Filling in around new socket

danrv

Hi
This double socket has been added into a plasterboard wall and was wondering about how to fill the gap. It's at my brother's property.
Was thinking expanding foam then a small piece of plasterboard.
Any help appreciated.

Simonon77

I wouldn't use expanding foam as it sticks to everything, so could be a nightmare in the future. I would just cut the holes out to be proper rectangles, then fit a piece of plasterboard into it. If you make the board a tiny bit smaller you can use no more nails around the edge to stick it to the old board, then skim or fill over the top

daveyjp

Lots of videos on youtube.

35har1old

danrv said:

Hi
This double socket has been added into a plasterboard wall and was wondering about how to fill the gap. It's at my brother's property.
Was thinking expanding foam then a small piece of plasterboard.
Any help appreciated.

Was it installed by a qualified electrician?
How is the back box secured within the stud as I can not see any timber battens?
Plasterboard should have been removed to the nearest upright studs and cut back to half the width of stud timber batten installed to fix box to sightly beyond timber upright to help in accurate cutting of box hole cable installed and replace plasterboard  floor should be marked where cable rises to prevent any strikes with nails.
Use of foam may not be recommended as it may derate the cable

danrv

35har1old said:

danrv said:

Hi
This double socket has been added into a plasterboard wall and was wondering about how to fill the gap. It's at my brother's property.
Was thinking expanding foam then a small piece of plasterboard.
Any help appreciated.

Was it installed by a qualified electrician?
How is the back box secured within the stud as I can not see any timber battens?

Yes, qualified electrician.
There's a batten behind the back box.

grumbler

What sort of wall is it? I see the bricks behind the plasterboard and the wires and cannot make sense of the other backbox visible in the photo.

danrv

grumbler said:

What sort of wall is it? I see the bricks behind the plasterboard and the wires and cannot make sense of the other backbox visible in the photo.

Plasterboard/batten wall separating two bedrooms. The other box is a socket in the adjacent room.

FreeBear

I would carefully cut back to battens & noggins either side (and above) and fix a piece of plasterboard in place. Use screws, not nails. Then apply a skim of plaster or drywall "mud". If you use the premixed drywall stuff, it can be wet sponge sanded for a smoother finish and a seamless feathering in.

grumbler

danrv said:

grumbler said:

What sort of wall is it? I see the bricks behind the plasterboard and the wires and cannot make sense of the other backbox visible in the photo.

Plasterboard/batten wall

What's 'batten'? If it's plasterboard on both sides, then it's a stud wall.

Regardless, what's holding the back box that the socket is screwed to? I see a gap on the left side and nothing on the right side.

If it's a stud wall, IMO the socket and the back box have to be removed and reinstalled after a big area of wall is reliably repaired.

ThisIsWeird

Hi Dan.

The bedroom socket backbox would appear to be a drywall type, so held in place only by the two plastic clips which catch the back of the p'board on that side. Adequate, but only just.

How is the one facing you secured? Clearly not in the same way, since there's no p'board either side. Is it  at least solidly secured?

(Is that socket technically not in the 'safe zone' as its supply cable runs by its side, and not in line?)

Do you have access to small pieces of p'board to help with the patching? 

danrv

grumbler said:

danrv said:

grumbler said:

What sort of wall is it? I see the bricks behind the plasterboard and the wires and cannot make sense of the other backbox visible in the photo.

Plasterboard/batten wall

What's 'batten'? If it's plasterboard on both sides, then it's a stud wall.

Regardless, what's holding the back box that the socket is screwed to? I see a gap on the left side and nothing on the right side.

If it's a stud wall, IMO the socket and the back box have to be removed and reinstalled after a big area of wall is reliably repaired.

Yes, meant to say stud.
The back box is screwed to a vertical stud and the connecting cables come up through the floorboards.

ThisIsWeird said:

Hi Dan.

The bedroom socket backbox would appear to be a drywall type, so held in place only by the two plastic clips which catch the back of the p'board on that side. Adequate, but only just.

How is the one facing you secured? Clearly not in the same way, since there's no p'board either side. Is it  at least solidly secured?

Do you have access to small pieces of p'board to help with the patching? 

Yes, was wondering what the other white box was for the other room. Must be a drywall type then.
The one facing me is solidly secured to a stud. 
There's plasterboard available for repair.