Anchor plugs for plasterboard

Bromhead

Bromhead

Bromhead

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We moved into a new build home a month ago and it's time to start putting fixing on walls....curtain poles etc and I came across anchor plugs.

I've never fit anything to plasterboard before, my main question is what size of plug should I be using as a general rule of thumb?

I imagine it partly depends on the weight it needs to carry and partly the thickness of the board (which I don't know).

Any guidance is appreciated...I had a look online and it looks fairly straightforward, but I'm still puzzled over which size plugs to buy.
 
Gosford Handyman on youtube is a great resource, he's done various videos on the subject including weight tests to see how much weight you can put on carious plugs and fixings before they fail.

I have used these to hang a heavy piece of art on a stud wall and they worked very well:

https://www.screwfix.com/p/rawlplug-hollow-wall-anchors-m6-x-37mm-20-pack/40813

Been using these to hang more reasonably sized pictures and happy with them:

https://www.screwfix.com/p/fischer-duopower-wall-plugs-6mm-100-pack/1030p
 
Both of the recommendations above are spot on. The hollow wall anchors are great. Just be careful on an outside wall, as sometimes the standard anchors are too long and will push the plasterboard out. It can be tempting to drill into the brick for curtain poles etc. And for heavy stuff, it's the way to go. Just remember, there will be a gap between plasterboard and breeze block, as it's simply glued on. Use a spacer, or squirt some gap filler in the night before. Otherwise, you will create massive cracks in your new plaster as you tighten your screws.
Another tip is use a strong magnet to find the joists in the partition walls, then you can just screw straight in. ( If they are where you want stuff )

As you might have guessed, I bought a new build also. :D
 
Countcussy said:
Both of the recommendations above are spot on. The hollow wall anchors are great. Just be careful on an outside wall, as sometimes the standard anchors are too long and will push the plasterboard out. It can be tempting to drill into the brick for curtain poles etc. And for heavy stuff, it's the way to go. Just remember, there will be a gap between plasterboard and breeze block, as it's simply glued on. Use a spacer, or squirt some gap filler in the night before. Otherwise, you will create massive cracks in your new plaster as you tighten your screws.
Another tip is use a strong magnet to find the joists in the partition walls, then you can just screw straight in. ( If they are where you want stuff )

As you might have guessed, I bought a new build also. :D
Click to expand...

Haha, all very insightful, a lot of things I wouldn't have even considered. The only bit I was a little unsure on was the "Use a spacer, or squirt some gap filler in the night before", what's this in relation to sorry?

Also thanks everyone else for the replies all very helpful!
 
On the external walls of most new builds, the plaster is glued to the wall using adhesive. This is normally called dot and dab. The leaves a gap between the plasterboard and the brickwork, as the plasterboard is sat on blobs of adhesive. Depths of these blobs can vary. If you manage to drill through a dab of adhesive, you are good to go with standard wall plugs.
When you don't, there will be a small cavity. So you will drill through the plaster, fresh air, then brick. If you put the plugs in the brick as normal, and fasten whatever to it, as you tighten the screw, one of 2 things will happen. 1. You will simply pull the wall plug out. Or 2. The screw will grab, but as you tighten, it will pull the plasterboard in, as the cavity discussed earlier creates no support. There are many expensive ways round this, some more successful than others. From experience, some gap filler or a home made spacer works just as well.

Small items, the wall plugs suggested will be fine.
Toilet stuff, towel rails etc, use the hollow anchors or find a joist.
Large Mirrors, hollow anchors or find a joist.
Curtain poles. Short hollow anchors, or plugs into brickwork with spacers/gap filler.
Fwiw, joists are normally 450mm/16" apart.
 
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I meant to add, if using hollow anchors, get a setting tool. They are cheap and make it so much easier. Without it, you have to rely on the little lugs to stop the fixing turning whilst tightening. This can be incredibly frustrating, as if they fail, and they will, you are stuck.
If you ever need to remove a hollow anchor, drill the front off and poke what's left In the wall. I reckon there is quite a few fixings in my wall cavities :D
 
Second the setting tool. I use the easyfix wall anchors from screwfix as they are a lot cheaper (packs of 100) and still do an excellent job.

My 2013 house external walls have a small cavity, breathable membrane and then kingspan insulation so I avoid mounting things on the external walls. Curtain rails were already fitted when I moved in and they are screwed directly in to the studs around the window - at least I think so anyway, feels like they are screwing in to something solid when I have removed/put them back after decorating.

Countcussy said:
If you ever need to remove a hollow anchor, drill the front off and poke what's left In the wall. I reckon there is quite a few fixings in my wall cavities :D
Click to expand...

If you look closely, you will notice the fronts on most are only secured in one place. you can use a small screw driver to lever the front up and then bend it back and forth until it snaps off :D

P.S you mention joist above several times, I think you mean stud! :)
 
Most of those fixings are overkill for what’s being suggested.

Something really simple and easy to use like Fischer Duo Power multi purpose 6mm plugs which are high end plugs you can use in any surface including plasterboard will cover most if not all of your fixing needs. They will work for everything listed above including curtain poles, mirrors and bathroom accessories. I even have a couple of light shelves put up with them (not for being loaded with books mind). There rated for up to 15kg per fixing.

I’d only step up to hollow wall anchors for internal stud walls when hanging something really heavy like a TV or a shelf for heavy items like books.

For block walls you can just use two plugs back to back for heavy items like a shelf or TV. You drill a hole deep enough for 2 plugs, use a long screw and a hammer to tap the first plug through the plasterboard and into the block behind, put the second plug into the plasterboard as normal and fix with a long screw through both plugs. Strong, quick and cheap, no messing around. Hollow wall fixings are not suitable for being used on plasterboard over block walls.

For something really heavy on a block wall like a kitchen cabinet you want something like corefix or the similar alternatives. For the same on a stud wall the next step up over hollow wall anchors are the big toggle fixings where you don’t have studs in a convenient place.

For the above block wall = breeze block wall/thermolight blocks covered with ‘dot dab’ plasterboard, they’ll be a 0.5-1cm cavity between the plasterboard and the block except where there is adhesive. Where there is adhesive, you can just treat that like a solid block wall. These will be all external walls and any load bearing ground floor internal walls.

Stud walls will be wooden frames covered in plasterboard. They’ll be completely hollow (may be some insulation) and the occasional vertical stud. All your internal upper floor walls are likely to be stud. Stud walls will be much narrower than supporting walls.

Also get a pipe/cable detector.
 
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