Help with drilling and what drill bit to use Information, help and advice on many architecture, self build and design problems and issues

[pkum]

Hello,

I am looking for advice on which drill bit to use for installing shelves.

The shelves I am looking to install are:
1) uprights with brackets.
2) heavy brackets (0.8kg) with shelves that weight 3.2 kgs. We will put books on these so expect another 5-7 kg per shelf.

Our wall is plaster (1.5 mt damp proofed) and brick and mortar in the back.

One recommendation we got was to use 70 mm screws with 30 mm rawl plugs. The hole to be drilled is with a masonry 7 mm drill bit.

Some research we have done suggests we should use an SDS plus drill bit.

We are using a 18 V DIY purpose drill - definitely not a professional one.

Any advice/help is appreciated.

Thanks!

[stoneyboy]

Hi pkum
A 6mm drill for 5mm screws should be adequate. Drill a trial hole to determine the depth of the brickwork. Add the depth of the bracket and the depth of plaster plus 40mm will give you the length of screws needed.
Use either a new or freshly sharpened masonry drill bit and you should be fine.
Regards S