To clean up the cable mess under my computer desk, I built my own cable tray.
Off-the-shelf cable trays from name-brand makers can be surprisingly pricey.
So this build is all about keeping cost down — using only items from the 100-yen / dollar store (Daiso). Total cost was under 1,000 yen (~$7).
This article walks through how to DIY a cheap cable tray.
Hopefully useful if you’re trying to clean up your desk wiring without spending much.
For reference, a “cable tray” is something like the product below.
If you’d rather just buy one, here you go — mission accomplished 😄
That said — this site is all about hobby DIY, so I’d rather build it myself.
Materials and Tools
Available at home improvement stores and 100-yen shops.
Materials
Just three things:
- Wire baskets
- Eye screws (screw hooks)
- Wire (small-gauge)
Two wire baskets from Daiso (100-yen / dollar store).
“Eye screws” (screw hooks):
The name might be unfamiliar, but you’ve definitely seen them — they look like the photo below. Honestly, I learned the official name (in Japanese: “pīton“) only while writing this.
I picked these up at a home improvement store, but you can probably find them at the 100-yen shop too.
Small-gauge wire — also available at home improvement stores or 100-yen shops.
That’s the entire materials list.
Tools
Nothing exotic — pliers or wire nippers (to cut the wire) are basically all you need.
A power drill helps for pre-drilling pilot holes for the eye screws, but isn’t required.
- Pliers or wire nippers (to cut the wire)
- (Optional) Power drill (for pilot holes before the eye screws go in)
Building the Cable Tray
Materials and tools ready — let’s build.
Build flow
Three steps:
1. Screw eye screws into the underside of the desk
I’m hanging the wire baskets under the desk, so the eye screws go into the underside of the desktop.
To make screw-in easier, I drilled small pilot holes first.
You can muscle them in without a pilot, but if you have a drill or awl, pre-drilling is much smoother.
Twist the eye screw in by hand.
Two baskets means 8 eye screws total (4 per basket — one at each corner).
2. Cut the wire
Cut wire to length to hang the baskets from the eye screws. I used pliers.
3. Hang the baskets
Hang each basket from its 4 eye screws by wrapping the cut wires.
Both baskets hung.
Done!
Baskets in place — time to drop the computer’s power cables in.
Desk surface is finally clean.
This build doesn’t need any specialty tools — quick, cheap, easy.
And a tidy desk really does (or at least feels like it does) help focus. Give it a try.
I also have a related Japanese article on a simple DIY desk build (English version forthcoming).
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