I was thinking of routing in flex conduit in the plank walls of our house, a wooden house from 1942. Should one worry about the structural integrity if routing a 16 mm deep groove horizontally on the inside of an outer wall? I would estimate that the planks are about 60 mm thick.
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sinuslinus
Träskalle
· Östergötlands län
· 6 013 posts
sinuslinus
Träskalle
- Östergötlands län
- 6,013 posts
It must be easier to install surface-mounted electrical or add a little framing on the wall. You probably want some other covering than the plank wall.
S
sinuslinus
Träskalle
· Östergötlands län
· 6 013 posts
sinuslinus
Träskalle
- Östergötlands län
- 6,013 posts
There is usually a gap for insulation and then a board wall inside the plank wall. Is the wall insulated on the outside? Otherwise, I would consider adding studs and insulating the inside. It's easier to run electrical wiring that way.
I don't know if it weakens the wall to cut channels, but it should be fine. Though the drywall doesn't make a difference either way. It's a lot of work, though. You have to saw two channels and then chisel out the middle with a chisel. Routing with a router would take even longer, I would guess.
I don't know if it weakens the wall to cut channels, but it should be fine. Though the drywall doesn't make a difference either way. It's a lot of work, though. You have to saw two channels and then chisel out the middle with a chisel. Routing with a router would take even longer, I would guess.
No, there is no extra insulation on the outside. It is of course an option, but then you have to fix new smygar and other things that come along... Yes, it took some time, I did as you suggested, used the circular saw and then the chisel for maybe 1.5 m until I started worrying about the wall. It took about 20 minutes.
It is probably 21/2 inch planks in the wall. The spacing doesn't matter for the strength. A plank wall functions almost like a panel construction where each plank is fastened to the adjacent one with a number of skew-nailed 6" nails.
A single plank can withstand a very large load in the direction of the grain. When multiple planks are joined with tongue and groove and nails, the risk of buckling is limited, and each plank can bear even more. If you want to get an idea of the loads (in the direction of the grain) that even lightweight timber can withstand, you can study Träguiden/Konstruktion/Dimensionering/Dimensioneringsvärden and load-bearing capacity/Posts-braces of structural timber. The dimensions of the planks were probably mostly determined by their thermal insulating ability. 3 inches was common, but 2 inches was also used for simpler buildings.
Can't you set 22mm space and run the hose in and on with the plaster? You are going to redo the reveals etc. anyway, so the additional work should be limited.
The wall will probably hold and it is likely faster to mill in the pipe than to space it, which saves a little space. If you space it, you might want an OSB board even though it's not necessary with a plank wall of 22 mm behind.
The plank frame (vertical and grooved planks) was the dominant method when building small houses between approximately 1920 and 1950. Until the early 1940s, mostly 2½ or 3-inch planks were used, then almost without exception 2-inch, which were considered to have sufficient static properties for a two-story house. Instead, insulation was enhanced in other ways.