My shelves fell down! Advice needed...

[easylife]

I had these Ikea shelves http://www.ikea.co.uk/webapp/wcs/st...uctId=11102&langId=-20&parentCats=10104*10172

Held up with these brackets:
http://www.ikea.co.uk/webapp/wcs/st...uctId=40764&langId=-20&parentCats=10104*10172

They were located in an alcove in a house that's over a hundred years old. I've always had trouble with the soft crumbly walls, and thought these were up pretty securely, but I clearly overloaded one of them, causing it to fall and take the one underneath with it.

My question is this: the two bottom shelves which fell were part of a set of four in the one alcove, mirrored by four matching shelves in the other alcove in the same room. Ideally, I want to put them back up in the same location, and will naturally go hunting for even longer screws and even more exciting rawlplugs. However if I fill the holes they left behind and re-drill them in pretty much the same place, am I setting myself up for a big fall?

I promise never to overload them again once they're back up.[/b]

 

[2scoops0406]

Putting longer screws in will not necessarily solve the problem. The real problem is the substrate (wall) that you are trying to attach the bracket to. If you want the shelves in the same place, then the only way not to repeat your experience is to excavate and enlarge the holes (how much depends on how crumbly the wall is), moisten the holes, refill with motar, which I'd mix with a bit of PVA, allow to dry, redrill, and refit. This is only one way, potentailly you could use anchors, but if the wall is really crumbly, then the are going to come out.

 

[IanDB]

Personally I'd use something like polyfilla rather than mortar. It's finer and will take a hole better. But, as Eddie says, if the wall is crumbly nothing you put in there is going to bond very well.

I had a similar problem in a victorian house. In the end I used polyfilla, rawplug and long screws.

 

[PTH]

You could cut a sheet of, say, 18mm ply to fit the back of the alcove then screw your shelf brackets to that. Use some nonails type glue and as many c/sunk screws as you like to fix the ply to the wall - some of them will go into firm stuff.

or

do away with the brackets and use battens on the sides of the alcove to support your shelves.

 

[easylife]

Thanks everyone, this is all entirely excellent advice, and I have formulated a plan as follows:
1. Clear out existing holes, excavate and rake out any loose mortar.
2. Line holes with PVA to help filling to adhere, fill with Pollyfilla and leave to dry.
3. Re-drill holes, and put shelves back up with original brackets but longer screws.
4. Site additional batons underneath shelves at the back of the alcove where they won’t be too visible to help spread the load.
5. Hope the bu**ers never fall down again.

Does anyone have anything to add to that?

 

[david and julie]

Polyfiller may take a while to thoroughly set if it is very thick. It may be quicker with a small bag of mortar or even plastic padding or similar.

 

[Antwerpman]

if I were you I would look at some of these bolts that you can secure in place using a resin mixture, I think it would give a much stronger adhesion than poylfilla (which is great for filling up holes but is not structural enough to take the weight of your shelves I think). Alternatively look at rawl bolts or other types of expanding bolts, you should get a stronger anchorage with them than the normal plastic plugs

 

[2scoops0406]

Using expanding bolts is fine, but if the wall is very crumbly, nothing is going to stay in, you have to anchor it to something.

 

[murraysnudge]

The old wall will most likely be plastered with lime plaster so the screws must go right through into the brick. The bricks will be laid with lime mortar so you don't want a fix in a joint.
What size screws are being used?
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The job has been done, post was made in July 2004 (easylife only made 2 posts, both here)