Plastic ribbed anchors are the most commonly used anchors for lighter items and can hold up to 10 pounds per pair. Threaded drywall anchors are suitable for objects weighing up to 25 pounds and are ideal for use on drywall.
Whether you have a brick or uneven stone façade, or mounting a TV above a fireplace, mounting a TV can be tricky, but even more so when mounting a TV without studs. Even though drywall can support a TV up to 100 lbs., it's still brittle and the mount can require additional support.
Typically, drywall can support between 5 and 10 pounds with a simple nail, but anything heavier requires additional support. For heavier objects, using drywall anchors or finding a stud to screw into will provide a much more secure hold.
You definitely want to hit a stud for heavy-duty loads like a TV bracket, a handrail, or a grab bar. Hollow wall anchors won't cut it. And for that, you first need to find the studs.
While drywall alone can hold about 1.6 pounds to 2 pounds per square foot, mounting an object to the stud with the proper hardware allows the drywall to support up to 100 pounds.
Drywall Anchor Types for Heavier Items
Toggle bolts can hold up to 50 pounds per pair, making them ideal for mounting large shelves, cabinets and other heavier items. Molly bolts can hold up to 75 pounds per pair on drywall, plaster and other hollow walls.
Toggle bolts have sturdy metal anchors. Like molly bolts, toggle drywall anchors are metal, and they include a sturdy anchor that will spread out on the opposite side of the wall (remember, most drywall is less than an inch thick). These are considered the strongest option.
Use a toggle bolt or anchor to hang the piece on areas with no studs, This Old House says. The weight of the piece, and the thickness of the wall, will dictate the toggle size. The typical metal toggle bolt can hold 25 to 50 pounds on plaster, according This Old House. A plastic one can hold 10 to 25 pounds.
Drywall anchors aren't required for all wall-based fastening applications. If there's a stud directly behind the wall, for instance, you probably won't need to use them. Studs offer support for screws as well as the objects with which they are used. Of course, studs don't encompass the entire space of a given wall.
If you want to hang anything heavier than 15 pounds on your ceiling, you'll need to attach it to a ceiling joist that's been properly reinforced. Drywall might seem fragile, but it's capable of holding nearly anything you might want to hang on your wall as long as you hang it properly.
If your ceiling is supported with joists, attach the heavy object directly to the ceiling joist to provide extra support. If your ceiling is hollow, you can use toggle bolts to support your heavy object instead.
Toggle bolts are made from metal and are the strongest type of drywall anchor available. While plastic anchors and molly bolts can typically hold weights up to 50 pounds, properly installed toggle bolts can often support much more.
One key difference between the two is that sheetrock is a brand name of drywall made by the United States Gypsum Corporation. Another difference lies in their production process; sheetrock has a slightly denser core than drywall due to the addition of a small amount of wood fiber to the gypsum core.
Wall studs are vertical pieces of wood that make up the frame that supports your walls. Drywall itself is relatively brittle, so trying to support your mount and TV on drywall alone could mean a hole in the wall and a TV on the floor.
Drywall anchors can hold anywhere from 10 to 200 pounds, depending on the type and installation. Always choose an anchor rated for more than the weight of the item you are mounting.
Installing a screw into a wall stud is the most secure way to hang a heavy mirror. However, the positioning of the mirror may not allow that to happen. In that case, you can use an anchor to provide additional support for the screw.
Too few or too many: Follow the drywall manufacturer's instructions on the number of screws to use. Too few causes obvious issues, while too many means more mudding. Precision drives: Be careful how far you drive the screws if using a drill.
Mushroom-Style Anchor: This anchor gets its holding power by sinking into bottom sediment. It should not be used to anchor boats larger than a small canoe, rowboat, small sailboat, or inflatable boat, as the holding power is weak. You should never depend on a mushroom anchor to hold your boat in rough water or weather.
Plastic drywall anchors are suitable for hanging lightweight items such as pictures on drywall, while metal and toggle anchors are better for heavier items such as shelves.
Double drywalling also offers a greater degree of impact resistance, so it may be helpful to businesses situated near high-traffic areas and roads in the event of an accident.
When using nails, it's always preferable to use a wall stud. In terms of weight capacity, one picture hanging hook with a nail can hold up to 25 pounds and two hanging hooks can hold up to 50 pounds. To avoid using nails, you can try adhesive hanging hooks. They stick to the wall using an adhesive strip.
How it works: A molly bolt is a screw encased with metal that expands in a predrilled hole to support medium-weight items. Best for: high-use and mid-weight range items, like coat hooks, or with lightweight items in the ceiling, such as smoke detectors. Weight limit: 25 to 50 pounds.