Hi All,

I would be grateful for some thoughts on the installation of a curtain
rail since the way I have done it does not work.

I have a metal curtain rail 1.8m long with three metal wall brackets.
Each bracket has two small holes for fixing, the top hole has an
enlarged hole below the main fixing hole to allow the screw to be
fixed to the wall first (there is no way I could get a screwdriver
onto it otherwise due to the shape of the brackets). I am using
plastic wall plugs designed for solid and hollow walls.

The wall is made of lightweight blocks with very soft plaster over.
Therefore the weight of the curtains is gradually pulling the top
screws out and enlarging the holes as it goes.

I would like to fix this without resorting to adding a batten on the
wall because they look ugly and also will bring the curtains too far
from the windowl. I was wondering whether more heavy duty plugs and
screws might work or would they just go the same way?

Any other feasable (and cheap) ideas welcome ;-)

TIA, Mark

The message
from Mark contains these words:

Any other feasable (and cheap) ideas welcome ;-)

Foamed concrete isn't very strong at all, but if you can soak glue into
it you can spread the load around enough to make it adequate. I use
polyurethane glue - looks like darkish golden syrup. It needs water to
set, so I wash the hole out with a water pistol and smear the plug
generously with PU glue and shove it in. You may need to migrate to a
larger/longer plug if the holes are really shot - or move along the
batten a bit.

So far it's been very successful.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.

On Wed, 8 Mar 2006 15:39:18 GMT, Guy King
wrote:

The message
from Mark contains these words:

Any other feasable (and cheap) ideas welcome ;-)

Foamed concrete isn't very strong at all, but if you can soak glue into
it you can spread the load around enough to make it adequate. I use
polyurethane glue - looks like darkish golden syrup. It needs water to
set, so I wash the hole out with a water pistol and smear the plug
generously with PU glue and shove it in. You may need to migrate to a
larger/longer plug if the holes are really shot - or move along the
batten a bit.

I did something very similar using wood glue. Needless to say it did
not help much.

Is the PU glue available in DIY stores?

Mark

Hi,

We have exactly the same problem in our house.
We bought 4 of these;
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Produc...er/6230812.htm
(Which BTW are a bargain compared to similar wide bore poles,
although only use them with eyelet curtains, junk the rings.)

We have cast lintls above the windows so they cant be drilled
you end up with very shallow holes through the plaster.
What I have done so far and to great effect was cut the raw plugs
to length and then fill the holes with pink grip, let them set and then
screw in with short screws. So far its worked well and saves the
batten look!

Matthew

On 8 Mar 2006 09:04:38 -0800, "Matthew" wrote:

Hi,

We have exactly the same problem in our house.
We bought 4 of these;
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Produc...er/6230812.htm
(Which BTW are a bargain compared to similar wide bore poles,
although only use them with eyelet curtains, junk the rings.)

Looks very similar to what I have. Mine were from Homebase.

Mark

On Wed, 8 Mar 2006 17:10:58 -0000, "Roger Mills \(aka Set Square\)"
wrote:

Are you sure that it's lightweight blocks above the window, and not a
concrete lintel? If it *is* concrete, maybe your plugs are only going into
the plaster - which is crumbling?

Yes. It is lightweight blocks with a L shaped metal lintel. I am
fixing the curtain rail above this.

Either way, drill a deeper hole and put longer plugs and screws in -
something like 2" x No. 8 should be more than adequate. If it's concrete,
it's far easier to drill if you use an SDS drill.

I'll try this. However the current fixings are 35mm long. I have an
SDS drill but this wall is so soft I can drill it with a cheap battery
non-hammer drill!

In another room the depth guide went into the wall like it was a
drill!

Mark

The message
from Mark contains these words:

Is the PU glue available in DIY stores?

Dunno.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Mark wrote:

On Wed, 8 Mar 2006 17:10:58 -0000, "Roger Mills \(aka Set Square\)"
wrote:

Are you sure that it's lightweight blocks above the window, and not a
concrete lintel? If it *is* concrete, maybe your plugs are only
going into the plaster - which is crumbling?

Yes. It is lightweight blocks with a L shaped metal lintel. I am
fixing the curtain rail above this.


Fair enough.

Either way, drill a deeper hole and put longer plugs and screws in -
something like 2" x No. 8 should be more than adequate. If it's
concrete, it's far easier to drill if you use an SDS drill.

I'll try this. However the current fixings are 35mm long. I have an
SDS drill but this wall is so soft I can drill it with a cheap battery
non-hammer drill!

There's no point in using an SDS drill if the wall is soft - I was only
suggesting that for concrete.

What I do in soft block is to use an undersize drill bit relative to the
official size for the plug. The plug then has to be tapped in - rather than
slid in - and the screw provides a firmer fixing.
--
Cheers,
Roger
______
Please reply to newsgroup.
Reply address IS valid, but is disposable in the event of excessive
spam.