uh-oh!

[Buck Parrish]

I'm doin the finish on a pretty upscale home. The master bed fireplace is all walnut. The carpenters needed some cut in boxes to make holes for the sconces on the fireplace. They didn't want to cut around boxes fastened to the fire place structure, so we used cut ins. Problem is I gave them those stupid blue round cut ins from home depot which apparently are 4" and of course the sconces don't cover a 4" hole. Expensive mistake. I guess I should have used a 3" pan or something, but I don't think you can legally put 1 14-2 in them without going over box fill.

Does anyone have any ideas how to fix it with out redoing the whole fireplace? I am thinking custom adaptor or something.

What do you do in a similiar situation?

Use a 5" hole saw cut a hole in a piece of sheet metal. Paint the 5" part to match the sconse. You may need to sand the edges a bit. And of course a hole to pull your wires through.
You will only see a about a half inch of it.

Other wise you could offer to install the two sconse some where else. And they get bigger ones for the fire place.

 

[jes25]

You said this was on a wood panel, no?

I carry my own sharp wood chisel exactly for this situation. Score the wood on the outline of the plaster ear and pop out and smooth off just enough depth for the ears and the screw heads. That's for a GEM box. Your round rework boxes will take more time, but the idea is the same.

Good idea. If needed I'll push that one off on the carpenters though. I don't trust myself with anything sharp on that thing.

 

[220/221]

We run into that all the time with pendant lights that are all the rage.

I have searched in vain for a smaller round cut in box.


I have to rotozip the lip to allow the canopy to (barely) cover the box.

In your case, it depends on how big the hole is. The box doesn't need a lot to grip. You may even be able to fit a regular 4/o box in the hole and secure it thru the inside perimeter to the wood.

 

[mivey]

Use a 5" hole saw cut a hole in a piece of sheet metal. Paint the 5" part to match the sconse. You may need to sand the edges a bit. And of course a hole to pull your wires through.
You will only see a about a half inch of it...

Sounds like it would look like a rigged up mess. Do you have a picture of one that looked great? I just can't seem to picture it looking nice.

 

[mivey]

Good idea. If needed I'll push that one off on the carpenters though. I don't trust myself with anything sharp on that thing.

Get a chisel set and practice on a piece of wood. It is really a simple procedure. Comes in handy around the house too.

 

[mivey]

See if the carpenter can make a matching plate, sort of a wooden fender washer...

That might look decent with a nice routered edge if you could match the color.

I was real impressed with a furniture doctor that came around to fix some damage made by movers. These guys have an eye for detail. They might be good to call in an emergency.

 

[hillbilly]

You said this was on a wood panel, no?

I carry my own sharp wood chisel exactly for this situation. Score the wood on the outline of the plaster ear and pop out and smooth off just enough depth for the ears and the screw heads. That's for a GEM box. Your round rework boxes will take more time, but the idea is the same.

I have a couple of sharp wood chisels too.
If you ever wire a log cabin, you'll find that they're indispensable.

The only time that I've ever cut myself with a chisel was about 18 months ago.
I was cutting a groove in a wood beam, and not paying attention.
Sadly, I'd just finished sharpening the chisel.
8 stitches in my left palm.

With practice, you can cut just about any pattern in wood and make it look good.

steve