Thin drywall will hold 1.2 to 1.6 pounds per square foot without some type of support. Thicker drywall will hold 1.5-2.1 pounds per square foot without additional support. Shear and tension affect the weight supported.
Hangers and Nails Can Hold the Weight on Drywall
They can hold up to 20 pounds with the proper nail, such as a regular diploma frame. Flat mounted hook and anchor can hold up to 50 pounds.
Hanging Something Heavy on Drywall Without a Stud
Molly bolts, or expandable metal anchors, are an option for hanging a heavier piece, according to Popular Mechanics. Molly bolts are made up of a screw fitted into a metal sleeve. If the anchor has a pointed tip, it can be hammered into the wall.
In general, thin drywall can handle up to 1.6 pounds per square foot, while thick drywall can handle up to 2.1 pounds of drywall per square foot. However, the answer isn't always cut and dry. Here are other considerations you need to make and how to get your drywall to hold more weight.
A nail is drywall is only able to hold a few pounds at most and should not exceed 10 pounds of weight. To can significantly increase the weight capacity by using drywall anchors or nailing into a stud.
Choosing the Right Hardware
Expansion anchors – Also called drywall plugs, these can hold between 5 to 25 pounds on walls, depending on their size, but they aren't suitable for ceilings.
Typically around 20 pounds. For heavy items, you may need to double up or hang from a stud. With a cheap plastic wall anchor, like the ones most products include in the box, drywall can hold about 20 pounds. You can go to the hardware store and get rougher, tougher wall anchors that can hold 35 pounds.
Even though a drywall can support a TV up to 100 lbs, the device is still brittle and the mount can require additional support, or else the TV will land on the floor. Wall studs make up the frame for the TV that supports your walls. They provide a sturdy anchor point, ensuring that both the mount and TV stay in place.
Both metal and plastic toggles can be used on ceilings at 1/3 the holding power listed for walls, up to a maximum of 15 pounds. Drywall may pull away from ceiling joists at heavier weights.
Best Drywall Anchors Heavy-Duty—RIFAA
When you're in need of reliable, strong wall fixings for securely hanging items of up to 50 pounds, RIFAA's self-drilling drywall anchors are the solution. They are made from heavy-duty durable nylon and have a unique design that once in place, will not budge.
Typically when you want to hang a heavy item on the wall where there is no stud, you have to get out your drill, drill a hole, hammer in a wall anchor, and then screw in a large screw.
Fortunately, there are several different options you can use to support a shelf. The most common one is a drywall anchor, which is like a plastic screw that plugs into drywall. If you're working with plaster or need something that bears more weight, try using a molly bolt. For very heavy shelves, pick toggle bolts.
What are the Strongest Drywall Anchors? If you use either the threaded anchor or the molly bolt you'll do just fine. They can easily hold 50 pounds. If you want to hang something a very large, heavy picture or mirror these no stud picture hangers are the absolute BEST.
Wall anchors, also called molly plugs, will help you build a sturdy foundation for your shelf. Regular hollow wall anchors are fine for plaster; for drywall you will need butterfly or toggle anchors. Before deciding which anchors to buy, consider what you want your shelves to hold.
A screw in a stud can hold between 80 and 100 pounds. Be sure to distribute the weight across as many as you can.
You will also want to make sure your wall can support the weight of your TV: For 65 inch televisions mounted on drywall, we recommend only mounting the bracket to the studs inside the wall.
Is it safe to mount your 65 inch, 75 inch or larger TV on the wall? The answer to this is yes, you can mount your XL TV on the wall. Safety is paramount, of course.
That includes almost any size TV under 100lbs. So bring on your 55", 70", or even 77" TV. You'll be able to safely and securely mount them to the wall with the Echogear Drywall TV Mount.
For pictures that weigh between 5 and 20 pounds, a good option is plastic drywall anchors and for pictures between 20 and 50 pounds, you can use a metal wall anchor or make sure to use a wall stud. For anything heavier, or a good all around solution for hanging multiple pictures, use a rail cable hanging kit.
How to Hang Objects on Drywall that Weigh 25 to 50 Pounds. Molly bolts can be used to hold heavy loads between 25 and 50 pounds. Pointed versions can be tapped into place with a hammer while non-pointed styles use a drilled installation hole.
An ingenious and simple design, The Monkey Hook uses one rigid piece of wire to replace the need for a hammer, pin and hook. Able to hold 50lbs per hook, these guys can be doubled and even tripled for heavy loads such as mirrors. The upside of this is that Monkey Hooks are super handy and work really well in drywall.
Hillman Monkey Hooks are a great way to hang your mirrors and pictures efficiently and securely. Simply use hook to puncture wall, twist down so hook is facing out, and push hook into wall. No pilot hole necessary. Hang pictures and mirrors in seconds. Designed for heavy duty hanging.
For one thing, plaster is by nature a more durable finish than drywall, even high-level drywall finishes. In addition, plaster outperforms drywall in a number of key areas, including insulation, soundproofing, and fireproofing. One additional point in plaster's favor is that by nature, mold can't grow in plaster.