wiring under the floor boards, if its filled with concrete?

care2

hi,
sorry if i have posted in the wrong place,
does anyone know here, how to pass the wiring under the floor boards, if its filled with concrete?

VJsmum

Usually a ground floor is either a concrete slab (i.e it is all concrete and then topped with a screed and then have carpet or whatever fitted - with underlay) or it is a suspended timber floor - which will have floorboards and be hollow underneath for a depth of anything up to a foot (possibly more).

I am guessing you will have a wooden floor layed on top of a concrete bed (slab), in which case you will not be able to pass wires underneath without channelling out your concrete. THe other option is to have surface mounted wiring above the floor - going round the skirting in a plastic casing.

HTH

Sunnyday

Our kitchen is like this with a solid floor.

All our wiring comes down from the room above to the sockets and switches etc, the rest of the house is timber floorboards with the wires running underneath these.

SD

SailorSam

Even if you bury the new wiring under the concrete it would be safer inside some sort of plastic pipe, and easier to get out if you needed to in the future,

squeaky

Hiya

I'll move your query across to our In My Home (DIY) board for more answers.

Good luck

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fluffpot

The other option is to run it in the walls around the room, but it will need to be at the same height as sockets so that it is in a 'safe' zone

ormus

you need to find out what youve actually got there.
floorboards have joists underneath them, which is no problem for wiring or pipes.
flooring laid on top of concrete is a very different animal. ie laminate floor.
you have two basic choices, go up/down the walls. or chase out a channel in the concrete.


what sort of wiring is it? you maybe able to hide it behind the skirting boards.
and use some sort of conduit if possible.

care2

cant go around the skirting in a plastic casing.....because owner doesnt want that.
They are electric wires.
finding it difficult to lift the laminated floor boards....?

ormus

most wires are indeed electric.

can you be a bit more specific.

care2

its a wooden floor, it has joist, but there are filled with concrete, instead of insulation.
trying to use drill and saw to cut through the wood, but scared that might drill into a pipe, which will the job bigger!

and erm wires are 2.5mm2 twin n earth for sockets

fluffpot

Hi Care2
Are you trying to fit the new cables?
As others have said, there is no way of routing the cables under the floor if it's concrete, unless you dig up the floor of course.
I don't think you have any choice but to chase the cables into the walls above the floor and get it re-plastered afterwards if the owner doesn't want trunking

Fluff