Help! drilling curtain rail fittings and drill bit broken in hole....

[Jim]

Help!

I'm fitting a couple of curtain rails in a room with 2 symmetrical windows on one wall. The rail fittings each have 2 screw holes, vertically aligned.

I've already fitted one of the curtain rails successfully.

However, whilst drilling out holes to fit the other inner curtain rail fitting, my drill bit broke in the wall whilst drilling the lower hole.

The room has been decorated, so I can't gouge it out and replaster.

I seem to have 2 options (unless anyone can provide any alternatives):

either, I attach the inner curtain rail fitting just with the upper screw, use No More Nails across the rest of the back of the rail fitting, and hope it is secure.

or, I try to drill another 2 holes for the inner curtain rail fitting < 5 cm from the window architrave. I'd rather not do this since, a) it would make the 2 curtain rails look asymmetric b) I'm not sure how much space I should leave from drilling other holes in the wall in case the old and new holes collapse into each other c) I would have to fill in the initial (outer, visible) holes and then repaint over them.

The curtain rails are hollow brass, 150cm long, and will be supporting quite long curtains (225cm deep).

Can anyone please advice?

Do you think fixing the curtain rail with just the top screw (and fixing to the wall with No More Nails) will be sufficient? If not, how much distance do you think I should leave between the old holes (inc the broken drill bit) and the new ones closer to the window?

Thanks for any advice.

[Lobster]

I'm pretty sure I know the sort you mean, but if you can take or find a photo on the web it always helps get responses.

How many fixings does the rail have - just one either end, or is there a central one too? And which fitting is affected?

Hmm. Depends on the above and how the fitting is designed, really. Will it splay apart under load if only the top screw is used? How rigidly mounted is the remaining screw? If it's a central fitting rather than an end one, you'll have more chance of success.

An effective solution would be to attach a plate of timber to the wall (which is how curtain rails were almost always fitted, before power tools) and screw the rail fixings to that, in just the right place.

If not, how

Hard to give a judgement without seeing it, but pretty close I'd have thought: the drill bit should prevent the old hole collapsing in on itself.

David

[TMC]

I would be interested to know what drill bit you were using as I have never managed to break a masonry bit in a wall

The preferred method for curtain rails is a wooden batten or wooden pads on the wall and then fit the curtain rail to the batten. It is never a good idea to fit the rail directly to the wall as there is often a concrete lintel or catnic metal lintel above the window especially in older houses

Tony

[Bob Eager]

But if he hit a lintel...

[Jim]

Hi David-

thanks for your response.

the curtain rail has fittings just either end. I've posted a pic of the other curtain rail (already successfully fitted) below. The problem curtain rail is just like this, but on the other side of the room....

is a close up of the curtain rail fitting with the problem... that the curtains are quite long (~225cm) since high windows....

Do you think I could secure just with the top screwhole and "No More Nails" the rest..... ?

Thanks very much for your (or anyone else's...) reply.

[The Medway Handyman]

Provided the top fixing is good enough I reckon it would hold. Why not try it? If it fails you are no worse off.

I doubt it would be that noticeable - you will see it because you know, but nobody else will notice.

b) I'm not sure how

I've drilled an inch away from existing holes without a problem. Try one of the Bosch Multi Material Drills and no hammer action.

[Malcolm Race]

The system is something like a lever. The pivot is the bottom of the bracket and it is trying to pull the top of the bracket off the wall.

I think that the top fixing takes the major load, with the weight of the curtain trying to pull the screw out of the wall while the bottom of the bracket is acting as apivot and being pushed into the wall. There is probaly a shear force as well so it would do no harm to add no more nails. In your situation I would try it, with the option of re-fixing brackets to make things symetrical if there was a problem.

Malcolm

[Lobster]

Yes, having seen the photos now, I'd go along with that. David

[Geo]

Geo