Hiding Coax in an apartment?

[Jalpuna]

Hello all - first time poster here.

My apartment is a huge one room loft, and they installed the cable at the worst possible place.

What options are there for hiding it? I went wireless with my computer for the cable modem, but there's still an ugly cable spanning 12 feet to reach the TV.

Ugh!

Any options?

 

[Francious70]

Try hiding it behind the floorboards. If that isn't an option, I would suggest a big rug.

Paul

 

[sjdgpt]

Assuming the cable is running along the exterior wall.

1. Painting the cable to match the flooring or mopboards.

2. Change the cable to another brand/color to better match the decor.

3. Floor length drapes (even false drapes) for improved room acoustics AND hiding the cable.

4. Building a false wall, or casement, covered with decorative fabric or wallpaper. The false wall, if built deep enough, could be waist high and used as a shelf planter or storage.

5. Find a new girlfriend, one that is a professional interior decorator, and let her redecorate the room. Didn't say you had to keep her. Just be friendly while you get your loft redecorated for free.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Depending on your finances and your willingness to to stupid things, you can always run the cable behind the drywall then patch the drywall.

I got sick of my son (11 months now) screwing with my gear so I put it all in my Middle Atlantic rack in another room and cut a 1 gang hole on both sides of the wall and ran all the cables through the wall and to all the speakers. I can still see all the wiring, but the two large holes are just going to get blank faceplates when we move out. They will have to deal with the holes I made hanging the plasma on the wall and the screen on the wall and the projector on the ceiling themselves.

It's an apartment, they will deal with little silly things.

 

[HTnewbie]

Here are two solutions that might help as well as "beautify" your place. Note that these are semi-permanent and you may have to leave them behind when you move or remove and patch any nail holes, etc.

http://www.smarthome.com/8900.html

http://www.smarthome.com/8901.HTML

While there are other "creative" solutions, be wary of making holes or channels in sheet rock or plaster walls. I had to fight for six months to get back my deposit from a landlord because I did him a favor and hid some coax in a channel the I cut in a wall. Eventhough I patched it up, painted the wall and installed a nice faceplate, the guy said I violated the lease by doing unauthorized work! I finally prevailed when I threatened to turn him in to city officials for using unlicensed electricians to do work in the building.

 

[HTnewbie]

I went wireless with my computer for the cable modem​

While I am thinking about it, if you have not done so already, be certain that you set up your wireless gear so that only you have use of the access point. Your manual will tell you how to do that and it only takes five minutes. The reason is that in an apartment setting, your open access point is available to anyone nearby with a wireless PC. In fact, I know of a friend who set up his AP in his living room (near the cable inlet) and used it for six months before realizing that, when in his bedroom, his laptop was actually using the AP of the apartment next door. Nothing harmful happened but you never know when the snot-nosed 13-year old in the next apartment may decide to peak into your PC....

 

[Jalpuna]

You're not kidding about setting up security on the router. I did. I actually receive free broadband thanks to living above a public access hotspot... but I pay for cable broadband because I'd feel like a shmuck for using the hotspot since it's really intended for customers of the business downstairs (a trendy barbershop)

As for the GREAT links for molding to hide wires - it's a brilliant idea, but sadly, it's not the one for this situation. I was really hoping for a wireless option. Oh well.