My old boss told me to always run a second wire pair for future use

Back in 2012, he said 'Just pull an extra 22/4 while you're in the wall, you'll thank me later.' I thought it was a waste of time and cable. Fast forward to last week, I had to add a glass break sensor to a 10 year old install. The extra wire was right there, saved me a whole afternoon of fishing. I've used that trick on probably 30 jobs since then. What's the best piece of old-school advice you guys still follow?

3 comments

3 Comments

benc5313d ago

My uncle was a low voltage installer for 20 years and drilled the same thing into me. He always said to pull two cables even if the plan only shows one, because plans change after the drywall goes up. I fought him on it for my first few jobs, thinking it was just extra work. Then I had to add a camera to a finished house and that spare Cat5 was a total lifesaver. What's the worst extra cable you ever had to pull because someone didn't plan ahead?

the_lily13d ago

Your uncle was right. I once had to pull a whole new line for a smart fridge because someone thought "kitchen outlet" was enough planning.

the_charles14h ago

Wait, you fought your uncle on pulling extra cable? That's wild to me. My first boss would have fired me on the spot for arguing about something that basic. I saw a guy once have to cut open a brand new theater room ceiling because he needed one more speaker wire. The extra spool was sitting in his van the whole time.