if I can get a little bit more in the

middle of that double top plate.

For attempt number one, I found that

lefthand corner, which was good. I was

confident I knew where that augur bit

was, but I applied too much pressure and

that angled the bit in the corner and

then that made a bad angle of attack

where it actually hit that screw which

stopped it from going through the double

top plate. Attempt number two did break

through, but man, it was right on the

edge. And it's very questionable whether

that would have just been drywall damage

on this side of the wall or if that

would have actually been something I

could use up in the attic to pull my

ROMX through. Now number three and

number four were a little bit of lesson

learned. I did not think they went

through, but there is actually a hole

here and a hole here. Both of those did

go through, but only that threaded point

went through. So the threaded point

pulled the bit up through, but once it

went past the wood, it stopped pulling.

And from the first attempt hitting that

screw, that actually did dull the two

cutting blades here on the augur bit. So

I did not apply enough pressure to then

punch through for attempt three and

attempt four. So just know once you

actually do break through with that

threaded point, it's going to stop

pulling and you are going to have to

push it the rest of the way through. But

be careful. There have been people

because a common application would be

right on the corner here of your roof

line. There have been people that push

it up too far and it actually goes

through the roof. So, if this was a

three- round fight, I'm already calling

this in the first round. When it comes

to DIYers and these flexible augur bits,

I say they're a nogo for your project.

Now, once you go past a 54 inch length,

there's just too many variables within

that wall cavity to result in you

getting a hole successfully up on your

first try into the attic. So, you can

bring Romax down into that wall cavity.

Now, I welcome feedback. So, if you are

a professional, you've been doing this

for years, what are those things, one or

many things that I was doing wrong that

does make it more successful where you

can actually get through there on the

first try? But as an intermediate DIYer,

I had four attempts. And really, I don't

think any of those were successful.

Unless you're going to build a temporary

wall setup like this and get some reps

or practice in before actually going to

your project, I would say let's stick

away from it. And there is a better

alternative. And I'll show you what a

small piece of flooring has to do with

that. So, I'll go up towards the top of

this wall and use a magnetic stud finder

to find the studs. Here's the first

stud, which I'll mark. And then I'll

also confirm finding the adjacent stud

for the cavity that I want to access.

I'll check that just making sure we have

16in on center space studs, which we do.

Now I can use my piece of flooring as a

template. I already have a pre-marked

line on there that indicates 2 in, which

I'll use to offset it from the ceiling

height. I don't want to cut this out

right at the ceiling because that would

equal a little bit more drywall work

than I want. Once I get it into the

location I want on the lefthand side

stud, I'll just manually screw down one

drywall screw. This is just holding this

template to the drywall. So don't

overtighten it or easily strip out. Then

with the torpedo level, I'll just make

sure it's level so those sides are

perfectly up and down and plum. And

secure one of the other screws. I have

additional screws already pre-installed

just in case I need to shift it over

later on.

Then with an oscillating tool, this does

have a Diablo drywall blade or a wood a

beat up wood blade works. You'll just

glide it along your template to get a

nice straight line. And so we can get

the actual piece of drywall out to get

access to this wall cavity.

We'll finish up on the sides. And you

should be feeling studs on the left, the

right, and the top, which should be your

doubled up top plate.

Then you can start to lightly pull on

that piece with your template.

See if there's any additional drywall or

paper still attached and just make those

small trims so it [music] easily removes

from the wall without damage.

And now I'm just going to use this Irwin

speed bore 3/4 in bit and a 12-in Diablo

extension. You can find a link below

this video and go over to our Amazon

store. In the electrical section, you'll

find these Irwin speedboard bits, which

are awesome for this application.

And that will make quick work of that

double top plate, just backing it up,

clearing it out, and then punching

through. And it's really that easy. Then

you run your ROMX through, and you have

a lot more open access to pull that wire

in. Once the wire is through, then you

take that same patch and just a few

drywall screws,

taking your time as you will be screwing

these on close to the edge, and that

will collapse the drywall if you're not

careful. But you just want to sink those

slightly below the surface as that will

make your mudding and your skim coat

easier after you tape. Let me know what

you guys think down in the comments.

Which method are you going to try on

your next project where you need to run

wire through your attic down in a wall

cavity or possibly even across floor

joist for recess lights? Now, if you

need a little bit more help on the

mudding, sanding, and getting this wall

back so you can paint it part of this

project, check out this video right

here. Now, this video is a monster video

for a full DIY bathroom remodel where I

had a budget of $1,500.

But at the 38 minute mark, it really

goes through this exact application to

help you out. So, thanks for joining me

on this video and we'll catch you on

that next one.