Hanging a mirror - crumbling wall

Pa_Ja

Hi all,

Attempting to hang a heavy mirror but when fixing my first screw to the wall (external), the paintwork and brick/concrete just crumbled away.
Would a lengthier screw and rawlplug be a safe option here?

Thanks

Ebe_Scrooge

What are your walls made of ? If they're traditional brick, then yes, just use a longer screw and appropriate sized rawl plug. I would hope it's just the surface that's got slightly flaky.

It may be brick with a plasterboard facing - again, no problem, a longer screw will do the trick, just get the rawl-plug into the brick and make sure the weight is taken by the solid brick-work.

If it's a plasterboard wall, then you need to locate the wooden studs behind the plasterboard and screw directly into them. You can use a stud detector, or the old-fashioned way of probing with a needle. If the studs are not conveniently spaced ( they're commonly 2 feet apart ), then fix a wooden batten horizontally into 2 studs, then screw into that.

Bottom line - anything heavy, you need to be screwing into something substantial. There are many fixings available that claim to be able to take a large weight on plasterboard - but in my opinion, plasterboard is not a strong material, and for piece of mind I'd be wanting the the weight to be taken by a solid substrate.

phil24_7

Are you using the correct drill and drill bit? A masonry bit and a hammer drill will probably be best.

Pa_Ja

Thanks for the replies. After a search I found a related thread (6 years old).
I was hand screwing to begin with and after getting half an inch in the wall just crumbled. I understand now that a much longer screw and rawlplug is required.

Cheers.

phil24_7

Make sure you use a masonry drill bit in a suitable drill with a hammer function. A 5.5 or 6mm drill bit with red rawl plugs should be fine unless it is a stupidly heavy mirror.

Zola.

Maybe use rawlbolts, far stronger

TheCyclingProgrammer

Pa_Ja wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. After a search I found a related thread (6 years old).
I was hand screwing to begin with and after getting half an inch in the wall just crumbled. I understand now that a much longer screw and rawlplug is required..

Were you trying to just screw into the wall without a plug?

How heavy is the mirror? Red or brown plugs should do the trick, depending on the weight, but as above make sure you are using the right sized drill bit to drill the hole for the plug and the right sized screw for the plug.