Hiding a power cord inside of a desk leg?

[Bob Sanders]

Hey everyone! I am in the process of building my first office desk, and am toying with the idea of running/hiding a power cord up one of the desk legs and behind the aprins to camoflage all of the wiring that will be involved with the computer.

I was thinking about simply using some hooks to keep the cord in place along the wood, but the more I think about it, there should be some way to actually imbed the cord in the wooden leg and still be able to get the cord out if need be.

Have any of you experimented with such a thing? What do you recommend? Am I better off just forgetting about it and sticking with the old motto "keep it simple, stupid!"?

Thanks!

[Bill McDermott]

Bob, I like your idea to keep the cords from spoiling the appearance of your new desk. I've seen outdoor construction that hides cords. You might get inspiration from deck railings, sidewalk lamps, etc.. Many of them run a groove up the side and then fill the groove with a strip of wood, leaving a hidden space for wires. You could make that strip removeable. managing the wiring brings back the art of the secret compartment - albeit for a modern application. Good luck! Bill

[Jim Becker]

I agree that making a channel with a removable cover would be the best way in the long run to accommodate this need. Any communication cables can be handled in the same way, but should be routed up a different leg for isolation from the power.

[Jamie Buxton]

Keeping cables out of sight, and hiding that inevitable snarl of cables, is a good idea. How to do it depends on the desk and/or leg design. Why don't you tell us about the desk, and maybe we can come up with ideas for you.

Just as a thought, many office desks have more below the top than legs. They have drawers for storage, or a spot for a computer tower, or something. If something like that exists on your desk, it is a good way to get cables most of the way from floor to desk top.

[Doug Shepard]

Is there no back panel on the desk that could hide the cords from sight? Ultimately you'd still have to have the cord exit out the back of the legs and run to the wall plugs. If there's a back panel it's usually lower than the wall sockets and the cords could be totally off the floor and out of sight.

[Martin Shupe]

Do a search for posts originated by Jason Tuinstra.

He did a really nice job of hiding a cord in the leg of a desk.

I can't remember exactly how, but when you find it, you will know.

[Randal Stevenson]

Do a search for posts originated by Jason Tuinstra.

He did a really nice job of hiding a cord in the leg of a desk.

I can't remember exactly how, but when you find it, you will know.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=24881

Found it.

[Charles P. Wright]

This might be totally off the wall, but maybe you can build the legs to be hollow. Instead of a solid hunk of wood, you might be able to use four boards for the outside of the leg, and just have an empty center.

[Keith Starosta]

Do a search for posts originated by Jason Tuinstra.

He did a really nice job of hiding a cord in the leg of a desk.

I can't remember exactly how, but when you find it, you will know.

Yep, I remember Jason's projects in this regard. Very nice. I also remember Todd Burch doing a lot of "cord hiding" jobs a few years ago. He was a big proponent of this technique, IIRC. You may want to check his threads, as well.

- Keith

[Bob Sanders]

I agree that making a channel with a removable cover would be the best way in the long run to accommodate this need. Any communication cables can be handled in the same way, but should be routed up a different leg for isolation from the power.

Thanks for the support guys! On the back side of the desk (centered) I will have a hidden drawer in the aprin, which rolls out and holds all of my computer 'peripherals' including iPod, camera, camcorder, hard drive, etc. I want to keep it all off of the top of the desk if possible.

The computer I am using is an Apple iMac, so there is no tower to contend with... so all of the cords will come from the back of the "screen" and go into the hidden drawer with all of the peripherals. In that drawer I will ahve a surge protector, which will be connected through an extention cord, which is what I am trouble figuring out to hide while it goes down the desk leg.

[Bob Sanders]

Is there no back panel on the desk that could hide the cords from sight? Ultimately you'd still have to have the cord exit out the back of the legs and run to the wall plugs. If there's a back panel it's usually lower than the wall sockets and the cords could be totally off the floor and out of sight.

Yes, all of the electronics will be housed in a 'hidden drawer' on the back side of the desk. The desk will be sitting in the middle of the room... so that comlicates things a bit. Otherwise wiring wouldn't be such a big issue.

[Bob Sanders]

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=24881

Found it.

This is VERY similar to what I am making. Mine is a bit larger (a 36" by 66" top, standing about 30" tall) and the legs are a bit larger (3" square at top, and 1-1/4" at bottom), but I too am using CHERRY!

[Bob Sanders]

Keeping cables out of sight, and hiding that inevitable snarl of cables, is a good idea. How to do it depends on the desk and/or leg design. Why don't you tell us about the desk, and maybe we can come up with ideas for you.

Just as a thought, many office desks have more below the top than legs. They have drawers for storage, or a spot for a computer tower, or something. If something like that exists on your desk, it is a good way to get cables most of the way from floor to desk top.

Unfortunately (or fortunately I guess, as I prefer the look) there are no panels or large drawers which extend to the floor. The design is very similar to the one linked to a couple of posts below this one. It is more of a 'writer's desk' without the stacked drawers on each side.

That type of design would surely make this a lot easier though!

[tim rowledge]

If you're using a Mac don't forget to consider having space for an external drive for TimeMachine; unless you're using a TimeCapsule by wireless of course. Currently mine is tucked into a little box/stand I made for my macbook to sit next to the iMac24 without cable tangles.

Another thing to remember is the height of your power outlets and where that means the cord must go. My outlets are 15-16" off the floor for example so it might be that the cord could exit the leg well above ground level. Then again, you might have big heavy UPS to worry about as well!

[Bob Sanders]

If you're using a Mac don't forget to consider having space for an external drive for TimeMachine; unless you're using a TimeCapsule by wireless of course. Currently mine is tucked into a little box/stand I made for my macbook to sit next to the iMac24 without cable tangles.

Another thing to remember is the height of your power outlets and where that means the cord must go. My outlets are 15-16" off the floor for example so it might be that the cord could exit the leg well above ground level. Then again, you might have big heavy UPS to worry about as well!

Hahaha! Good to see someone here so knowledgeable about macs! The Time Machine should fit perfectly in my hidden drawer (along with everything else), thanks!

My desk is going to be in the middle of the room... so the exit point will need to be right next to the ground, as the cord will have to run across the carpet unfortunately.

I am almost leaning towards just skipping this step and just using some 'hooks' to keep the cord in place behind the leg... I don't know.