DIY advice

[HPIMG]

Bought a dart board with a cabinet for my boy and picked it up yesterday it’s for his Xmas. The box was quite heavy and I am useless at DIY but will need to have a go because won’t be able to get a joiner out on Xmas day.
I have ordered a stud finder from amazon but what type of screws should I be using on the studs to hold this dart board and cabinet ? I have an electric drill so I’m guessing it should be easy for even me. Also do I just screw into the wooden studs with screws or do I also need raw plugs ?

 

[GreiginFife]

Bought a dart board with a cabinet for my boy and picked it up yesterday it’s for his Xmas. The box was quite heavy and I am useless at DIY but will need to have a go because won’t be able to get a joiner out on Xmas day.
I have ordered a stud finder from amazon but what type of screws should I be using on the studs to hold this dart board and cabinet ? I have an electric drill so I’m guessing it should be easy for even me. Also do I just screw into the wooden studs with screws or do I also need raw plugs ?

You're assuming that you will either find a stud in the required location and/or find studs that match the width of the cabinet. It's more likely that you will screw in to studs on one side of the cabinet and not on another (I would assume that a heavy cabinet has one screw at each corner).

It also depends on what you are screwing in to. If it's plaster over solid wall then you will need rawl plugs that match the substrate (Fischer Duo Power are my plug of choice when fitting cabinetry) if it's plasterboard then you are going to need a fixing that fits the weight (DO NOT use the self drilling "weavil" type ones as they are crap beyond crap). Interset heavy duty fixings tend to be the best as they spread some of the weight across the fixing point.

That said, if you have a fixing point in to a stud then you can probably get away with 6 or 7mm plugs on the other side, even in to hollow wall plasterboard.

No need to use a plug in a fixing directly in to a stud, just drill a smaller pilot hole first (this isn't essential but it helps if you are not bang dead centre on the stud and stops it splitting if you are near the stud edge).

 

[HPIMG]

It’s plasterboard then studs. I didn’t even think about needing two studs apart lol oh no this is starting to sound like a bit of work. Worst case could I just not put a few screws right up the middle of the cabinet if I put say 4 screws then it can’t twist ?

 

[GreiginFife]

It’s plasterboard then studs. I didn’t even think about needing two studs apart lol oh no this is starting to sound like a bit of work. Worst case could I just not put a few screws right up the middle of the cabinet if I put say 4 screws then it can’t twist ?

It's not something that I would do. The backers for these cabinets tend to be painted hardboard which has no real tensile strength. You'd be concentrating the load on the centre of the panel and this would only work for so long IMO.

The reason they put fixings in the corners is to spread the weight. It shouldn't be too difficult. If you find a stud, get the cabinet level. Mark your holes (2 on the stud) and if the other two are on hollow wall, drill a hole 0.5mm smaller than the plug size, tap in a plug and then fix the cabinet.

Just make sure it's all level first, nothing worse than a wonky dartboard.

 

[jim8flog]

If you are not a confident DIYer and do not now where your pipe and cable runs are exactly also use a pipe and cable finder (sometimes it is also part of the a stud finder). Do not assume cable runs are always vertical.


Finding studs is very easy without one. Just use your knuckle and a ear, tap the area with your knuckle and listen to the sound, very hollow sound is where there is no stud, much deader sound is where there is one on, the feeling of you knuckle also changes to a much harder feel where there is a stud. Remember studs go both vertically and horizontally.

Where a horizontal stud adjoins a vertical stud the will be a nail or two going in at around a 45deg angle. A cable finder will also detect these.

 

[Fade and Die]

A lot depends on the construction, its been assumed that the studs will be timber, they might easily be metal.

Mark up where the fixings need to go then try screwing a woodscrew in and see what the resistance is.

If its just plasterboard then these have a decent load rating...

GripIt Plasterboard fixing (Dia)25mm (L)20mm, Pack of 4

Fix heavy objects such as wall mounted TV's, water heaters and kitchen cupboards to plasterboard walls with this pack of plasterboard fixings from GripIt.

www.diy.com

If you can find a timber stud then a decent 70mm woodscrew will be fine, don't forget to use washers.

If its a metal stud then maybe re-drill the fixing holes in the cabinet 50mm horizontally to avoid.

As Jim said watch out for cables and pipes don't drill above or horizontally from any sockets or switches. or radiators.

 

[Old Colner]

I used the GripIt fixings for a tv wall bracket onto plasterboard and was suitably impressed, never had any problem with it years later.

 

[GB72]

Bought a dart board with a cabinet for my boy and picked it up yesterday it’s for his Xmas. The box was quite heavy and I am useless at DIY but will need to have a go because won’t be able to get a joiner out on Xmas day.
I have ordered a stud finder from amazon but what type of screws should I be using on the studs to hold this dart board and cabinet ? I have an electric drill so I’m guessing it should be easy for even me. Also do I just screw into the wooden studs with screws or do I also need raw plugs ?

Thanks for this question as my partner bought me a dart board for my garage bar for my birthday and I was thinking about similar issues. Luckily I have a mate who can do it for me.

The one thing I had in my head was protecting walls from wayward darts. The person who owned my house before me played darts and after taking down the wallpaper I found loads of holes that were a pain to fill. I was actually thinking of buying a sheet of wood that I can then paint to look decent on the wall of the bar and then affix that to studs and fix the board to the wood. That would give a wider area of protection from wayward darts and could be replaced if it starts getting full of holes. I am not allowed near power tools though so have no idea if this will work.

 

[PJ87]

A lot depends on the construction, its been assumed that the studs will be timber, they might easily be metal.

Mark up where the fixings need to go then try screwing a woodscrew in and see what the resistance is.

If its just plasterboard then these have a decent load rating...

GripIt Plasterboard fixing (Dia)25mm (L)20mm, Pack of 4

Fix heavy objects such as wall mounted TV's, water heaters and kitchen cupboards to plasterboard walls with this pack of plasterboard fixings from GripIt.

www.diy.com

If you can find a timber stud then a decent 70mm woodscrew will be fine, don't forget to use washers.

If its a metal stud then maybe re-drill the fixing holes in the cabinet 50mm horizontally to avoid.

As Jim said watch out for cables and pipes don't drill above or horizontally from any sockets or switches. or radiators.

My TV in the loft is held onto the stud wall via these. It's a 42 inch tv and 5 years been on wall

The bonus is when drilling if you find a stud use that adwell

 

[RichA]

I've been hanging stuff on plasterboard walls in my houses for 25 years. Tried lots of different methods and these nylon "self-drilling" ones are the best I've found...

Rawlplug United Kingdom

rawlplug.co.uk

Best to actually drill a small pilot hole first and use a long nail to check what's behind (pipes, timber, aluminium plate or just a cavity). The pilot hole also guarantees that the plug doesn't relocate itself as you screw it in.
If you hit timber then you don't need a plug.

 

[clubchamp98]

Find a mate who knows his stuff.
Buy a bottle of his favourite tipple invite him over.
If it goes wrong blame him.

I put up some stud 2x1” wood on the wall then screw the dartboard to that it’s easier to get it level.