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How to Hide Audio Video Cables

Anyone who has installed audio/video equipment knows that hooking up the cables can be a challenge if you do not want them out in the open. Installing audio/video cables inside walls or under baseboards is the easiest method of hiding the wires, and that is best done when a house is first being built. However, most people install their equipment after a house is built, but they can still hide those tacky looking cables using just a few tools.

Things You'll Need

  • Utility knife
  • Compass or keyhole saw
  • Staple gun
  • Cable clips
  • Hammer
  • Pliers
  • Paint
  • Soft wire or plastic tie down
  • Hanger
  • Spackling paste
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Instructions

  1. Hiding Cables Behind Walls

    • 1

      Cut into the wall using a utility knife and a compass or keyhole saw in the drywall behind the flat-screen TV, video or audio equipment. Make sure the hole is large enough for all the wires to be pulled through.

    • 2

      Combine all the wires together using a plastic tie or a soft wire and feed the wires through the hole in the wall until you have reached the bottom or wherever you plan to pull the wires out to hook them up to other equipment like speakers or electric outlets.

    • 3

      Pop off the baseboard with a hammer or cut another hole in the wall near other equipment to be hooked up to or to electric outlets. Fish for the wires using a hanger and pull the wires through with a pair of pliers.

    • 4

      Connect the cables to other equipment or plug into electrical outlets. Patch the wall with spackling paste and repaint it along with the cables so that everything blends in.

    Blending Cables with the Environment

    • 5

      Camouflage the wires by picking wire colors that match the colors of the walls, baseboards or the surrounding furniture. For example, if you have a wire that runs along the edge of a wall and then along the baseboard, match the color to both the wall and baseboard by painting the cable the color of the wall and then the color of the baseboard so that the cable blends in. If you have black wires then you can run them along the edge of a black bookcase or entertainment center to blend in or you may have to paint the wires to match the color of the furniture. On wallpapered walls, cover the wires with a small strip of wallpaper to match the design.

    • 6

      Cut a hole in the back of a bookcase or entertainment center shelf where the equipment will be. Feed the wires through the hole and into the equipment. With the wires hidden behind the furniture attach them to the speakers that can be on top of the furniture or at the sides and the wires can be hidden from view.

    • 7

      Secure the wires by either using a staple gun or wire tacks that usually come in colors of black or white, and nail these into the wall, furniture or baseboard every two feet with a hammer. Pull the wires with pliers to take up any slack.

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