Hiding TV wires?

Question

I have just bought a 36" tv to put on the wall, however we now have wires hanging down.

My question is how do I get the tv to work on one wall and all the boxes i.e. dvd, video and sky box on the opposite wall and get rid of all those blasted wires.

Answer 1

You can alway fish the wires up the inside of the wall, through the attic and down the other wall. Or underneath the carpets. Also, I do believe they now have a wireless receiver, but it's pretty pricey.

Answer 2

Ah well, that's where forward planning gets you.... :-)

Peel back a strip of wallpaper about 2" wide (2x1" strips is good) then chase out a channel in the plaster just over half inch deep and just over one inch wide.  Use a sharp chisel or cutting tool and be very careful not to cut anywhere near a line running vertically from a mains socket.

Take this from the tv set position up to the ceiling.

Sink in a length of rectangular section trunking about 1cm x 3cm (from B&Q) and put the wires in that. Clip the lid on and fold the wallpaper back over the plastic. Use a thin layer of Polyfilla over the trunking if necessary to smooth the surface but let it dry before folding the paper back.

The wires may then be routed over the ceiling. This will mean lifting the floorboards upstairs.

Repeat the procedure to take your wires down the wall to the rest of your kit. End the trunking nicely in a Double Patress box from B&Q (one of the types that are used to mount twin mains sockets).

Remember to have a big enough section of trunking to allow all your wires to fit comfortably and space for future use. Do not run the mains in the same trunk as the signal cable or you risk interference.

This may seem like a palaver but it is the most elegant way of getting cabling across a room in your circumstances. If you do it well the job will be invisible.

Just one thing to remember. There is a maximum length for video signal cables, beyond this the signal quality will deteriorate. For example, HDMI will suffer after about 3 metres and most SCART RGB signals can suffer after about 6 metres. Composite, audio and UHF signals will tollerate much longer distances.

The degree of degeneration is dependent on the quality of the cable and connectors.

Have fun.