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girl builder · Feb 28, 2008, 12:40 PM

I have drilled so many things into concrete - all have failed.

my sucky makita sorta base model hammer drill makes the messiest holes - I have no

http://forums.macnn.com/images/smilies/bang.gif control of where those holes end up.

The kicker is once I used a friends contractor grade concrete drill and the holes were quick, easy, precise. How do I sortof achieve the same effect without buying yet another drill???

Eug · Feb 28, 2008, 12:43 PM

Hmmm... Interesting choice for a first post to a Mac forum.

BlueSky · Feb 28, 2008, 12:49 PM

I have a feeling he's going to find the friend's drill and share it with us. Sneakyspam.

analogika · Feb 28, 2008, 01:01 PM

Borrow one of these:

Rotary Hammers - hilti.com

Not a problem. At all.

Oh, and get a friend to hold a vacuum cleaner up to the hole AS YOU ARE DRILLING. Makes for *much* less of a mess.

Eug · Feb 28, 2008, 01:02 PM

Originally Posted by analogika

Oh, and get a friend to hold a vacuum cleaner up to the hole AS YOU ARE DRILLING. Makes for *much* less of a mess.

Don't be obscene. This is a family forum here.

analogika · Feb 28, 2008, 01:05 PM

I'm not even going to go there.

(shite, did it again!)

Dakar the Fourth · Feb 28, 2008, 01:06 PM

Well that just gave me a weird mental picture.

Jawbone54 · Feb 28, 2008, 01:25 PM

*blink*

Dakar the Fourth · Feb 28, 2008, 01:27 PM

Holy crap, analogika actually changed his sig.

Railroader · Feb 28, 2008, 01:38 PM

Alert the authorities!!!

Dakar the Fourth · Feb 28, 2008, 01:39 PM

I'm going to report you for overuse of exclamation points.

wallinbl · Feb 28, 2008, 01:45 PM

Just get a masonry bit for your drill. Works great.

Mrjinglesusa · Feb 28, 2008, 02:21 PM

Might be better to ask HERE, instead of a bunch of nerds on a Mac forum.

reader50 · Feb 28, 2008, 02:23 PM

My old battery Makita had relatively low RPM. Besides a good masonry bit, you need a hammer drill with decent speed if you want clean holes. A good one will certainly cost some dough.

girl builder · Feb 28, 2008, 02:39 PM

thanks for all those replies - even despite the wrong forum.

so weird, i did a search for concrete drilling techniques, and it brought me here and i read all these posts here about someone hanging a light on a concrete ceiling then just hit 'sign up'.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 02:57 PM

A regular drill won't drill concrete, even with a masonry bit.

You can rent a rotary hammer drill with the bits you need for probably 50 bucks for a half day. It'll be a heavy sucker though.

We recently got a DeWalt 18 Volt small hammer drill/normal drill and it's great for small tasks (like tile, etc) but if we need to drill holes in concrete we bust out the big Milwaukee drill.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 02:58 PM

Originally Posted by analogika

all.Oh, and get a friend to hold a vacuum cleaner up to the hole AS YOU ARE DRILLING. Makes for *much* less of a mess.

Seconded.

Also, wear a dust mask. Concrete dust is nasty shite, and your lungs will hate you if you breath it in.

d4nth3m4n · Feb 28, 2008, 03:26 PM

masonry bits are damn dull, get a sacrificial normal bit to drill a starter hole to put the point of the masonry bit in so it won't dance around on you.

and yes, you're pretty much done without a hammer drill.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 03:35 PM

Originally Posted by d4nth3m4n

masonry bits are damn dull, get a sacrificial normal bit to drill a starter hole to put the point of the masonry bit in so it won't dance around on you.

If you're a little girlie-man that can't keep a bit straight

J/K, I use a hammer and a hardened pin to start a little divot to guide the drill.

Also, don't go for the whole thing at once, you need to drill a little, then clean out, then drill, then clean out, etc..

Back in my younger days I got a 10" long bit stuck in a foundation because I tried to drill it in one shot...bad idea.

analogika · Feb 28, 2008, 03:40 PM

Originally Posted by Dakar the Fourth

Holy crap, analogika actually changed his sig.

Changed the link, too.

Dakar the Fourth · Feb 28, 2008, 03:41 PM

Who clicks on those things?

analogika · Feb 28, 2008, 03:43 PM

Originally Posted by sek929

Also, don't go for the whole thing at once, you need to drill a little, then clean out, then drill, then clean out, etc..

Back in my younger days I got a 10" long bit stuck in a foundation because I tried to drill it in one shot...bad idea.

Doesn't really apply to ceilings.

And I had an odd moment before I realized that people had to recommend *hammer* drills because most of your buildings are made of plywood and drywall.

I don't think non-hammer drills are even *sold* here - can't remember ever having seen one that wasn't a hand drill.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 03:47 PM

Depends where she lives, if it's an apartment complex then her ceiling could very well be made of real concrete. Also, even drilling upside-down will not clean the hole. I still recommend doing the drilling in stages since concrete dust can pack solid enough to break your wrist on the machine...although most newer machines have a safety clutch system.

If it's drywall then all she needs is some drywall anchors...

Laminar · Feb 28, 2008, 04:01 PM

Originally Posted by sek929

I
Back in my younger days I got a 10" long bit stuck in a foundation because I tried to drill it in one shot...bad idea.

Sounds like something that happened to me last weekend.

Dakar the Fourth · Feb 28, 2008, 04:03 PM

Our little boy is growing up!
His humor now features sexual innuendo.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 04:48 PM

He also like to show off his litres* of displacement.

*spelled proppah for Doofy.

girl builder · Feb 28, 2008, 04:51 PM

oh my god you guys are so funny. and that this is all from a computer world forum.

now if i could just translate all this advice into getting out of doing this myself.

this is like my 8th project with concrete and it's a nightmare to drill in to with my little regular own little makita hammer drill. the hole is never clean, or the right size, it's way to big or way to small for the plastic anchor to fit in to (when dong the concrete epoxy anchor mehod), and then when I get the metal anchors, they don't fit through the hole the light fixture provides because their end is usually a bolt, and if they're those straight blue concrete anchors that look like a regular screw, they're also too wide for the lighting fixture.

Did I mention how funny this is ... all this advice from computer guys?

I'M A GIRL I SHOULDN'T BE WORKING WITH CONCRETE. I'M DELICATE. But I don't think I can stomach hearing an electrician give me another "$1200 to hang those track lights" estimate without blowing a gasket.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 04:55 PM

Despite my involvement in a Macintosh forum I have been in the home-buidling industry since i was 12. I've drilled more holes than I care to recollect (now THAT sounded dirty)

Also, a girl that drills concrete is sexy

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 04:58 PM

Have you considered one of those Remmington nail shooters? If confused look here.

Basically it's a .22 that fires hardened nails directly into the concrete. you can probably rent of these things too (but they are waaay more dangerous.)

d4nth3m4n · Feb 28, 2008, 05:03 PM

Originally Posted by sek929

Have you considered one of those Remmington nail shooters? If confused look here.

Basically it's a .22 that fires hardened nails directly into the concrete. you can probably rent of these things too (but they are waaay more dangerous.)

i thought of this as well, but was stuck wondering what she could need a hole in her ceiling for. is she trying to get a molly-bolt in there to hang something?

ramsets are great if you have something to nail up there, but any piece of wood that she'd drill a hole into would surely split while trying to nail it in place.

i've been a builder for a while now off and on as well- my parents were renovating a farm house just about my entire life.

sek929 · Feb 28, 2008, 05:11 PM

She mentioned a metal flange thingy for a ceiling light. The ramset would certainly punch through the metal and fasten it in.

girl builder · Feb 28, 2008, 05:38 PM

That remington thing would have been perfect - woah. All the agony I could have saved all these old projects. i didn't realize how cheap they are - a way better investment than a hammer drill.

well, I have 2 of the 4 ceiling light fasteners up. Ended up getting a sloppy hole from the hammer drill and filling it with loads of concrete epoxy & using a plastic anchor. But, fun for me, have to remove the first one, in the wrong place. Ugh.

Maybe I'll just buy that remington thing for all the rest.

Oisín · Feb 28, 2008, 05:57 PM

This thread is so close to exploding with sexual innuendo it’s not even f---actually, yes it is, I’m loving it.

Rev-O · Feb 28, 2008, 05:59 PM

Originally Posted by girl builder

That remington thing would have been perfect - woah. All the agony I could have saved all these old projects. i didn't realize how cheap they are - a way better investment than a hammer drill.

well, I have 2 of the 4 ceiling light fasteners up. Ended up getting a sloppy hole from the hammer drill and filling it with loads of concrete epoxy & using a plastic anchor. But, fun for me, have to remove the first one, in the wrong place. Ugh.

Maybe I'll just buy that remington thing for all the rest.

Remington's can spall concrete pretty bad, esp when working overhead. They can work wonders, or they can make life much worse. They're a mixed bag. A decent variable speed hammer drill is not that expensive... well, so they're a couple hundred bucks, but if you don't want to buy one just go rent one for a day.

Rev-O · Feb 28, 2008, 06:06 PM

Originally Posted by d4nth3m4n

i thought of this as well, but was stuck wondering what she could need a hole in her ceiling for. is she trying to get a molly-bolt in there to hang something?

ramsets are great if you have something to nail up there, but any piece of wood that she'd drill a hole into would surely split while trying to nail it in place.

i've been a builder for a while now off and on as well- my parents were renovating a farm house just about my entire life.

When using a ramset on dry wood or near the end of a board, or in small chunks of wood where the grain is apt to run on you and split the piece in two, steping up a size on the fastener so that you have a bigger fender washer to offset the force of the set helps out a bit, but just predrilling the wood usually works wonders. Drill then shoot the fastener through the hole.

Madison · Feb 29, 2008, 04:10 AM

You could also use tap-cons. They are self tapping concrete screws. You only need to drill a very small hole in the concrete (1/2" drill with a good masonry bit), then use your regular Makita to drive the tap-cons in, bingo, done. It sounds like a Hilti is way overkill for this project. And if you've got neighbors above you, I would not recomment the Remington. Those are for firing into concrete floors, where there is NO chance of hurting anyone on the other side

Tom

ghporter · Feb 29, 2008, 06:20 AM

One "big ass Hilti" drill, one high quality masonry bit intended for concrete instead of brick or mortar, and a really good face shield is all you need. Oh, and plenty of upper body strength. Ask me how I know about this...

Ok, I'll tell you-my crew mounted an old, extremely large video projector into the ceiling of my classroom, which meant anchoring it into the concrete (double reinforced) ceiling. Worked great.

Use the right tool for the job-general purpose drills are not good for any really challenging special application.

analogika · Feb 29, 2008, 07:59 AM

Yep.

Get the right tool, and often times stuff you thought impossible becomes impressively manageable.

vmarks · Feb 29, 2008, 09:47 AM

I'm not fond of plastic anchors. They're common, but I don't like them at all.

I've used metal anchors with some successes, and I've also used tapcon screws (into brick, mortar, and concrete)

In fact, I hung an HDTV with them, so they should be sufficient for your light fixtures. A small masonry bit, no hammer drill, no pilot hole, followed by the screw.

Tapcon Concrete Screw Pricing - Concrete Fasteners.com

Don't drive the tapcons with the drill, get the hex head and do it with a ratchet. Go slow, get it flush, don't torque it to over-tighten, maybe 1/8" turn to 1/4" turn after flush.

design219 · Feb 29, 2008, 07:56 PM

Originally Posted by girl builder

so weird, i did a search for concrete drilling techniques, and it brought me here and i read all these posts here about someone hanging a light on a concrete ceiling then just hit 'sign up'.

How does MacNN forum rank so high on Google? I just Googled drilling concrete ceiling and this thread, less than a day old, is top of the list.

So, girl builder, do you want to get a Mac? (and are you really besson?)

reader50 · Feb 29, 2008, 08:10 PM

Originally Posted by design219

How does MacNN forum rank so high on Google? I just Googled drilling concrete ceiling and this thread, less than a day old, is top of the list.

So, girl builder, do you want to get a Mac? (and are you really besson?)

I guess we are a top-of-the-line forum.

... and no, girl builder is no one we've seen before. Welcome, feel free to stick around. Most of us aren't too crazy.

Shaddim · Feb 29, 2008, 08:17 PM

Originally Posted by sek929

Also, a girl that drills concrete is sexy

Quit it! We don't get many females around here as it is, we don't need you to scare off another one.