All About Drywall Anchors!
Whether you're mounting shelves, cabinets, TVs, or paintings, drywall anchors are essential tools to keeping your items securely fixed to the wall. They typically expand to hold a lot of drywall at once, using the tension of a large surface area to keep items floating, up to 230lbs!
We'll go over the strengths of drywall anchors, starting with the least resistant we use to the most.
Picture Hangers
Mr. Pen- Picture Hanging Kit, 220pc, Amazon
Picture hanging anchors are secured by a finishing screw and hold up objects by putting pressure against a larger area of drywall. This greatly strengthens the hold of a finishing nail in your wall, but typically only allows resists weights of about 20lbs.
PROS: Very small holes in the wall to clean up later or if you change your mind about position. They're also very cheap for a large quantity.
CONS: Picture hanging anchors are very weak, you really shouldn't use these for anything heavier than 10 lbs.
Expanding Conical Anchors
COOLOGIN 144 PCS Ribbed Anchors, Amazon
Conical Anchors are the most common "drywall anchor”, and what probably comes to mind, is the one shaped like a narrow tube. You make a hole with a drill bit slightly smaller or exactly the same size as the anchor, tap it in lightly with a hammer, and then expand it with a screw. This creates a catch area in the back, and expands the full “grab” of the screw in drywall.
PROS: These anchors are stronger than picture hanging anchors and don't make a much bigger hole. Easy to clean and can hold 40 lbs of drop resistance.
CONS: Absolutely no sheer resistance. You can't use these to support shelving or anything that comes out from the wall
Self-Drilling Conical Anchors
Qualihome #8 Self Drilling Drywall Plastic Anchors with Screws, Amazon
Self drilling anchors offer much better pulling resistance than conical anchors, and often more weight as well. You should ideally start a small hole where you intend to set the anchor to check for plaster or studs, and then drill it in with Philips Screw head. The end result is a pretty clean looking anchor installation that will generally hold between 50-75 lbs per anchor. Much like conical anchors, you can not use these anchors over a stud
PROS: Affordable when bought in bulk. Not a lot of tools or experience required to use them. Very strong and capable of hanging almost anything safely up to about 60lb.
CONS: The hole left behind when these are removed is quite large and difficult, so getting your initial position right is a must. These will not work in concrete or plaster backed walls, and will break if sunk in to a steel/wood stud.
Toggle Bolts
TOGGLER SNAPTOGGLE BB Toggle Anchor, Amazon
These are the toughest dry wall anchors out there, and also the most expensive per unit. You can safely hang almost anything with toggle bolts alone, they often have more resistance than average body weight. You will need a 1/2 inch drill bit for most toggle bolts, and in addition to being great drywall anchors they are necessary for steel stud installation. Most drywall will fail before the weight total is reached.
PROS: Toggle bolts/snap toggles are incredibly strong, holding up to 230 lbs each.
CONS: You need a drill to install these properly, they're about $1.20 per unit, and if you lose them in the wall it's impossible to retrieve them. The hole left behind is massive at 1/2” and difficult to fill, so again make sure you've completely finished your layout before drilling to insert these.
Do not use ANY drywall anchors to secure MOVING objects (swivelling TVs, single bracket shelving, anything elastic). Regardless of the strength of your anchor, it will eventually loosen the drywall through repetitive straining back and forth. This can cause large holes in your drywall and ruin the structural integrity of any anchor you use.
That's all I've got to say about drywall anchors. I know we've left a few out, but I generally haven't had to use them on a job site.
If you want expert cabinet mounting or shelving give us a shout at 604 816 7942 or email admin@brownbox.ca. We can work together to find an installation solution for your home whether it's wood, steel or concrete.