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Tools & Craft

Pro Tip: How to Easily Transfer a Measurement from Inside a Wall to the Outside

A master carpenter shows you how to do it with music wire

By Rain Noe - October 8, 2018

Whether you're remodeling your home or performing client work in their space, there may come a time when you need to place something on one side of a wall, yet must feed or cut it from the other side of the wall. (Think of wiring that you'd like to precisely line up with an electronic component, or vents for an appliance.) You can try measuring one side of the wall, then walking around to mark the measurement on the other side, but that can be problematic when going from inside to outside, or if there is a level change that alters your reference point (i.e. a room on one side, a staircase on the other).

Here an experienced carpenter shows you the trick he learned from his mentor to transfer a measurement from one side of a wall to the other quickly and flawlessly:

Enter a caption (optional)

Tools & Craft

Rain Noe

Rain Noe is a writer and industrial designer based in New York City.

3 Comments

Nathan D.

8 months ago

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Now show us how to ram that wire through stucco.

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Chris Simon

8 months ago

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Could use a wire coat hanger. I always have some of these around, cuz they’re just so darn useful. :)

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Mark Thomas

8 months ago

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Drilling a hole thru a wall doesn't qualify as a "trick" to locate a point on two sides of a wall. Maybe the home-made wire drill bit, rather than buying long drill bit, is a trick, except almost no one would happen to have the necessary type of wire, so if you have to order something, why not just order long drill bits?

A decade or so ago I used to drill locating holes like this, but then I bought a laser. Now I hit the mark on the first hole.

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