Found an old trick for hiding loose wires in drop ceilings that still works great

I was doing a commercial install last week at a old office building in Portland and the drop ceiling tiles were a mess from previous work. Every other tile had wires just hanging down or stapled ugly to the grid. I tried using those plastic wire clips at first but they kept popping off because the metal was so old and flaky. An electrician who was working nearby told me to just use a piece of fishing line and a paperclip to fish the wires through the ceiling grid ties. I mean, it sounds ridiculous but it actually held everything clean and out of sight for the whole run. No special tools, no extra cost, just stuff I had in my truck. It took me maybe 20 minutes for a full row of six tiles and the owner complimented how neat it looked. Has anyone else found an old school shortcut that beats the modern stuff for this kind of work?

2 comments

2 Comments

terryb1122d ago

Fishing line won't hold up forever since it gets brittle under fluorescent light heat and sag eventually. The paperclip trick is clever for a quick fix but a proper J-hook or bridle ring is still the right call for a permanent install. Did you at least use clear line so it blended in better?

bettywilson21d agoMost Upvoted

Never really thought about the fluorescent light thing honestly. Always figured fishing line was good enough since it's cheap and easy to work with. Figured if it broke you just put another piece up, no big deal. But you're right, that's a workaround not a fix. Now I'm thinking about all the times I used it in my garage under those lights and wondering how long it actually held before I just didn't notice. J-hooks and bridle rings are probably worth the extra two bucks so you don't have to babysit your install for years. Clear line for sure though, that's the only way to go if you're going the cheap route. Got me rethinking my whole setup now.