Replies

1. 
   john7g | Jan 21, 2009 03:34pm | #1

   find them at the Big Box Stores.  You'll need alot fo them, enough for each outlet so you're not moving the sheet more than you need to.  at the time I bought mine I didn't see them in anything other than single gang size so double * triple ganges you'r still doing some measureing even if you get the single to give you a starting location.

   and in the end I found it to just measure the old fashioned way

2. 
   DonCanDo | Jan 21, 2009 03:52pm | #2

   I recently started a big drywall job and the GC does not want me to use a roto/zip...

   I just gotta ask, why not?  Dust?  Does that mean that there won't be any sanding of the spackle either?

1. 
   Mooney | Jan 22, 2009 12:49am | #6

   Wire damage. Drywaller is a guest inside an electricans boxes. They are his territory.

    

   Edited 1/21/2009 4:50 pm by Mooney

1. 
   DonCanDo | Jan 22, 2009 01:05am | #8

   Thanks.  I never thought about it before, but it makes sense.

1. 
   DanH | Jan 22, 2009 01:13am | #10

   You've probably never seen wires damaged by a RotoZip.But with just a modicum of care damage will not occur. First the sparky should push the wires all the way into the box. (The rockers should double-check this.) Then the rockers should set the bit extension to just what is needed to reliably get through the rock and engage the edge of the box.
   The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. -John Kenneth Galbraith

1. 
   captainbil | Feb 15, 2009 03:43pm | #17

   Another problen with these boxes is the electrican left a ton of wire sticking out of the boxes and never stripped the out jacket off , so you can't stuff the wire back into the box. Then he  gives me a hard time with a couple of boxes off center. I can fix them it they weren't set so deep in the wall board.

2. 
   arcflash | Jan 22, 2009 01:10am | #9

   Thank you, well put! I personally don't see what the problem is. If you stuff the wires in the box deep enough, and the bit is set just below 1/2" (or whatever the thickness of the rock is), then there shouldn't be a problem. The biggest problems I see is that the bit on the Rotozip is too deep, and it chews the wires up bad. I've used Rotozips before, and If I can do it right, anyone can. And for the record, around here, most outlets are hung at 16" to center (sometimes bottom) and 46" to bottom (sometimes center) for switches. Just measure a few to see.

1. 
   DanH | Jan 22, 2009 01:19am | #11

   I was taught to put the switch boxes 48-5/8" down from the ceiling framing. This puts them on the top edge of the bottom sheet of drywall, making the marking and cutout easier. Any higher and they'd interfere with the top sheet.Of course, probably not as necessary with a RotoZip.
   The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. -John Kenneth Galbraith

1. 
   arcflash | Jan 22, 2009 01:31am | #12

   It varies quite a bit from job to job. Whatever the specifications say in the blueprints is what gets done. Some architects have enough sense to specify them at 48" to bottom, most don't.

2. 
   Mooney | Jan 22, 2009 02:30am | #14

   Normally contractors have the same subs for years. Along the way somewhere the electrician has had a bad drywaller to work with and they dont forget it . They have enough pull with the contractor to specify the way boxes are treated. After all they buy the boxes and the wire and at the hanging point in the process most electricans havent been paid . Even if they have been paid they are responsible for their work. Simple terms are that the boxes belong to the electrician. Anything above the studs are the drywallers domain. Technically the first 1/2 inch of that box protrudes past the studs so the argument lies for a roto zip the first half inch but thats not enough to guide the bit so its moot.

   Now to look at it with a full zoom lens effect , the electrician may ask for a particular hanger he loves to work beside . He can help keep you busy. Of course the contractor can reccomend you too . Ive been through this and many more things for years and years of doing this very thing . Scraping out was a problem for me we never quite got worked out . I billed it and they thought it was art of the job. Well it could be if I considered it with the pricing . However most contractors wanted the cheapest price they could get . That wasnt in that price.

   Once I knew what a contractor really wanted I could act accordingly. I could price the job with out him knowing I was charging for cleaning out his houses. That made it simpler.

   You can not cut out boxes by hand for the same labor rate as a roto zip. So charge acordingly when you can ." Never put your money in someone elses dream ". [Mike Smith] Get a 100 more on the job pricing it and roll on with out words reflecting pricing causing arguement .

   The only times it will it will get you in trouble is when two contractors share what they pay you and its not the same . Even then they wont know the reason.

   Tim  

3. 
   Mooney | Jan 22, 2009 02:13am | #13

   Right . 48 5/8s is perfect if the ceiling is 8 ft. Whether its 8,9, or 10, the drywall is always 1/2 from the floor when stud lengths are used and most commonly they are . Hardly anyone cuts their own studs unless its ballon walls and then they are only those walls to worry about . On a ballon long wall I hang the rock from the floor on top of 1/2 inch scraps so I get the same thing. And it gives me a ledger to hold the next sheet on while I tack it off. So its always 1/2 from the floor. Thats why I like the boxes set from the floor . 48 5/8 is even better than 1/2 but either will work fine . 

2. 
   captainbil | Feb 15, 2009 03:29pm | #15

   Sorry a little late getting back to this, this breaktime is new to me but really neat. I saw the gc the other day and asked him the same question. His response was- you can't use the rotozip if there is a hot outlet installed-. I just looked at him and kept my mouth shut for a change. This job went sour a while earlier and i just want finish it.

   Edited 2/15/2009 7:48 am ET by captainbil

3. 
   bil | Jan 22, 2009 12:16am | #3

   Check out the folks at http://www.fastcap.com They sell the marker that you are looking for.

4. 
   BillHartmann | Jan 22, 2009 12:36am | #4

   http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=115380.1

   On the upper left side there is a Show Discussion drop down list.

   If you select Unread message to ME then you will see if there are any replies TO YOU.

   But sometimes people will replay to ALL or to other people that have replies so those won't show up.

   But you can also selected to show High Interest. Those are the ones with Thumbs Up which you can set at the bottom of the thread. And it is also autmatically set for any thread that you post in.

   .
   William the Geezer, the sequel to Billy the Kid - Shoe
1. 
   DanH | Jan 22, 2009 12:52am | #7

   > And it is also autmatically set for any thread that you post in.That's a Preferences option ("Mark discussions as a favorite"). There's also a Preferences option to get e-mail notification of posts addressed to you.
   The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness. -John Kenneth Galbraith

2. 
   captainbil | Feb 15, 2009 03:57pm | #18

   Thanks for the reply. New system and i have to learn it. I went to a trade show that FineHomeBuilding put on a while back. Loved it. Learned a lot and felt good being there with guys that did work like i do, but was also in awe at how much knowledge was there. Made me feel so small when i thought about how much they knew and i didn't.

5. 
   Mooney | Jan 22, 2009 12:48am | #5

   I could just tell ya how to do it .

   Mark the center of the boxes on the floor with black crayon. Im talking about recepticles . Switches are easy because they are normally installed at 48 1/2 from the floor unless you been messin with the electricians wife . They always put the recepts at the same distance from the floor . Center on ours is 14 1/2. Measure up from the black line 14 1/2 and mark it with one measurement . Saw the inside out with a pocket drywall saw . Then run the out sides at an angle to get out side the boxes. Perfect fit every time . Trim with a knife if needed since youve cut it back at an angle .

   Some crews hang that way period. I hung that way when I didnt have power or i had a picky electrician.

    

1. 
   captainbil | Feb 15, 2009 03:36pm | #16

   Sorry for the slow response,this job is dragging me down. Some of the boxes have hot outlets in them so i can't do it that way. What i wound up doing is marking the location and using a Fein multi tool to cut them out, neat,fast and not dusty. You just have to be careful around the hot terminals, but a little tape solves that.