ubertable

I have a small table next to my desk which I keep my wifi router, external hd and several chargers on. It has come to the point where the table is quite an eyesore in the room so I decided to try to hide some of the hardware, under the table. Not only did this work spectacularly but the equipment is hidden so well that if some one broke in they wouldn't have a clue I have this stuff (unless of course they read this).

Step 1: Table dissection 101

First off we need to take apart the table to hide the goods underneath. My table was held together using long bolts and some special brass nuts.

Comments

[joespicnictables]

AWEOME!! :D I should do this to my desk

[rvdawe]

find it here in the U.S.
http://www.usahardware.com/inet/shop/item/80480/icn/20-767392/dahl_bros_cana/9090.htm

[ArcticNemo]

The plain nylon variety is plenty strong, but might not hold a bend as nicely as metal-core stuff. I used some to bolt my patio swing to the deck, and it stands up to 70+ mph winds.

[Yillis]

You're supposed to switch the hot (black) wire. Unless you did that backwards in the plug and receptacle too. Plus you're exposing 120v when your switch is off, I suggest at minimum wrapping that with some electrical tape, or do it right.

[dasclown]

I noticed that the black wire wasn't going to the switch as well.  It got me second guessing my wiring until I saw your comment. :)

[brandvegn]

I live in the US and can't find nylon covered galvanized steel. The only stuff I can find is this.

http://www.houseneeds.com/shop/plumbing/misc/allroundstrappingbuypage.asp

I would be interested if anyone knows of a supplier of the nylon-coated variety for my wooden desk. I have a much bigger "Ubertable" and I want to strap it up, flip it, rub it down... etc.

[varocha]

good idea but i have a small desk from ikea , bye

[Th3Snip3r]

lmao

[grundisimo]

You could probably do a better job of hiding the cords. A robber would think " look over there those cords are leading to something under the table". He would then look and steal all your stuff. BUT your could run the cables down one of the back legs or something then move the table to hide the outlet. You have to have something on the table top so it looks like a regular table. EVEN if the cords are hidden though you are pretty much screwed if the robber steals the whole table. Maybe hiding the expensive equipment in a better place would be a good idea. Maybe in the ceiling with cables run down to the floor behind the wall (unable to be seen) and have a plug in the wall that you could still access them both. (Bad if the robber punches a bunch of holes in the wall and sees the cables) Maybe hide them underneath the floor. OR even better if you have an attic hide them in the attic and still have the cables running down the wall (inside). Very slim chance the robber will see the cables though if he/she does punch a bunch of wholes in the wall.

[zack247]

the chances of this happening are slim to none, you know. at least where i live.

[H3xx]

If you live in certain places in Russia, it is not uncommon for some one to come home from vacation to find that their ENTIRE HOUSE had been stolen, brick by brick. It would be best to just bury every thing in the ground...

[The Knights Of The Round Pie]

 if you cut holes that were the same size as the end of your ipod you could just attach the cords to the under side of the table sticking out and then you could have a built in dock.

[mattison71]

I'd like to find this in a yard sale!

[shtihl]

it looks great except for the wires coming from the underside of the table. perhaps using cable loops to guide the cables to floor and run along wall using cable tape to hide them?

[jamesjamesjames]

some router (including mine) have usb ports in the back for power :) wouldnt work for syncing it to the computer, but if youre just using it for charging its one less wire leading from the table :)

[sdallesasse]

The switch that you are using needs to be in a box! This is a safety issue. You have 120 volts across that switch; if someone should touch those screws, they would get a nasty shock at the least. They could come out much worse!

[Fieldownage]

But if you add it you can't laugh anymore when your mates touch it. :P

[Fieldownage]

"The table really cleans up my work space and hides everything really well." Are you seriously using that as your work space? :D Great project but you could still hide the wires to one of the legs of the table.

[tysonb]

continuum, not continuom

[Nameless37]

After reading this I had an idea to take a iPod Dock(http://store.apple.com/us/product/MA117G/B) and cut the top of the table to fit level with it. So my iPod Touch 16GB would fit right in the table.

[idogis1]

I almost forgot. You have to solder a resistor between two pins on the ipod plug in order to get audio out through the dock connector to work on newer ipods. Also new ones won't charge unless the data cables are connected on the plug.

[idogis1]

Use this (http://is.gd/6RZM) or this (http://is.gd/ogSW) and the dock adapter hat comes with your ipod you could make an embedded dock that is a lot cheaper and probably will end up looking better. Just make sure you know how to solder.

[zzoe]

Elegant.

[distortedlabs]

What just happened here with the sudden flux of comments? Did hiding stuff become popular again?

[Master Plastik]

This instructable is included in the Wifi list, which is featured. Congratulations.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Wifi/

[geekdude]

good idea, but why don't you get an internal hard drive if its going to be hard wired into your furniture anyway? unless its for the laptop. The extra long usb cord might give you latency probs. ditto on the switch. that's dangerous. alternatively if the hd has a power button you could hard wire the switch to that. would be a lot safer because it wouldn't have 110 going through it.

[mrmath]

Pet Peeve time: It's not "Both me and my brother have...", it's "Both my brother and I have...". Two rules: 1) Always put the other person/people first. 2) If you would say me without the other person, say me with the other person. If you would say I without the other person, say I with the other person. So, if you were to say "I have an iPod.", and then you wanted to say that your brother has one as well, "My brother and I have iPods." If you were to answer the question "Whose in this room?", you might say "Me." If you wanted to say that your brother was in there as well, you might say "My brother and me." Having this pet peeve is a pet peeve of mine, too. I hate it. It makes watching Ghost Hunters on SciFi almost impossible. They say things like "Me and Grant went down to the basement." all the time. Drives me insane! I love the way you hid everything under the table, btw. I did something similar with my desk, but used perf board and plastic ties to do it. Makes a big difference when you're not looking at all those wires and boxes and stuff.

[Sgt.Waffles]

*Raises arm with straight hand at a 45 degree angle*

[mrmath]

You should have waited until tomorrow. Would have been a year to the day. :)

[Sgt.Waffles]

No, I did this on purpose to avoid rupturing the space time continuom. You can thank me later.

[mrmath]

I can thank you for making it so I can thank you later :)

[FreshPineSent]

dude...

[mrmath]

Yea?

[flywoodkb]

My pet peeve is when "whose" is used in place of "who's" ;)

[MumblingTuna]

my pet peeve is annoying people who have unimportant nitpicking grammatical pet peeves :) Me and wait... whose that guy again? own some 'Pod

[distortedlabs]

Just so everyone knows, I did install the switch box after it was mentioned here. The house still hasn't burnt down yet so I think it's working.

[grages]

This is cool. I hid my Hard Drive, router, etc on the plant shelf in my house. The wireless works great over the 8 foot partition walls with less obstruction. The cable installer thought I was crazy when I had the him put the connection up there. Out of site, and you need the ladder to get to it.

[charlessenf-gm]

Neat idea, nice approach (but switch needs to be in a box as has been stated). Also: "rarely have everything charging at the same time anyway.." is immaterial. If those power modules are connected/plugged in, they are drawing current - period (and heating up, too.)

[Biotele]

I use double stick velcro. This gives you the option of rearranging the devices and gives you the option of quickly removing them. The problem is with the power supply. Having a powersupply upside down tend to let the plugs drop out if the receptacle is loose. Another problem is the cords that goes to the table and come out of it. They are still an eyesore. I have given up tidying my devices.

[distortedlabs]

Answering questions time!!! flywoodkbsa: The box for the All Round says it's rated to take 110 pounds. Satka: I haven't noticed any heat coming off anything yet, but then I rarely have everything charging at the same time anyway...