Low cost PVC pipe cable management behind computer recording workstation (starting from top, left to right: near field monitors with LCD monitors (center), power supply, preamp, monitor switch, AD/DA converter, power supply, vocal channel preamp.

PVC drainage pipe can make a handy cable management system

After living with a spaghetti jungle of wires behind my computer recording workstation I found a great, low-cost solution using Google. Total cost outlay was less than $20 at Home Depot.

There are hundreds of suggestions for managing those cables but none seemed as sensible or low cost as 4″ drainage pipe cut in half. 

The suggestion was to mount the halves on the wall but I thought they would work better if the cable management system could be pulled in and out with the desk.

I already had one 6′ length of pipe and plenty of bolts, nuts, and washers. When two rows of pipe wouldn’t hold all the cables, another $20 looked after a second length of pipe and more small bolts.

The cable management has three rows: power, inputs and outputs. It looks fairly organized now and the floor behind the computer workstation is clear.

Since it was built with trial and error,  the cables were put in place and taken down several times. We’ll see if the system stands the test of time.

Steps to build it

Cable management detail: corner braces installed up and down with machine screws and washers, nuts and lock-nuts for the pipe

1. Measure length and cut 4″ PVC perforated drainage pipe.

2. Split down the middle with two shallow cuts on the table saw.  I kept the drainage holes in each half to anchor cable ties. I had to remove the saw guard so be careful and get someone to pull it through.

3. Clean and sand the pipe. Even the new pipe is dirty. Sand the ends to remove sharp edges.

4. Each pipe is supported by 3 @ 2 1/2″ x 5/8″ corner braces (Stanley S838-987 /DPB115) and 8-32 1/2 machine screws, nuts and washers. The corner braces look sharper if they are installed upward but it’s also slightly harder to do. I installed them both ways.  My workstation is an old Office Specialty metal workstation. If yours is wood, you can secure the brackets with wood screws.

5. Use a level to keep the pipe straight.

6. The PVC pipe is secured with the same machine screws, a slightly larger washer and lock nut. The larger washer helps to secure the pipe if you are using the perforation holes.

Cable management system - the floor behind the computer workstation is clean as a whistle

That’s essentially it. It helps to have another person to hold the screw the bolts in from the other side and clean up the drill filings.

Once the pipes…er cable management system was installed it took an hour to organize the cables into power, signal input and output.

The next thing to do is test everything before I push the workstation back to the wall.

Thanks to imvain2 on Make: for the cool idea to use PVC pipe.

Update: I was reminded last night that PVC has been used for cable management on boats etc. but not as an open tray. A closed piped wouldn’t work for a computer workstation / recording workstation where cables are plugged and unplugged regularly.

Set-Up Spec – Intel i7-860 (ASUS P55 mobo, 8 GM ram, 2 @ Intel SSD160, @ WD Green 2 TB, NVidia GTX460, Lynx AES16, UAD-2 Quad), Win 7-64, Lynx Aurora 16, Millennia Media STT-1, HV3D, Coleman M3PH-MKII, Furman PL8C