How do I know what my walls are made of ?

ZoZoZo

Hi,

I've bought a new build so it will need a bunch of stuff hanging on the walls, pictures, mirrors, shelves, curtains/blinds on the windows. How do I figure out what any given patch of wall is made of and whether or not it is safe to drill a hole at a given location in the wall ? In particular if I want to hand curtains/blinds on the windows, is there a particular material that is generally used for window reveals or lintels to be easily 'drillable' yet suitably 'strong' to support the weight of a curtain rail + curtains ? Or could they be made of anything (eg masonry or metal ?). How do people normally deal with this ?

Thanks,

Zozo

Dtp1979

ZoZoZo wrote: »

Hi,

I've bought a new build so it will need a bunch of stuff hanging on the walls, pictures, mirrors, shelves, curtains/blinds on the windows. How do I figure out what any given patch of wall is made of and whether or not it is safe to drill a hole at a given location in the wall ? In particular if I want to hand curtains/blinds on the windows, is there a particular material that is generally used for window reveals or lintels to be easily 'drillable' yet suitably 'strong' to support the weight of a curtain rail + curtains ? Or could they be made of anything (eg masonry or metal ?). How do people normally deal with this ?

Thanks,

Zozo

No offence chief but if you’re asking that question you have no business holding a drill. I don’t mean that to sound so smart arsey btw. Get a local handyman in.

mickdw

First thing to look out for is electrics.
Dont drill anywhere above a socket or light switch. Cables will be run directly upwards from fittings. In addition, check the opposite side of the wall also for electrics and steer well clear of any cables.
It's unlikely your internals walls are solid block so you are likely dealing wi tyh timber stud and plaster board of some specification.
To fix most things, the best thing to do is locate the line of a timber stud and fix at that point. There are also various fixings you can buy that just go through plaster board. These should only be used for small stuff that weighs nothing.

lalababa

Alot of bloody wires in new houses now, so you need a stud/metal/electrics finder yoke. Metal/masonry/wood bits etc.

BrokenArrows

ZoZoZo wrote: »

Hi,

I've bought a new build so it will need a bunch of stuff hanging on the walls, pictures, mirrors, shelves, curtains/blinds on the windows. How do I figure out what any given patch of wall is made of and whether or not it is safe to drill a hole at a given location in the wall ? In particular if I want to hand curtains/blinds on the windows, is there a particular material that is generally used for window reveals or lintels to be easily 'drillable' yet suitably 'strong' to support the weight of a curtain rail + curtains ? Or could they be made of anything (eg masonry or metal ?). How do people normally deal with this ?

Thanks,

Zozo

If you bought a new build then you contact the builder and find out exactly what you want to know.
Regardless of what the builder tells you however you should always check for wires/pipes before drilling anything.

If its another house where you cannot contact the builder then you just have to make an educated guess.

Tap the wall, if it sounds solid then its likely brick or cement blocks.
If it sounds hollow then its probably a plasterboard stud partition, or it could be plasterboard with a hollow gap behind it and then a brick/block wall.

After checking for wires and pipes using a detector a good idea would be to hammer in a narrow nail into the wall. If it slides in easily then its plasterboard. If it stops and wont hammer in further then its brick or block wall.

But since yours is a new build, contact the builder.

dodzy

Dtp1979 wrote: »

No offence chief but if you’re asking that question you have no business holding a drill. I don’t mean that to sound so smart arsey btw. Get a local handyman in.

Maybe OP is keen to have go. Even simple tasks can be very rewarding, not to mention the cost saving aspect. Dtp, at some point way back, you picked up a drill for the first time

OP, don't be put off. By all means, as has been suggested already, have a quick chat with the builder if you're concerned but generally speaking, if you take your time, do your homework on the most suitable fittings for each task ( a small picture vs heavy curtains & pole will obviously have different requirements) and tackle them systematically, you'll be fine. Easy pickings first, the small pics, mirrors etc, moving onto light shelving and then onto the heavier items. It is not rocket science, although obvious care has to be exercised ( plumbing and electrics lurk behind what is most likely plasterboard walls throughout the home ). Plan carefully & always measure twice; no point in drilling holes in the wrong place and then have to face the task of filling and repairing freshly finished walls.

So.... a drill (cordless preferably), a selection of drill bits, 6 > 10mm (masonry & wood), a small selection of wall plugs and screws, small tipped flathead / philips screwdriver, a decent stud/cable finder is handy tool, the list could go on but you won't need much to kick it off. Plenty of experienced folk around here that are more than happy to advise.

Assuming you do know which end of a drill to hold....... ?:P

antiskeptic

ZoZoZo wrote: »

Hi,

I've bought a new build so it will need a bunch of stuff hanging on the walls, pictures, mirrors, shelves, curtains/blinds on the windows. How do I figure out what any given patch of wall is made of and whether or not it is safe to drill a hole at a given location in the wall ? In particular if I want to hand curtains/blinds on the windows, is there a particular material that is generally used for window reveals or lintels to be easily 'drillable' yet suitably 'strong' to support the weight of a curtain rail + curtains ? Or could they be made of anything (eg masonry or metal ?). How do people normally deal with this ?

Thanks,

Zozo

Re your curtains. If its new build it will have insulated plasterboard on the inner face of the external walls.

You can drill carefully through plasterboard (12.5mm thick) without hitting anything behind - just masking tape around the drill 14mm from the point and drill til the tape is flush with the surface of the board. The point will have broken through the paper at the back of the plasterboard but not punctured anything that might be behind. Do bear in mind advice given generally about location of sockets

Now, poke a wooden skewer down the hole to check you have room behind the plasterboard.

If all well then some good mushroom type plasterboard fixings are your man. Google 'rosett plasterboard fixings' and go to images and you'll see the type I mean. They are pretty foolproof whereas a lot of similar types (metal expanding) can be hard to make work in practice. Chadwicks will have something of that design, don't worry about brand.

It is important:

- drill the right sized hole
-drill straight and clean, wobblig the drill will make the hole bigger
- screw the screw lightly home in the fixing and tap it firmly home in the hole
- remove screw, fit curtain bracket, refit screw and when you start to meet resistance press firmly as you screw to stop the fixing rotating in the plasterboard.
-keep screwing to very firm hand tight.

Its important with curtains to get brackets that have at least 2 decently spaced mounting holes. A lot of them have holes very close together, preventing space for two expanding fixings to be used.

awec

mickdw wrote: »

First thing to look out for is electrics.
Dont drill anywhere above a socket or light switch. Cables will be run directly upwards from fittings. In addition, check the opposite side of the wall also for electrics and steer well clear of any cables.
It's unlikely your internals walls are solid block so you are likely dealing wi tyh timber stud and plaster board of some specification.
To fix most things, the best thing to do is locate the line of a timber stud and fix at that point. There are also various fixings you can buy that just go through plaster board. These should only be used for small stuff that weighs nothing.

Plasterboard fixings come in many varieties, and can hold some relatively heavy stuff.

Dtp1979

dodzy wrote: »

Maybe OP is keen to have go. Even simple tasks can be very rewarding, not to mention the cost saving aspect. Dtp, at some point way back, you picked up a drill for the first time

OP, don't be put off. By all means, as has been suggested already, have a quick chat with the builder if you're concerned but generally speaking, if you take your time, do your homework on the most suitable fittings for each task ( a small picture vs heavy curtains & pole will obviously have different requirements) and tackle them systematically, you'll be fine. Easy pickings first, the small pics, mirrors etc, moving onto light shelving and then onto the heavier items. It is not rocket science, although obvious care has to be exercised ( plumbing and electrics lurk behind what is most likely plasterboard walls throughout the home ). Plan carefully & always measure twice; no point in drilling holes in the wrong place and then have to face the task of filling and repairing freshly finished walls.

So.... a drill (cordless preferably), a selection of drill bits, 6 > 10mm (masonry & wood), a small selection of wall plugs and screws, small tipped flathead / philips screwdriver, a decent stud/cable finder is handy tool, the list could go on but you won't need much to kick it off. Plenty of experienced folk around here that are more than happy to advise.

Assuming you do know which end of a drill to hold....... ?:P

I was 6 when I first used a drill .
I meant no disrespect to the op. A diy course would do the op no harm I guess.

Cerco

Op , buy or borrow a DIY manual. Readers Digest & B&Q produce goods ones.
Probably available in your local library. This will give you a start and some confidence to get started. You will also see some recommended tools for various jobs. If you have time do a course.
Don’t despair if you mess up a couple of times, it’s a learning process. Even experienced people mess up from time to time.

bfclancy

antiskeptic wrote: »

Re your curtains. If its new build it will have insulated plasterboard on the inner face of the external walls.

You can drill carefully through plasterboard (12.5mm thick) without hitting anything behind - just masking tape around the drill 14mm from the point and drill til the tape is flush with the surface of the board. The point will have broken through the paper at the back of the plasterboard but not punctured anything that might be behind. Do bear in mind advice given generally about location of sockets

Now, poke a wooden skewer down the hole to check you have room behind the plasterboard.

If all well then some good mushroom type plasterboard fixings are your man. Google 'rosett plasterboard fixings' and go to images and you'll see the type I mean. They are pretty foolproof whereas a lot of similar types (metal expanding) can be hard to make work in practice. Chadwicks will have something of that design, don't worry about brand.

It is important:

- drill the right sized hole
-drill straight and clean, wobblig the drill will make the hole bigger
- screw the screw lightly home in the fixing and tap it firmly home in the hole
- remove screw, fit curtain bracket, refit screw and when you start to meet resistance press firmly as you screw to stop the fixing rotating in the plasterboard.
-keep screwing to very firm hand tight.

Its important with curtains to get brackets that have at least 2 decently spaced mounting holes. A lot of them have holes very close together, preventing space for two expanding fixings to be used.

why would a new build have insulated plasterboard on external walls, surely this is an outdated method building, are EWI or full fill cavity insulation not the norm for build up of masonry walls for new builds??

GrumpyMe

Cerco wrote: »

Op , buy or borrow a DIY manual. Readers Digest & B&Q produce goods ones.
Probably available in your local library. This will give you a start and some confidence to get started. You will also see some recommended tools for various jobs. If you have time do a course.
Don’t despair if you mess up a couple of times, it’s a learning process. Even experienced people mess up from time to time.

Eh youtube/google have multiple videos on most DIY tasks

Here's a few based on your thread name alone



https://www.google.com/search?q=how+do+I+know+what+my+internal+walls+are+made+of&client=firefox-b-d&source=lnms&tbm=vid&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjln8P20ezkAhVAVBUIHdXaCA0Q_AUIEigC&biw=1277&bih=989

mickdw

awec wrote: »

mickdw wrote: »

First thing to look out for is electrics.
Dont drill anywhere above a socket or light switch. Cables will be run directly upwards from fittings. In addition, check the opposite side of the wall also for electrics and steer well clear of any cables.
It's unlikely your internals walls are solid block so you are likely dealing wi tyh timber stud and plaster board of some specification.
To fix most things, the best thing to do is locate the line of a timber stud and fix at that point. There are also various fixings you can buy that just go through plaster board. These should only be used for small stuff that weighs nothing.

Plasterboard fixings come in many varieties, and can hold some relatively heavy stuff.

Yes you are right however for the purposes of advising an absolute beginner, I'd be advising plaster board fixings be used in only foolproof locations as it's absolutely important to use correct type for any given task.

ZoZoZo

BrokenArrows wrote: »

If you bought a new build then you contact the builder and find out exactly what you want to know.

But since yours is a new build, contact the builder.

Well this would be ideal but I suspect it is unrealistic, I don't expect the builder will be willing to field questions every time I want to hang a picture or indeed at all. Unless there is some specific documentation I can ask for like architecural plans or something ?
I did look at the planning application but as far as I remember the submissions weren't that detailed but more importantly what was finally built differred significantly in terms of materials used relative to what was in the planning application.

So is there some specific document I could ask for (essentially a detailed schematic for the enitre house) ?

Thanks,

Zozo

awec

If you tap the walls do they sound hollow?

If your house is part of a development then the walls are almost certainly stud walls. Woodies have some videos on their website that teach you how to hang things on stud walls.

Specs etc will be of no use to you, you won't understand them (no offence), they'll be far too technical.