AP7 ceiling mounting tip for a better install
If any of y'all try to mount the AP7 using the 1 gang instructions, you may find that the inside of the junction box is visible from one side due to the required offset of the mounting plate. I suspect this would be even worse with the 2 gang mounting since you'd have even more junction box to see. Here is what it looked like when I did a 1 gang mount.
After posting on reddit for ideas, I came up with the following:
1. Drill the top and bottom of the mounting plate to fit the wall plate screws (not the device screws). I used a 7/64" drill bit and measured very carefully
2. Cut some #6-32 machine screws to ~1cm (need to be longer than usual to both support the added depth of the AP mounting plate and give better support for the weight of the AP). I used the screw cutting hole on my wire cutters.
3. Mount the plate with a keystone strap with NO keystone inserted, but instead using it to pass through your patch cable
Afterwards, you have a center-mounted AP7, and you cannot see inside the junction box.
-
Indeed, it's tragic. I understand that they're white-labeling existing hardware[1], which includes the mounting plate, but it would be pretty sweet if Firewalla found it in their hearts to design their own, better mounting solution to hide the hole. I'd probably pay a lot more than $5 for it. 😄
For your 2 gang mount, if it bothers you like it bothered me, I bet you could do a modified version of what I did with something like a "Leviton 2-Gang 1-Blank 1-Decora Wallplate" or "Eaton 2-Gang Midsize Size White Polycarbonate Indoor Round Wall Plate", etc.
[1] I think the model they are white labelling is advertised for industrial use and hospitals, so I wonder if the t-bar mounting method is more common, and the gang mounting method is a bit of an afterthought. I feel like the Unifi mounting plates are much better-suited for residential installations.
-
-
Have you tried this little thing? https://www.reddit.com/r/firewalla/comments/1kwznip/we_designed_a_cover_for_the_ap7_ceiling_cable/
-
Ooooh, I might have a friend with a 3D printer print me one to test!
John, those screw holes likely won’t align correctly. The AP7 ceiling mount is designed to screw into the device screws (like the holes for a receptacle in the junction box). Those screws holes you see in the plate you linked will be outside of the footprint of the mounting bracket since they are for the wall plate, which always screws in above/below the device screws.
For a 2 gang plate, I would think you could drill holes through a blank cover that lets you reach the device screw holes. Maybe try to find a “screwless” 2 gang plate with whatever small opening you prefer in the center, then trace the mounting bracket holes and drill through it so the bracket screws can pass through the cover. Then you could just mount the cover first, pass your cable through, then mount the bracket on top of the cover.
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
7 comments