Hello,In the rental cottage that I live in, I have an enclosed back porch that doesn'tt have any electrical outlets. What I do have is a vent opening for the furnace room which is on the other side of the wall. This is a short vent, and once inside the furnace room, it is just a few feet to an electrical outlet. Since I am renting the place, I figure the most non-invasive way to get electricity out to the porch is to feed an extension cord through the vent. One catch is that I put a screen on the vent because otherwise moths and bees were flying into the house. How can I install the extension cord, through the screen, and reseal the screen so I can stay bug-free inside?thanks much
the visual im getting is the type of screen used on a screen door like a fabric. i think i would get a plug that allows you to attach it the end of the cord poke a small hole in screen put the cord with no plug through the screen .get a needle and some durable tyoe of thread or string and stitch around where the cord went through the screen so the hole can be reinforced and so the hole wont get bigger . then put the plug on the end of the cord.and secure the cord so it wont move around.
careful, the heat from the furnace vent could melt the insulation on the wire.
Cut a slit, put it through, and Silicon Sealant will hold it closed around the cord after it cures.
To seal the screen that will be penetrated by the cord, plug, make a slit in one of the screen corners adequate to get the plug through the screen and carefully pull an adequate amount of cord through the hole. Use caulking at the perimeter of the cord and over each side of the plug access slit. Secure the cord on the porch side of the screen to keep the cord from moving in the screen and making the caulking fail and / or the hole larger. (Don't like caulking, try using duct tape over the screen cut and around the cord, both sides if you have access.) Or- If you placed a screen on the vent, is there any way you can remove the screen and reinstall it after you have run your electrical cord through it? You may have to caulk or duct tape around the screen to keep out bugs. Caution: Anywhere the extension cord come close to any sharp edges in vent, If it is metal duct , try to bend the duct so the cord can not be cut by the sharp edge. You also apply a significant amount of electrical tape at any potential or real rub points.
