Does anyone have any anchoring tips for these? Finding a stud is impossible.
Comments
I have plaster and lath and am trying to put up a kitchen shelf–one trick I read about was using an old-school magnetic stud-finder ($3) that pops up when you hover over a nail driven into a stud. It is fussy and time-consuming but I am pretty sure I’ve had some measure of success–definitely found a couple lines of magnetic spots spaced roughly 16-17 inches apart! Might be worth a try…
-Kate F.
Johnife –
looking to hang mainly shelves (the kind with concealed brackets) so finding a stud would definately be best. You are right abour the plaster – I feel like some of crumbles off if you look at it too hard.
Thanks for the great advice!
I’ve found that for moderately heavy objects, a screw that goes through the plaster into the wood lath is pretty strong–of course you might drill into a space between lath, so a second hole might be needed.
my living room has these walls and until i read this post i had given up hope of ever hanging anything heavier than a light frame. hand me a coat hanger… i’m gonna go find my stud!
and johnife is right, the studfinders are useless. thanks for the tip!
Yeah, where a wall is broken up by doors it gets a bit trickier. It may well be that if the edges of two frames are, say, 60″ apart and the normal stud spacing is 18″, the carpenter may have gone with 4 equal 15″ stud bays rather than three 18s and a 6. Doesn’t change the basic principle though, just introduces the possibility of having to do it twice.
What are you hanging on the wall? If it’s a normal-sized picture or the like, then fine, but if it’s something heavier, like a cabinet, you’re playing with fire if you are depending on old crumbly plaster to have anywhere near the structural integrity to hold it up.
Great advice – I already have a few holes big enough to look in and probably spot a stud 🙂
Also anyone had any success with florent anchors? Not sure if that is the proper name, but they have long thin nails that go in at a downward angle – apparently they do not need to hit studs?
I have plaster and lath and am trying to put up a kitchen shelf–one trick I read about was using an old-school magnetic stud-finder ($3) that pops up when you hover over a nail driven into a stud. It is fussy and time-consuming but I am pretty sure I’ve had some measure of success–definitely found a couple lines of magnetic spots spaced roughly 16-17 inches apart! Might be worth a try…
-Kate F.
Have you tried a stud finder?
although I’ve never lived in a plaster home, they work a treat and for $10-15 means you always know wher the stud is.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Strait-Line-3-Piece-Laser-System-Level-Stud-Finder_W0QQitemZ330233243032QQihZ014QQcategoryZ20765QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Cheers,
Dean
Johnife –
looking to hang mainly shelves (the kind with concealed brackets) so finding a stud would definately be best. You are right abour the plaster – I feel like some of crumbles off if you look at it too hard.
Thanks for the great advice!
I’ve found that for moderately heavy objects, a screw that goes through the plaster into the wood lath is pretty strong–of course you might drill into a space between lath, so a second hole might be needed.
Isn’t this what picture moulding is for? Aren’t you supposed to hang things down on wire from hooks into those?
my living room has these walls and until i read this post i had given up hope of ever hanging anything heavier than a light frame. hand me a coat hanger… i’m gonna go find my stud!
and johnife is right, the studfinders are useless. thanks for the tip!
Brooklynnative,
Yeah, where a wall is broken up by doors it gets a bit trickier. It may well be that if the edges of two frames are, say, 60″ apart and the normal stud spacing is 18″, the carpenter may have gone with 4 equal 15″ stud bays rather than three 18s and a 6. Doesn’t change the basic principle though, just introduces the possibility of having to do it twice.
spaderdam,
What are you hanging on the wall? If it’s a normal-sized picture or the like, then fine, but if it’s something heavier, like a cabinet, you’re playing with fire if you are depending on old crumbly plaster to have anywhere near the structural integrity to hold it up.
Great advice – I already have a few holes big enough to look in and probably spot a stud 🙂
Also anyone had any success with florent anchors? Not sure if that is the proper name, but they have long thin nails that go in at a downward angle – apparently they do not need to hit studs?