Unable to find studs

anishtholath

Hello folks,

apologies in advance if this was answered elsewhere, couldn't find anything that helped.

My house is a mid terrace and has an extension at the back built-in (no shared wall). I am trying to find the studs on that wall to hang a TV but for the life me cant find any.

Methods tried:

1. tapping along the wall, cant find difference in the sound except for a small square in the middle of the wall which seems solid
2. Used multiple stud finders, they seem to detect something, but when i try drilling there, only hollow behind it
3. tried magnet to find screws. It did quite a few, but when i drill holes vertically along, it's hollow behind the plaster
4. tried drilling holes on both sides of the power outlet since i heard that stud should be there nearby, but nothing
5. as a last resort, i drilled small holes in a row along a 45cm patch, but it hit nothing

Is it possible that the extension is built without studs, i am not familiar with construction, so any help will be appreciated.

I got plaster wall fittings which has nails that are very long and can supposedly reach the brick/concrete at the back of the wall. But turns out the gap from wall front to the brick behind is more than the screws i got. I am trying to fix a TV wall attachment which moves around, so I need a stud or attachment to the brick wall behind.

Anish

The Continental Op

Just a thought? Was the small square in the middle of the wall put there to hang a TV off? Rarely and probably only if you ask a builder will do that.

Can you pop the front off the power outlet and see how the back box is connected to the wall? For safety switch off the MCB for that circuit first.

Tefral

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058345149/unable-to-find-studs

Use these, they can hold 100kg each

www.screwfix.ie/p/gripit-tv-clam-plasterboard-fixings-25mm-x-205mm-4-pack/371hp

mickdw

Perhaps plasterboard is just dabbed onto the blockwork. If that is the case, there wouldn't be a huge gap between slab and block. Best fixing in that case would be to go into block.

That method of putting slab on wall is just using blobs of plaster spaced out behind slab and pushing slab into it.

magicbastarder

this thread will be full of studs soon.

anishtholath

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978427#Comment_121978427

thanks for the reply, i tried opening the power outlet, but it looked too integrated to the wall that i didnt pry too much. but the 45cm patch of holes i made do cover the area of the outlet and didnt reveal anything sadly :(

anishtholath

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978428#Comment_121978428

hey, the problem is i want to fix a specific tv mount which is movable, and these wont work with that i think. and if i constantly move the mount around, i feel these would just come off

anishtholath

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978440#Comment_121978440

that got way too complicated for me way too fast. sorry, dont know the terminology here

what is blockwork - the brickwall behind?

not sure what you meant by slab here, is it the plasterboard?

in my case the brick wall is atleast 12cm behind the plasterboard (i put in a skewer in one of the holes and measured)

anishtholath

is it worth extending the 45cm patch of holes to 60+ to find the stud

i read something about horizontal studs somewhere, is that even used somewhere?

awec

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978757#Comment_121978757

Dabbed (or dot and dab) is when the plasterboard (the slab) is stuck to the block work (the brick wall) with adhesive, rather than mechanically fixed (i.e. screwed) to studs. So dots of adhesive are put on the wall and the slab is pressed into it.

But in this method, the void between the slab (plasterboard) and the brick wall would only be a few cm, certainly not 12cm.

There must be studs there. You could try cut a small hole and put something into the hole sideways in both directions until you hit something.

Tefral

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978744#Comment_121978744

correct. That is what would happen. You didnt specify what mount it was in the original post.

This is what you need so, you need to get all the way to the concete block. https://www.screwfix.ie/p/easyfix-window-anchors-10mm-x-120mm-10-pack/15876

10mm pilot hole and then bash in the pvc sleeve, and then put in that.

Just becareful not to over tighten as if you are saying there is a big enough gap behind, you will just pull the whole bracket in and dent the wall. These will work great if you say that its only 10-15mm before you hit the block behind. Must just be a batton on flat type construction.

You can also use toggle bolts. if you want. The nylon zip type are great for this.

https://www.screwfix.ie/p/fischer-569416-duotec-nylon-toggle-12mm-x-50mm-10-pack/646hl

TheSunIsShining

Get a 2mm drill bit and drill tiny holes every inch in a straight line just above the skirting boards. Don't drill if in line with a socket. See if you hit the studs that way.

anishtholath

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978794#Comment_121978794

thanks @Tefral. the gap between plasterboard and brick is 12CM not mm, that's pretty large i feel and not sure about the screws or toggle bolts in this case sine constant move of the mount

Dr_Colossus

strange set up with the 12cm void behind the plasterboard and seemingly no studs, is there insulation in that void as in dry lined(might be difficult to tell if fiberglass and drill/skewer penetrates it easily).

Given the void and cantilever wall bracket I'd cut out the dimensions of the wall bracket from the plasterboard and fix your own studs to blockwork behind using concrete screws or even just wall plugs and reasonably strong screws. Will a section of plasterboard removed it would also allow you run wiring/ducting behind to hide TV cables. Re-attach plasterboard back to new studs, tape and joint the cuts and then fix the wall bracket to the new studs and you should be able to swing out of the TV bracket.

mickdw

At 120mm from plasterboard slab to brickwork, its clearly not dabbed on so there must 100 percent be stud work either timber or metal.

Keep drilling and you will locate stud.

Tefral

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121978939#Comment_121978939

The toggles will work, we use them on cantileaver brackets the whole time on plasterboard.

Saving that, you need to cut out the plasterboard in a neat square, fix timber grounds to the wall and then refix your plasterboard and use filler around the edges, then you can screw directly to your timber grounds.

The Continental Op

120mm is a huge gap. If it was less I'd suggest these

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Corefix-PLUS30-bracket-Plasterboard-Fixing/dp/B07B3X2PY4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx90VadXSXA

There is a product for a wider gap which I'll post if I can find it but I as above I think there are studs there you just haven't found them yet.

Tefral

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121979082#Comment_121979082

id wonder about these.. the gap is so massive, there would be alot of downward pressure on the centre of them.

Id say the OP couldnt be too far off a stud drilling across in a line. typically they are at 600mm centres.

magicbastarder

120mm seems a weirdly large gap - could it be 2x4s with the added thickness of plasterboard and skim leading to close to 120mm from the skim to blockwork behind?

GreeBo

Regarding taking off the socket…the face plate should be held on with 2 screws, can you share a pic?

Be very careful drilling anywhere near a socket!

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121979128#Comment_121979128

I mounted a load of TVs for advertising in shops and came across similar issues to the OP.

First solution always was to use a ceiling mounted pole - problems there if the suspended ceiling had too big a gap.

Against a wall where there was a massive gap and no stud to be found then I used to make up a solution similar to the corefix plugs. I'd have 200mm frame fixers and fit them then make the hole slightly wider and slide a steel tube cut to length over the plastic of the plug that wasn't in the wall. The tube stopped any tightening of the plasterboard against the wall. The mounts were a single piece of steel that covered a large area so with 4 bolts and oversize washers the whole thing tightened up well against the wall. You could certainly pull yourself up on it with no deformation.

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121979179#Comment_121979179

But you don't know whats behind the plasterboard ;-) could be a 120mm gap where the OP is looking and 10mm in other places.

magicbastarder

sounds like there's enough space there for untapped storage!

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121979199#Comment_121979199

Fortunately not quite enough room for a body ;-)

magicbastarder

well, not for an intact one anyway.

The Continental Op

This was the other solution I was thinking of but again not deep enough for 120mm

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Space-Plug-45-80mm-Gaps-Pack/dp/B00M789QWG/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DGGUbbbBZI

Ignore the insulation having an air gap makes no difference to the fixing.

Then the strongest fixings for plasterboard are mentioned here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeFyQS2NGVM

anishtholath

i got a few ideas for the next few days atleast. I will continue making small holes to 600mm, what's 15cm worth more holes.

will try the toggles if taht doesnt work.

if everything fails, i might look into making a hole and attaching a stud onto the brickwall behind maybe.

thanks a lot for the suggestions and insight folks, very helpful :)

GreeBo

You might see more benefit from cutting out a section rather than making lots of drill holes
the 120mm gap might just be 120mm of PIR that you cant feel/see

awec

How far apart are the holes you are drilling? Is there a chance that in your row of holes you've just coincidentally missed a stud in between two of your holes?

magicbastarder

just spitballing; how flexible is plasterboard between standard spaced studs? i.e. if you were to get a long flat edge and place it against the wall, would you see visible flexing at the halfway point between the studs when you place pressure on it?

phog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058345149/unable-to-find-studs

Is there a skirting board attached to the wall that you're trying to locate the studs?

Can you see where the skirting is screwed/nailed to the wall, maybe that the location of the studs? Studs could be up to 600mm apart, so be prepared to try and fail when using pilot holes to try and find the studs.