How do you organize your extension cords?

[mcraigl]

I'm in the process of cleaning out the garage so it can be remodelled into a shop. I've come to realize that I'm tired of tripping over cords. I know I could just crank out some large s-hooks to hang 'em I thought I'd ask what y'all do. I know someone in the group has got to have the ultimate cord organizing method. Show me some pix and give me some text showing how you deal with yoru cords.

[irnsrgn]

Hanging electical cords over a hook invites disaster, leaves a kink also makes them suseptable to cracking. I use plastric mig wire spools cut in half to store them on, they are a throwaway item, so no cost and will hold several cords of the same length, I also use them for storing air hose.

[ApprenticeMan]

You mean for storing them or when they are in use?

[mcraigl]

Sam, I mean for storing them. For instance, I've got a real nice 100' 10ga. cord that is very bulky and takes a lot of space. Most of the smaller cords I've got will hang on a 16d nail but this one would need someting much, much larger.

Irn, thanks for that tip. That's exactly the type of information I'm looking for. Never thought of that one before. I know my father in law is very specific about his hoses and cords being wound up with very large loops so the the coily memory thing isn't as bad. I assume you're talking about the larger mig spools. I haven't emptied one yet, I had been using the smaller spools in my little 110v mig and just switched over to the large spools on the last change. Do you just nail them to the wall? The other thing I'm worried about is that my shop isn't very big and wall space is going to be at a premium once I start hanging cabinets and putting workbenches etc. in.

ML

[ThomasPowers]

Wire the shop so you need nothing over a 10' cord and throw the rest in the garden shed...

Thomas

[easilyconfused]

On our farm, we don't get around to repairing cords so it isn't hard to organize them when you only have one working cord that you keep dragging with you. For the ones waiting to repair, we've hung them on old tire rims nailed to the wall and the ends of old posts nailed to the beams in the barn.

[Rantalin]

In my garage, which my father uses to store his inventory and has power tools in, there is an extension cord on a reel. I assume these can be purchased at a Home Depot or other home improvement store. You pull the cor away from the spool as long as you want it, and every few feet the reel clicks, engaging the gears that keep the cord from retracting. keep pulling until the clicks stop, and the cord will retract into the reel again. It's really easy to use, and is about a 25 foot cord I think. This extension cord is used for the table saw, drill press, and belt sander. All other power tools are directly plugged into outlets in the walls.

[mcraigl]

Thomas, that's part of the plan. The impetus for this whole deal is that I bought a vertical mill a couple of weeks ago. The power currently to the detached garage is in the form of knob-and-tube wires that are about 7' off the ground running out of the sophet of the house over to the sophet of the garage. They're about 12ga. and it's only a 110 circuit on a 20amp breaker. There's currently 4 outlets in there and those all have one regular receptacle and one with horizontal blades? I'm putting a 60amp subpanel in the garage and removing the old knob and tube hazards. I'll be putting a ton of outlets in for 110, and at least three or four for 220. "Getting rid of" cords doesn't help me when I've got a welding job that I can't get into the garage and need to drag the welder down the driveway though. That was the reason for spending a hundred bucks on that 10ga. cord.

Rantalin, I've thought about getting one of those cord reels and hanging it off a rafter in the center of the shop. Don't know how many times I've had something on the assembly table, using a grinder or sander, and tripped on the cord running to an outlet on the wall and yanked the tool off the table and breaking the disc. Also thought about either a hose reel or coily hose in the same location for the same reasons. Or maybe just hanging a 4gang outlet from a sturdy cord long enough that I can reach up and plug into it.

Easy, I may actually have an old rim laying around from a camp trailer I no longer own. That'd be a good way to keep my nice expensive cord from being damaged and getting it off the floor.

Sincer we've touched on other shop issues, let me throw another one out there. Do you think it would be worthwhile to put piping for airlines in the walls before I insulate and sheetrock even though I've currently got a small/portable air compressor and can reach anywhere in the shop with a 30' hose? Pro's / Con's? Any other ideas?

[Rantalin]

Ew...knob and tube...not fun...I dealt with that all summer working for my dad. Definatly the most dangerous wiring type I've ever seen. Although I've seen some very poorly done wiring from today's electricians that's even more dangerous.

[oakwoodforge]

mcraigl, As far as plumbing for the compressed air lines , I'd run it out side the wall, sometimes they need a little maintenanace, or spring a leak. If the pipes are easily accessable its not a big deal, If they are behind drywall ... its not so easy.


Jens