The Best Way to Pull Wires Through Plaster Walls

Older homes often don't have the number of power outlets needed for today's electronics. Adding power outlets to an older home can be frustrating if the walls are made of plaster. Plaster often makes the space between the studs very narrow and difficult to navigate with a traditional wire puller. You have to create a clean path for the wire to go through the wall in order to install a new power outlet.

Plaster that seeps through the lath can make it difficult to run wires inside the wall.

Step 1

Fit a drill with an 1/8-inch drill bit. Drill two small holes at one end of an 8-foot piece of lath.

Step 2

Go into the attic of the house. Locate the wall the power outlet will be added to. Use a handsaw to cut a hole between the wall studs if necessary to access the wall cavity.

Step 3

Push the 8-foot piece of lath through the hole and down toward the location of the planned power outlet. Use the piece of lath to break any plaster globs out of the way, creating a clean path for running the wires.

Step 4

Connect the wire that needs to be pulled through the wall to the end of the piece of lath with a 5-inch piece of lightweight wire. Insert the wire through the drilled holes on the piece of lath and twist the wire around the new electrical wire to be pulled through the wall.

Step 5

Pull the 8-foot piece of lath back up the path you created previously. Now with the wire pulled through the wall, the connections can be completed for the new power outlet.