Question about always using a fish tape for wall runs

Three years ago on a job in Tacoma, I watched a guy run a new line through a finished wall in under ten minutes without a fish tape. He used a shop vac and a plastic bag tied to a string. Everyone says you need the tape, but I've done it his way maybe twenty times since and it's faster in tight spaces. Last month I had a run between two outlets that were only three feet apart, and the tape kept getting stuck on insulation. The vac method got it first try. Am I the only one who thinks we rely on the tape too much for simple pulls?

2 comments

2 Comments

derek7828d ago

Three feet with a fish tape sounds like a nightmare.

ryanf6628d ago

My buddy Carl spent four hours trying to fish a single line through a finished basement wall. He finally gave up and cut a small access panel, which was the right move all along. Some walls just aren't worth the fight.