Low-cost Cable Management

There are many ideas out there for cable management using common items like binder clips, wire shelving, or rain gutters. The general idea is to use something to keep all the cords and cables behind your desk off the floor, organized, and out of sight.

This is my version.

I had a few of these corner braces left over from some prior project. They are 3 inches on each side. A package of 4 costs under $4 at Home Depot.

Now, I know what you're thinking. L-shaped pieces of metal are not so useful for cable management.

Simple solution:  bend them into a more useful shape!

A hook is much better suited for this sort of thing. Modifying the braces is relatively easy with the right tools. Most things are...

Step 1 - Clamp the corner brace in a vise. 

Step 2 - Use a pair of pliers and bend one leg of the brace 90 degrees. 

Step 3 - There is no step 3. You are done modifying the brace at this point.. I said it was easy. Now repeat steps 1 and 2 for each of the braces you will be using. 

Finally, attach the newly improved braces to your desk or table.

There are a couple options. You can use the top hole on the long side of the hook to screw the hooks in place. I ended up going with a less permanent option. This is mostly because I was attaching the hooks to the metal legs of my workbench and didn't want to drill holes. I used a strip of double-sided tape on the long side of the hook.

I was a little worried that the tape wouldn't hold, but I haven't had any problems.The only limitation of this design is that it requires a vertical surface for the braces to attach to.