Chasing help

wade88 · Apr 11, 2011

Hi guys,

I have been booked in for my first proper domestic install and will need to do some chasing. As of yet, all i have chased in life in buses and some annoying little twerp who threw a snowball at my car a few years back...so when it comes to chasing walls, im not so clued up.

My immediate fear is i will manage to have the entire wall down somehow or remove an entire brick etc. I am due to go inspect the job sometime this week so do not yet know if it is plasterboard or brick i will be needing to chase out but either way, i could do with some advice.

I have read a fair bit on how to do it but am not sure which method i would feel happiest with. The SDS option being most popular it would seem. Any tips and general guidance would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks lads

mark80 · Apr 11, 2011

To be honest mate i wouldnt get too flustered about it, youll see how easy it is once youve done it! IMO, SDS is my preference for chasing, but other people on here will say good old fashioned knocking out by hand (with a hammer and bolster). I use both methods depending on the hardness of the wall. Id say if you plan on doing alot of chasing in the future, then invest in an SDS rotostop drill. I can recommend this GBH 2-26 DFR Professional - Rotary Hammer with SDS-plus - Bosch Power Tools For Professionals
Absolutely bomb proof and i got a 5 year warranty with mine, cant go wrong!! Only advice id give about the drill is take your time, as they are very powerful and can chip alot of brick off quickly!

Electricalserv · Apr 11, 2011

wade88 said:
Hi guys,

I have been booked in for my first proper domestic install and will need to do some chasing. As of yet, all i have chased in life in buses and some annoying little twerp who threw a snowball at my car a few years back...so when it comes to chasing walls, im not so clued up.

My immediate fear is i will manage to have the entire wall down somehow or remove an entire brick etc. I am due to go inspect the job sometime this week so do not yet know if it is plasterboard or brick i will be needing to chase out but either way, i could do with some advice.

I have read a fair bit on how to do it but am not sure which method i would feel happiest with. The SDS option being most popular it would seem. Any tips and general guidance would be hugely appreciated.

Thanks lads

Chaseing walls mate is the monkeys job. You shouldn't have any problem with it. Good old hammer and bolster was how I learnt. Most plaster comes out fairly easy. You don't have to go deeper than the brick as everything is usually RCD protected now!!

You will only need an SDS if the wall is solid. I have came across it before and its a nightmare.

johnboy6083 · Apr 11, 2011

if its a stud wall, then drill a hole from th loft through the first stud. go back downstaris, and make a small hole in the board, in line with the one youve drilled in the loft (if posiblemake the hole from the loft. poke a cable rod down it, until you hit a noggin. mark the rod, or hold with your finger. offer the rod upto the wall, and you mark the noggin. use a large holcutter, and drill a latrge hole there. notch the noggin. do the same for all nogins, and when youve done, use the cutout from the holecutter to cove the holes, and srew them down eithe side of the notch you put in. you can then use filler to reinstate the wall.

ringer · Apr 11, 2011

johnboy6083 said:
if its a stud wall, then drill a hole from th loft through the first stud. go back downstaris, and make a small hole in the board, in line with the one youve drilled in the loft (if posiblemake the hole from the loft. poke a cable rod down it, until you hit a noggin. mark the rod, or hold with your finger. offer the rod upto the wall, and you mark the noggin. use a large holcutter, and drill a latrge hole there. notch the noggin. do the same for all nogins, and when youve done, use the cutout from the holecutter to cove the holes, and srew them down eithe side of the notch you put in. you can then use filler to reinstate the wall.

Are you not going to install any cables then before making good?

Seriously, I take it you are advocating drilling a series of large holes at each noggin, notching the noggin (at the centre of the hole) and then passing the cable down through these notches so they are effectively clamped to the inside of the plasterboard once the cutouts have been replaced. Have I got this right?

telectrix · Apr 11, 2011

as long as it's RCD protected, no problem. on the average stud wall, you can't get 50mm deep anyway.

rocker · Apr 11, 2011

If you are going to do it by hand you'll want to get a scutch - amazing things and only about a fiver. When it comes to the boxes, drill out a load of holes and then use the scutch to chip away the rest.

I would use a scutch for the bits by the ceilings etc and finishing, but use an SDS for the rest. You can pick up rubbishy mains SDSs with roto-stop nowadays for 50 quid and it'll last you your first few jobs til you can get something decent.

Either way, I would wholeheartedly recommend a chaser or an 'angle grinder' with a diamond blade. Again, you can get them cheap as chips. Cut out the box shapes nice and deep, then run two lines up or down the wall, then chisel or SDS inside the lines, it takes minutes BUT you will need BLOODY GOOD GOGGLES AND DUST MASK it gets properly dusty with the angle grinder.

Whatever you do, don't fall into the trap of getting one of those armeg box cutter things. Complete waste of time.

You shouldn't have to chase out plasterboard walls, they have a wooden frame inside, just determine where the noggins and studs are (by threading down from above with a long cable rod or simply knocking the wall and looking for the dull bits) and make little holes either side of the noggin, then drill through the noggin and pull your cable through. Either that or get some long flexible 'aircraft' drill bits with cable loops on the end.

wade88 · Apr 11, 2011

Thanks lads,

Much appreciate you taking the time to help me out!

KFH · Apr 11, 2011

If using a chaser (angle grinder with two discs) use a good vacuum cleaner attached to the chaser. You will then be able to see the wall you are chasing, I have a cheap one and it works well. If the plaster is not that good (not stuck to the wall) you can take off far more than you want using a chisel or SDS. If using a hammer and chisel (I use a bolster) go up or down each side of the chase, at least a few inches beyond the bit you are working on, hitting it in vertically into the plaster before knocking out the middle bit. Use a smaller chisel to clean up the bottom of the middle bit. Have a go and work out the best method for you and get used to the different types of plaster, it gets more difficult when there is horse hair in it.

If you go 50mm deep you have probably structurally weakened the wall unless you’re working on a castle. I could never understand the reason for setting the depth for not having an RCD at 50mm it may as well be 100 mm or 200mm. Does anyone chase to 50mm?