Finding Speaker Wires In Ceiling

O.C.Inc.

I'm a GC and a customer had a bedroom ceiling re re sheetrocked and he installed wiring for ceiling speakers a couple of years ago. NOW he wants to install the speakers and has no record of where the wire is..... There is NO access above ceiling..
How can I find them?
I was thinking of a toner used in telephone work???

Ideas?
Thanks! Patrick

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Union Carpenter/Super started my own shop.

O.C.Inc.

A good customer of mine had a roof leak years ago, re rocked the ceiling and had some inwall speaker wiring placed in the ceiling. He since lost the diagram, so I have no way of finding it without a sawzall...
I was thinking of a telephone tone generator or I have that cheapo 120V locater found in Depot stores but I don't think they would be strong enough. The wires are supposedly above the insulation...


Suggestions??
Thanks!
Patrick

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Union Carpenter/Super started my own shop.

dlcj

Has he forgotten where he wants the speakers to be? Get him to decide on the locations and start there. The wires should be there if he has not completly changed everything around. If not then at least you needed the holes there anyway for when you do find the wires. I dont know of any other way unless you use something like the utility companies use to locate underground wires, pipes, etc.

GregS

So if it's in the ceiling above the insulation, why not go into the attic and locate it? Should be sitting right there shouldn't it?

Otherwise yes, use a toner and a reverse-induction pickup.

mdshunk

A toner and probe is what I normally use. Matter of fact, if you pump music through those wires at a high volume, that sometimes works better than putting the toner on the head end. Try the toner first, but keep that in mind if you're having trouble. Just for information's sake, you can use the 'probe' part to "listen" to anything being pumped through an audio wire. Be that a phone conversation, PA music, 60hz hum, etc. Easy way to "tap" a phonecall without any actual mechanical connections. I use this technique to troubleshoot a dead PA speaker. Just listen to the cable at various points to figure out where the bad junction is.

mickeyco

Question: Should you check for continuity between the wires first in case whoever pulled them stripped and tied them together for pulling purposes?


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mdshunk

Yeah, but if you use a toner first, your tone will go to nothing right off the bat right at the toner, so you'll know if that's the case right away. I think the installers who prewire this stuff know better than the keep the ends tied, but it's hard to say for sure. Some LV installers are just a notch above Piltdown Man on the evolutionary chart.

GregS

Some electricians are the same way when it comes to LV

mdshunk

Agreed. A man's got to know his limits. What is normally the case is the guy actually think's he's doing a good job, but it couldn't be more messed up.

Aiken Colon

I personally do not stock or carry these, but I am pretty sure you could get away with this:

http://www.idealindustries.com/prodD...?prodId=62-140

Pretty cheap too. Based on cost, I am guessing you would be able to find it for around $35-$40

If you wanted a nicer and a little more powerful one you could go with the 33-862 or 33-864. They are the same, the 864 comes in a pouch and the 862 in a case. I will let ya in on a little secret they are the same price cost wise, so if you decide on one of those, I would think the case one would be nicer.

I am assuming it is a one time deal so you might want to check out amprobe also. They are owned by Fluke, but are way more economical.

Good luck

JJ

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O.C.Inc.

I found them by using a tone generator I borrowed from a retired AT&T employee. The tone was very weak as the wire was above the insulation, but with a dead quiet room I found them!
Patrick

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Union Carpenter/Super started my own shop.

Speedy Petey

Duplicate thread.
On going thread here: http://www.contractortalk.com/showthread.php?t=43733

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TMG1

Fluke has a nice toner and probe http://www.flukenetworks.com/fnet/en...Probe/Overview
if you're not in a rush check out ebay they're selling these cheap especially if youre using this once only - why but it new?