How To Set Hollow Wall Anchors
"How do you lot put ballast screws into the wall?" – WYSK Reader Norma
NV: Great question then some Norma… past the way, I really LOVE your name! Now back to the matter at hand. Not simply are and then many of us unsure of how to install anchors, but which ones to use! Plastic sleeve, self-drilling, toggle, molly bolts, etc. UGH!
Above all, nosotros're concerned about installing them properly and so whatever we hang doesn't end up on the floor in pieces (or on your caput as you're in bed sleeping under it… happened to my friend), while afflicting the least corporeality of damage to our walls. A alpine order if you're not anchor savvy, so let's go acquainted with anchors.
How does an anchor work?
Mostly speaking, anchors expand and "bite" into the wall every bit you sink a spiral into it, creating an anchor signal for secure hanging. Without them, a nail or screw would just spin around and suspension out of the wall.
Above all, we're concerned about installing anchors properly then any we hang doesn't end upwards on the floor in pieces… or on your head.
But what if I accept plaster walls?
Lath and plaster walls can't accept typical plastic anchors. Toggle or molly bolts are required. Be sure to use ones that are long enough to get backside the plaster and lath. Drilling a pigsty with a masonry bit volition be required, more below on installing toggle and molly bolts.
Which ballast for what?
Anchors are rated by weight, so what you're hanging will determine which anchor to use. Oftentimes a product will come with its ain hanging hardware. Just if it doesn't, choose an ballast appropriate for the weight or "duty" of what you're hanging.
General rules of pollex…
- Light duty, nether 10lbs (i.e. newspaper towel rack), employ plastic anchors
- Medium duty, 10lbs to 25lbs (i.due east. metal pall rod with heavy curtain), use self-drilling (threaded) anchors
- Heavy duty, 25lbs to 50lbs (i.eastward. cabinet), use a molly bolt or toggle
- Mega heavy (i.eastward. flat screen Television set bracket), screw direct into a stud, add together toggle bolts for ancillary securing depending on where the object is placed on the wall
Wait: Before going on, let me state that there are dozens of types of anchors out in that location – far too many for me to hash out. I've chosen 4 of the most common types of anchors that will satisfy from light to heavy hanging needs.
How To Put Anchors Into Walls
Sink A Plastic Sleeve Anchor (nautical pun unintended)
- Marking your hanging point with a pencil
- Take a boom-set, awl, or nail and with a hammer tap a "pilot hole" into the wall
- DO NOT make the pigsty wider than the anchor
- Place the anchor over the hole and firmly tap it in until it'south flush with the wall
Annotation: If you tap the anchor into the wall and it won't go in all the mode, don't try to smash it in flush. You've likely hit a stud. In this case, no need for an anchor. Use a coarse drywall spiral and secure direct into the stud instead.
Sink A Self-Drilling (Threaded) Anchor
- Mark your hanging point with a pencil
- Tap the pointed tip of the anchor into the wall with a hammer
- One time the tip is in the drywall, with a screwdriver, screw the anchor in until information technology'south affluent to the wall
Install A Molly-Bolt (Hollow Wall) Ballast
- For pointed molly-bolts, make a pilot pigsty (as described above) then hammer the molly into the wall until the caput is flush to the wall
- For un-pointed molly-bolts, drill a hole through the wall with the recommended drill size (for plaster walls, drilling a hole is the all-time method no affair what kind of ballast)
- Tighten the bolt in the sleeve of the molly (this will crusade the molly to expand and grip backside the wall)
- Once tightened, back the screw out of the sleeve; now you can hang your object through this anchored pigsty using that commodities
Install A Toggle Bolt Anchor
Note: Toggle bolts should simply be used to hang heavy objects suitable for this blazon of anchor. Meaning, it must have a bracket that works with a toggle and is able to encompass the hole information technology makes in the wall.
- Mark your hanging signal with a pencil
- Drill a hole using the recommended drill bit size (the width of the toggle ends)
- Slip the bolt through the hole of what you're hanging (i.e. a bracket) then thread on the toggle with the tips facing the screw head
- Clasp the toggle closed and tap the bolt, toggle and all, into the wall
- Tighten the commodities, pulling back on the threads of the commodities until the toggle grabs onto the back of the wall; tighten until snug
Important Things To Know…
- If an object is very heavy, the wall itself can fail before the anchor
- If drilling into your wall, don't drill correct next to an outlet or plug to avoid striking wiring
- If drilling in a bath or an adjoining wall to one, be mindful of where the faucets are to avoid hitting a h2o pipe
Now y'all're ready to become hang that shelf you bought half dozen months ago… anchors aweigh!
Got A DIY Question? Ask-The-Skilful!
If you have a DIY home repair, maintenance or improvement question for Norma, now is your risk to enquire-the-practiced and accept her answer. Your burning question may just exist the "star" of an upcoming Fix-It Fri cavalcade.
Add your question to the comments section below or e-mail it to Women You Should Know.
Fix-It Friday is an exclusive Women You lot Should Know® editorial series authored by seasoned veteran of home improvement, Norma Vally, the former host of Discovery Home Channel's series "Toolbelt Diva" and a show on Sirius Satellite Radio by the same name. The weekly column is designed to inspire women – weekend warriors, aspiring handywomen, and even seasoned DIYers – to take on home repairs and maintenance projects with conviction and gusto.
Source: https://womenyoushouldknow.net/fix-it-friday-anchors-aweigh-how-to-put-anchors-into-walls/
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