hanging wall cabinets off an insulated/dry-walled masonry wall

[dicktill]

Hi all,

I want to hang some wall cabinets in my basement/garage/shop. The masonry walls were covered with 6 mil poly, studded with 2x2's, and then insulated with 1-1/2 styrofoam between them, all 20 years ago. In other areas of the basement I have removed the studs and insulation (done at the same time) because of water problems, and was disappointed to find that the studs had been "nailed" to the concrete blocks, and that the nails had rusted, and that there wasn't much holding this "house of cards" up. The wall that I want to hang the cabinets off probably wasn't as wet, but I am still concerned about the heavily loaded cabinets yanking the studs right out. A lot of drainage has been added all around the house, so the problem shouldn't continue, but I'm not sure how much damage has already been done. One solution would be to drill through the drywall and insulation, and install large lag anchors directly into the concrete blocks, but is there an easier way?

Thanks, Dick

 

[Wuffles]

I have used concrete screws/frame fixings/masonry screws (lots of names for a similar thing) in the past and just run them straight through the cabinet and spacing and fixed that way. Just have to be careful to not over tighten as it'll pull the cabinet through the drywall. Obviously not if there's enough studding behind, but hopefully you get the idea.

Drill a hole slightly longer than the fixing and screw through it. No need for a plug, they screw straight into the material you're fixing to.

Heres a link to the Fischer branded screws I'm talking about.
http://www.angliatoolcentre.co.uk/fischer-61551-ffs7-5x92-frame-fixing-screw-7-5x92mm-pid37558.html

 

[GhostFist]

If it were me, I'd still try to go through the 2x2's with your concrete anchors/screws just to keep solid material covering the entire screw.

 

[tiralie]

There's easy and then there's well, better...
Rip the old wall down, and properly insulate it and build a real wall with moisture resistant 2x4's and then either sheet it or hang your cabinets.
You'll be happier and so will your tools.
Tim

 

[Michael Kellough]

Hi all,

I want to hang some wall cabinets in my basement/garage/shop. The masonry walls were covered with 6 mil poly, studded with 2x2's, and then insulated with 1-1/2 styrofoam between them, all 20 years ago. In other areas of the basement I have removed the studs and insulation (done at the same time) because of water problems, and was disappointed to find that the studs had been "nailed" to the concrete blocks, and that the nails had rusted, and that there wasn't much holding this "house of cards" up. The wall that I want to hang the cabinets off probably wasn't as wet, but I am still concerned about the heavily loaded cabinets yanking the studs right out. A lot of drainage has been added all around the house, so the problem shouldn't continue, but I'm not sure how much damage has already been done. One solution would be to drill through the drywall and insulation, and install large lag anchors directly into the concrete blocks, but is there an easier way?

Thanks, Dick

Assuming the studs are vertical just think of them as posts.
They can carry the load as long as they don't fall forward when the cabinets are loaded.

A simple solution to keep the studs in place is to nail a cleat across the top of the wall.
Nail into the floor joists above if they are perpendicular to the wall.
If the joists are parallel it's a little more difficult but still easier than replacing the wall.

 

[mastercabman]

You could try to find all your studs then secure them to the block wall with better anchors and then you can screw your cabinets to the studs.
If you want you can add liquid nail to the back of cabinets so that it will be glued to drywall.(just an extra step)

 

[dicktill]

I have used concrete screws/frame fixings/masonry screws (lots of names for a similar thing) in the past and just run them straight through the cabinet and spacing and fixed that way. Just have to be careful to not over tighten as it'll pull the cabinet through the drywall. Obviously not if there's enough studding behind, but hopefully you get the idea.

Drill a hole slightly longer than the fixing and screw through it. No need for a plug, they screw straight into the material you're fixing to.

Heres a link to the Fischer branded screws I'm talking about.

http://www.angliatoolcentre.co.uk/fischer-61551-ffs7-5x92-frame-fixing-screw-7-5x92mm-pid37558.html

If it were me, I'd still try to go through the 2x2's with your concrete anchors/screws just to keep solid material covering the entire screw.

You could try to find all your studs then secure them to the block wall with better anchors and then you can screw your cabinets to the studs.
If you want you can add liquid nail to the back of cabinets so that it will be glued to drywall.(just an extra step)

Thanks Wuffles, GhostFist, and mastercabman.  Along these lines I will drill through the studs and anchor them better with "Tapper" screws (http://wedo.hillmangroup.com/viewitems/solid-wall-anchors/tapper-concrete-screw-anchors-blue-perma-seal).

Assuming the studs are vertical just think of them as posts.
They can carry the load as long as they don't fall forward when the cabinets are loaded.

A simple solution to keep the studs in place is to nail a cleat across the top of the wall.
Nail into the floor joists above if they are perpendicular to the wall.
If the joists are parallel it's a little more difficult but still easier than replacing the wall.

Thanks Michael, I will do this also; excellent idea!

There's easy and then there's well, better...
Rip the old wall down, and properly insulate it and build a real wall with moisture resistant 2x4's and then either sheet it or hang your cabinets.
You'll be happier and so will your tools.
Tim

Thanks Tim, also an excellent suggestion but a bit too complicated to do at this time for various reasons. The wall is quite well insulated and the basement stays warm since it is cut into a hillside. But if circumstances change, I'll do that.

BTW, don't think that I have forgotten your excellent advice on my window seat build (http://festoolownersgroup.com/member-projects/melamine-vs-plywood-for-window-seat/). I just haven't finished that project because of a thousand others. Hope to get back to it soon ...

Regards, Dick