# Relative to a stud, how does electrical conduit usually run? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 1, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354 "2012-10-01T03:20:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354/21 "2012-10-02T01:45:38Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > you can’t count on having the horizontal cable runs being at any particular height. > > phone, signal, AV might be run at waist height. power likely then run lower between 1 and 2.5 feet off the floor. In my experience the height depends on the height of the electrician. I use a right angle drill with a bore bit for my rough in. During this you drill hundreds of holes. I tend to rest the drill against my hip while drilling. Me being 6’1" puts my holes higher than most others. It’s actually higher than I like them so I usually have an apprentice do all the drilling, my apprentices have always been short. I tend to be in the chair rail height range which is only an issue when a finish carpenter decides to shoot in 2.5 inch nails. By code the wires need a nail plate anywhere they are within 1 1/4 inches of the studs surface. Most homes use 1/2 inch drywall. This means if you use 1 5/8 inch nails or screws you have little danger of hitting any properly installed wires. 1 5/8 is plenty long for most applications. If you decide to go longer you just need to be more careful. The odds of hitting a wire aren’t very high, the only time I’ve seen it happen was still during the construction phase. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354/22 "2012-10-02T06:58:15Z")
> [@Carlarm](#): > > I’ve had very bad luck with electronic stud finders. The ones I bought several years ago were erratic and useless. I recently had to find studs to hang curtain rods on outside walls. So I thought if I bought an expensive Stanley Stud Finder they may have improved over the years. This one worked no better than my older ones so I took it back to the hardware store and got my money back. I’m wondering if the insulation in the outside walls, especially the foil vapor barrier was the problem? > > I went back to my tried and true way of finding studs. A) Take the trim plate off a nearby electrical outlet and see the stud it is attached to, immediately to the left or right. B) Locate the vertical column of nails/screws holding sheet rock to the stud using a super-strong magnet. Put masking tape on the wall and draw a line through nail/screw locations using a four-foot long level. I really, really, really like the the [Franklin ProSensor](http://www.amazon.com/Franklin-Sensors-ProSensor-710-Precision/dp/B0064EICKG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1349076197&sr=8-3&keywords=stud+finder); out of all the electronic stud finders I’ve tried (half a dozen or so of them, most of them similarly designed), this is the only one that actually works. Instead of being a single locator that you wave around like a wand, it’s a “bar” of sensors and corresponding LEDs… the stud lights up under the corresponding LEDs (usually three). Look at the pictures if it’s unclear what I mean. I’m not the only one, either: Out of 100 Amazon reviews, it has 4.5 stars. Sadly it doesn’t have an AC detector, but for finding studs, it works well and works fast. The only other one that has equally good reviews is a purely magnetic one… that works, too, but it takes a lot of waving around. ---
**Author:** ![allotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@allotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/allotrope)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354/23 "2012-10-03T01:18:49Z")
If you want to see what is behind a wall, there is no substitute for a borescope. I have [this unit](http://www.circuitspecialists.com/inspection-camera-system.html) which I can recommend.It has a 9mm head and has various accessories available. There is also a more advanced [wireless model](http://www.circuitspecialists.com/aardvark-nine-inspection-camera.html). ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354/24 "2012-10-03T01:22:46Z")
> [@allotrope](#): > > If you want to see what is behind a wall, there is no substitute for a borescope. I have [this unit](http://www.circuitspecialists.com/inspection-camera-system.html) which I can recommend.It has a 9mm head and has various accessories available. There is also a more advanced [wireless model](http://www.circuitspecialists.com/aardvark-nine-inspection-camera.html). I borrowed a Milwaukee brand one of those from someone, looked almost identical to that, other then being a few years older and red. It had a really odd quirk…the screen was tilted 90 degrees. That is, if you pointed the camera perfectly straight at someone, they’d be sideways on it. It took a few minutes of prodding around behind a wall to get used to that, and it wasn’t just me, online reviews complained about it as well. ---
**Author:** ![allotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@allotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/allotrope)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354/25 "2012-10-03T02:05:03Z")
The wireless one detaches from the mount so can reorient however you like. And mine has a button that changes the orientation by 90 degrees each time you press it. ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354/26 "2012-10-03T04:30:46Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > [Here’s](http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&rlz=1C1PRFB_enUS488US488&biw=1680&bih=925&tbm=isch&prmd=imvns&tbnid=I0nQep54VpA62M:&imgrefurl=http://www.renovation-headquarters.com/drywall-anchors.htm&docid=9fti9GOL01gm3M&imgurl=http://www.renovation-headquarters.com/images2/drywall%252520anchor%252520grouping%252520cr.jpg&w=203&h=163&ei=WrhpUN-MDIfuiQLv2YGABA&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=484&sig=107730519458142086965&page=1&tbnh=130&tbnw=160&start=0&ndsp=42&ved=1t:429,r:17,s:0,i:126&tx=108&ty=67) a photo of several types. I prefer the ones on the right and left, as the others can pull out. I too have installed hundreds of towel bars and the type I prefer is the second one from the right. The problem, especially in apartments, is that styles change, minds change and bars break. The ones on the ends are sturdier for sure but problematic to remove. I haven’t had ones like the one I indicated fail on me yet. As noted earlier, the best solution is to find a stud for one end and use a drywall anchor on the other. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/relative-to-a-stud-how-does-electrical-conduit-usually-run/636354.md?page=1)