RE: Hot knife for HA conduit ...

["Paul Gordon" <paul@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Could you not "repurpose" a soldering gun, and just
fabricate a suitable
bit to put in it?...

Paul G.


> -----Original Message-----
> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On Behalf
> Of Neil Ball
> Sent: 19 September 2007 09:45
> To: UKHA Group
> Subject: RE: [ukha_d] Hot knife for HA conduit ...
>
> Speed is relative, I built using blockwork for all of my walls,
> internal &
> external. Lightweight block was not too bad for cutting back boxes and
> capping cables, dense block was a b*****d! I could only spend weekends
> and
> evenings and it took me nearly a month in all.
>
>
>
> Hot wire approach has its own issues - Helen Pearson used to post on
> the UK
> Selfbuild forums and built a hot wire cutter to cut the roof
insulation
> for
> her build. Her husband was an electronics engineer and spent some time
> perfecting the rig. Even then they suffered a number of wire breaks so
> it
> was not all plain sailing. Might still be some posts in the archive if
> you
> want to try a search.
>
>
>
> Neil B.
>
>
>
>
>
>   _____
>
> From: ukha_d@xxxxxxx [mailto:ukha_d@xxxxxxx] On Behalf
> Of
> Chris Hunter
> Sent: 18 September 2007 18:36
> To: ukha_d@xxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [ukha_d] Hot knife for HA conduit ...
>
>
>
> Thanks, I had ... US 'sites say some use a 'knife, others a
> router ... but, 'have to say, I was surprised by this ... one of the
> plusses of ICF is speed, and 'would have thought a knife would have
> been quicker, even without talikng into account clean-up time ...
>
> 'looks like we'll have to be a controllable power-supply, some
> formable wire (maybe from Scientific Wire), some screw connectors,
> and some wheels, to make our own device ! Maybe the power supply
> would have other uses ... any thoughts (they don't get mentioned much
> on this forum) ? ! Maybe mains' & a dimmer would be OK, if we were
> careful (ouch) ? !
>
> Chris
>
> On 18 Sep 2007, at 09:17, Neil Ball wrote:
>
> > Have you considered other approaches? Polarwall (A ICF supplier)
> > suggest
> > using a router to cut the channels, messy but does not require
any
> > specialist kit. Polystyrene also reacts with the plasticisers in
> > the cable
> > insulation making brittle with over time so all cabling need to
be
> > within
> > suitable conduit.
> >
> >
> >
> > Neil B.
> >
> >
> >
> > _____
> >
> > From: ukha_d@yahoogroups. <mailto:ukha_d%40yahoogroups.com>
com
> [mailto:ukha_d@yahoogroups. <mailto:ukha_d%40yahoogroups.com>
com] On
> > Behalf Of
> > Chris Hunter
> > Sent: 17 September 2007 19:12
> > To: ukha_d@yahoogroups. <mailto:ukha_d%40yahoogroups.com>
com
> > Subject: [ukha_d] Hot knife for HA conduit ...
> >
> >
> >
> > 'wondered if someone could recommend a good hot knife for cleanly
> > cutting channels for conduit in polystyrene foam ... for the HA,
we
> > need to run lots of Cat-5 & power cables, and need a quick
way of
> > doing it before we plaster (most of our walls currently being
> > polystyrene on the surface) ... 'thought it would be easy, but
> > finding a suitable hot-wire / hot knife is proving impossible !
> >
> > Chris
>
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
>
>
>