I was trying to drill a 1” hole on the horizontal beam in the wall to fish cable from second floor to garage in first floor. After drilling about 12 inch deep, I cannot go further anymore. Here is few pics about the hole and the wall structure, as well as the drill bit. Please let me know what is going on or if you have any better ideas. Thanks
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Wiring – fishing wire from second floor to garage in first floor
wallswiring
Related Solutions
Best way to work through this is with a flexible drill bit. Most common length is 6'. You can either drill down from your hole or up from your basement. There is a tool to help you guide the bits:
(source: homedepot.com)
(source: homedepot.com)
If 6' is not long enough you can buy bit extensions. Most of the bits have a small hole at the end of the bit you can use to attach a pull string once the bit is drilled through to its destination; this making pulling a wire back through relatively easy. They are also usually self-tapping so you just aim it where you want and let the drill do the rest of the work.
Make sure to mark any important infrastructure like power and gas lines - you don't want to hit any of those while drilling.
The early 1900's was the age of horsehair plaster. The plaster was installed in several coats over wooden laths. What you might be hitting is the plaster that as squeezed between the lath and landed on the soleplate. You should be able to tell if it is plaster by its' somewhat crumbly texture. Insert a long screwdriver in the hole and tap it with a hammer. If it is plaster it should easily break-up and leave you with clean hole.
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Best Answer
I think that using a spade type of bit there will be really tough going. I would use a regular twist bit. Possibly two if it is really tough going - e.g., 1/2" first and then followup with a 1" through the 1/2" starter hole.
If you have access to do so, it may be easier to drill from the bottom up than from the top down because the hole will empty itself thanks to gravity.