TV Cables

[larsslc]

I just purchased a new 2018 Solitude 310GK. I also purchased a satellite dish (Wineguard 2X) and 2 Dish Wally receivers. Above the TV in the main room there is a cabinet left of the Jensen Audio equipment where there are the connections for the TV coax cable. I installed the receiver and then looked for a way to get the HDMI cable from the receiver in the cabinet to the TV below without it showing. No obvious path. I connected the cable and had it run out the front of the cabinet to the TV (just to test if it was working). It worked great but the cable was ugly. In the left hand corner of the slider above the TV cabinet and below the receiver cabinet above there was a 2 1/2 by 2 1/2 inch boxout. This did not continue through the cabinet above so I figured it was not structural. I called Grand Design technical support and asked the tech how to get the cable from the receiver in the cabinet to the TV without it showing. His answer was "That's for you to figure out". I then asked if that boxout in the back left-had corner of the slide out was a cable chase. He said he didn't know but didn't think so. I decided to find out. The cabinet above where the receiver was has two bottoms (one on which the receiver was setting and one below it where the speakers are mounted. There is about a 2" air space between. There were no penetrations thru the upper bottom so I drilled a hole in the shelf just above the boxout. Looking thru the hole it was obvious that the boxout was a cable chase because there were many wires going thru a 1" hole in the bottom shelf into the chase. The problem was the hole was completely full of wires. There was no way to get a fish line thru the two holes. Thus I decided to carefully remove the facing material on the boxout without damaging it. With the facing off it was obvious that there was plenty of room in the chase for additional cable. With access to both sides, I was able to stuff an HDMI cable thru the 1 inch hole. The same was true at the bottom of the chase- only a 1 inch hole. I gained access to the other side of the TV cabinet top shelf by removing the electrical outlet for the TV. With that I was able to connect the HDMI cable without it showing. It is beyond me why Grand Design didn't make the holes in the top and bottom of the chase 2" in dia. so additional cables could be easily pulled thru. Also they should have made an access hole for cables in the shelf the receiver rests on. It is obvious that anyone who is going to have satellite TV is going to need to run an HDMI cable from the receiver to the TV and they won't want it showing. Hopefully this may help others who have experienced similar problems.

[majochoc]

Thanks larsslc I was wondering the same thing about that boxout in my 310GK and how to pull wires thru!

[larsslc]

I was at the Quartzsite Grand Design Rally in January. A fellow from Grand Design factory was there and I mentioned this problem to him. He took notes and said he would pass the information along to the factory. Maybe in future models they will make the holes above and below the chase larger to accommodate the HDMI cables.

[gsmithrr]

I was at the Quartzsite Grand Design Rally in January. A fellow from Grand Design factory was there and I mentioned this problem to him. He took notes and said he would pass the information along to the factory. Maybe in future models they will make the holes above and below the chase larger to accommodate the HDMI cables.

They have not done anything about it. I have the same problem in a 2020 model

[traveldawg]

larsslc,
Nice write up. Good job. I did the same to mine.

I think we all feel your pain (and have gone through a lot of it) it's why a lot of us are making changes/upgrades to our rigs.

[gsmithrr]

larsslc,
Nice write up. Good job. I did the same to mine.

I think we all feel your pain (and have gone through a lot of it) it's why a lot of us are making changes/upgrades to our rigs.

How did you get the facing material off the cable chase

[ksbowman]

I'm not familiar with the Solitude but, I had the same situation on our 303rls Reflection and I took the box out that the tv and satellite connections were in and removed the electric fireplace. Then I dropped a fishing line with a nut tied to it and let the nut down into the electric fireplace opening. Attached the coax to the fishing line and pulled it up into the cabinet. Made holes where need and ran the coax thru them. Made my attachments and closed things back up.

[gsmithrr]

I'm not familiar with the Solitude but, I had the same situation on our 303rls Reflection and I took the box out that the tv and satellite connections were in and removed the electric fireplace. Then I dropped a fishing line with a nut tied to it and let the nut down into the electric fireplace opening. Attached the coax to the fishing line and pulled it up into the cabinet. Made holes where need and ran the coax thru them. Made my attachments and closed things back up.

Unfortunately in the Solitude the TV goes up and down and there is a window behind it In previous year models that had a blue ray and they ran the cable to the TV now they have switch to a a PMX-1 The holes to run the hdmi through the cabinets are there but no conduit with a pull cord down the wall which is what they should have done. There appears to be a channel in the corner of the pull out but I have not been able to figure out a way to access it.