Lastly plaster wall is more contour friendly and allows home builders to create curves around the ceiling and the edge of the wall.
How to hang something heavy from plaster ceiling.
One of plaster wall s downsides however is that it s more brittle than drywall and it can break a lot easier.
If you need to hang something very heavy from a ceiling such as a ceiling fan you always should attempt to hang the object from a ceiling joist and with a lag bolt.
Once plaster is cracked you re kind of screwed.
The plaster surface of your ceiling isn t strong enough to bear the weight of a heavy object.
Unfortunately it seems that every time i need to hang something heavy there is never a stud where i need one.
Stud finders rarely work on plaster but you can find the studs using the magnet trick.
Very light objects hanging decorations that weigh virtually nothing doesn t require special consideration.
The method for hanging something from the ceiling varies according to how heavy the item is.
Pre drill the holes and use fairly long screws to ensure a secure fit.
How to hang something heavy from a ceiling beam.
In my experience it s impossible to invisibly.
Even fairly light things can cause it to bend which will crack the brittle old plaster.
When that happens i am stuck using anchors.
A lag bolt has very deep grooves in the threads for maximum grip.
If you re hanging heavy objects use screws with anchors for added protection.
Simply hanging something heavy on a plaster wall can result in damage to the wall and the object if you don t tap into the supporting structure behind the plaster.
The lath in old lath and plaster ceilings and walls isn t intended to support anything but the plaster.
If your ceiling is hollow you can use toggle bolts to support your heavy object instead.
It s actually not too hard to hang things on plaster walls however as long as you use screws and work slowly and carefully.
Heavier items need more support and so i recommend screwing into a stud with a 2 screw.
How to hang heavy things on plaster walls using a wall stud.
If you cannot use a joist to secure the heavy object the next method is to use a toggle bolt.
Though there are several methods of locating studs or supports behind the wall the most reliable is using a magnetic stud finder.