We all need our homes to look beautiful, don’t you? That can’t happen without installing shelves, art paintings, lights or other wall mounted decorations.
Whether you have experience or not, drilling a hole through concrete is a fairly simple procedure.
The best tool to use is a hammer drill. Not only is a hammer drill readily available but also simple to use. This article will give you steps on how to use a hammer drill for concrete.
If you’ve never drilled a hole through concrete, you may need to have some guidance. Go through these steps and by the end, you will have all the knowledge you need to drill concrete with a hammer drill.
Step 1: Get a high-quality hammer drill
A hammer drill is the easiest tool to use when drilling through concrete. If you already own one, good for you. If you don’t, you can either buy or rent one.
The hammer drill uses a rotary hammer to gain quick and easy access to the concrete. Plus it helps ‘sweep’ away the concrete shavings.
It’s advisable to get a hammer drill with high amperes from a brand that is recognized.
Make sure you can hold it easily without straining and a speed setting would be really helpful for you.
Step 2: Have a working knowledge of the hammer drill
Before you start using a hammer drill, you need to know how it works. Take time and study the tool.
You can read the instruction manual or find online tutorials. It would be good to know all the knobs and controls of the hammer.
Don’t forget to follow the safety instructions and wear the correct safety gear before you start drilling.
Step 3: Use the right drill bit
Since you’ll be drilling through concrete, you may need to get the correct rotary drill bit. They’re designed to endure the most rigorous drilling.
It’s advisable to get a drill bit with a longer flute. This will make it easier for you to set the depth. Also, the shavings will have a direction to follow as you drill.
There are many specialized drill bits for concrete drilling. Depending on the size of hole you want, you can choose the right one.
Step 4: Depth setting
When you were going through the instruction manual, you found guidelines on how to use the depth setting. The hammer drill can set the depth for you when you manipulate the settings to your preferences.
If your hammer drill didn’t come with a depth setting, don’t worry there’s a simple way to do it. You can mark on the flute, how deep you’d want to go. You can use a felt pen or some tape.
Experts advise that you should set the depth of the hammer drill at 1 ½ inches (3cm) for concrete.
If you’re going to drill really deep you’ll need to get a longer screw/drill bit and therefore deeper depth. For hollow drilling, you’ll need shallow depth.
The ½ inch is an allowance for the concrete shavings to either fall off to the ground or accumulate in the hole for you to clean afterwards.
Step 5: Indicate points for drilling
It wouldn’t make sense drilling random points on your wall. You need to measure the length and width of what you plan on hanging and indicate using a pen or pencil.
Once that is done, hold your hammer in the correct way. This will ensure that the weight is properly distributed, you have a firm grip and you’re comfortable.
Hold the drill with your dominant hand the way a gun is supposed to be held. The index finger of the dominant hand should always be at the trigger. There are some hammer drills that come with a handle right before the screw.
If you have one of those, use your other hand to hold the handle. It gives you more stability as you drill. If your drill doesn’t have that handle, put your other hand at the back of the drill.
Step 6: Start slow then gradually increase the power
Put the hammer drill at the center of the mark on the wall and drill for 30 seconds at very slow speed. Your hammer drill should come with speed control, if not, use short bursts.
The shallow hole in the wall will guide you on how big/small/narrow/wide the hole needs to be. If you need a big hole, it’s advisable to start with a small drill bit for the starter hole, you can then use the drill bit size you need.
After making the starter hole, put the hammer drill in it and start drilling firmly at a constant function. You can then slowly increase the pressure and speed of the hammer when needed to make the hole you want.
With concrete, the hammer drill may defect if enough pressure isn’t put on it. As you drill continuously you’ll find the right pressure to apply on the hammer drill.
Step 7: Make use of other drilling tools
Even though the hammer drill is very efficient when it comes to concrete, it may fail or you may come across some hard pieces of concrete.
If something like this happens, you may consider going old-school. Use a masonry nail and hammer. Insert the nail into the hole and use the hammer to break the concrete.
You can then use your hammer drill once again until you’re satisfied with the results.
Step 8: Clean the hole
Some of the concrete pieces and dust will remain in the hole. You can’t mount/install anything with the dust in the hole.
There are many ways you can use to clean the hole from DIY hacks to compressed air. Decide on the best method you can afford or one that works well for you.
A can of compressed air works really well. It will remove every bit of dust and improve the strength of your anchors.
Related Video
[su_youtube_advanced url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjE6nsfdjpo” controls=”no” showinfo=”no” rel=”no” modestbranding=”yes” https=”yes”]Final Verdict
If you’re thinking of getting your dream chandeliers, lights or any artwork and wondering where or how to install them, you now have a breakthrough.
These steps will help you mount all of your favourite things in your hose, workshop or any other place.
Just make sure you have safety clothing on especially around your eyes and nose.