Getting a fixing in crumbly plaster

[purpleroad]

Was asked to put a picture up. Drilled in and it was all crumbly. Old house. Maybe 90+ years. The brown plug just turned nd was useless with 7mm hole. Then. Drilled 8mm and pushed in one of those expanding ones as in picture and it held. Is this the only plug that works in crumbly plaster?

 

[Lower]

Best thing to do is try and screw into a lath.

 

[purpleroad]

Best thing to do is try and screw into a lath.

A lath?

 

[Tigercubrider]

How heavy is the picture?

 

[purpleroad]

5kg.

 

[Lower]

Before plasterboard was invented, stud walls had wooden laths nailed to them which were then covered in plaster. The plaster didn't really stick to the wood laths so gaps were left in between them and the plaster was squeezed through the gaps so that when it dried it was stuck in place.

Try screwing straight into the plaster and see if you hit a lath. If not, go up around half an inch and you stand a good chance of hitting one.

 

[Tigercubrider]

Maybe two of these
http://uk.suntekstore.com/goods.php?id=15012991&utm_source=gbuk&utm_medium=paid

 

[purpleroad]

Ok laths hey, will remember that. Don't need a plug. Could end up drilling holes all over the place though trying to find one.

What do u guys think of the expanding thing in picture? Seems to be working

 

[Burnerman]

That is a hollow wall fixing and is designed to open out behind a sheet of plasterboard, for example.
Its working in your situation because it has expanded enough to grip the sides of the drilled hole, but if you overdo the loading it will give way and bring a chunk of plaster with it.
The only correct method is to hit a timber lath or use a plug that is long enough to fix into the brickwork beneath the plaster.
John

 

[foxhole]

Why is everyone assuming lath and plaster? Property is unlikely to be old enough .
How deep did you drill? Hole needs to go way past the plaster , at least 50mm into the brickwork.

 

[Gossamer]

Is it brick or stud wall?

 

[Lower]

Ok laths hey, will remember that. Don't need a plug. Could end up drilling holes all over the place though trying to find one.

What do u guys think of the expanding thing in picture? Seems to be working

The gaps between the laths are pretty small, around 0.25 of an inch. You shouldn't need to make more than 2 holes to find a lath.

 

[Lower]

Why is everyone assuming lath and plaster? Property is unlikely to be old enough .
How deep did you drill? Hole needs to go way past the plaster , at least 50mm into the brickwork.

OP said that the house is 90+ years old.

 

[foxhole]

OP said that the house is 90+ years old.

OP did not mention the walls was internal.Plasterboards been around since 1888 .

 

[Lower]

OP did not mention the walls was internal.Plasterboards been around since 1888 .

Good point with regards to internal wall. I just assumed that it would be internal due to the length of the fixing.