Studs in interior walls in our homes
 

One of the fasteners to my master closet wire closet system has come loose from the dry wall and it is located at the end of the run of wire shelving. It is the type of fastener that does not have a head that a screw driver would go into. It is a smooth head so I'm not even sure how those fasteners work.

I would like to do a simple repair by using a long screw with a large head to hold up the wire shelving. I did this type of repair on a shelf in our NJ home and it was still going strong when we sold the house. I want to screw the screw into the stud but I'm not sure how to do that if the stud is metal. I could make this repair easily enough if it were a wood stud behind the wall.

Anyone know what type of studs our homes have in the interior walls? Our home is in Mallory Square and was build in 2007.

Our home built 6 years ago has wood studs. If the bracket that has failed is not on a stud you might want to use one of several hollow wall anchors that are available. To use a hollow wall anchor you most likely need to move the bracket out of the way. Really not that hard.

Good luck.

Take a photo with your phone and go to ACE hardware and they will get you what you need and tell you the best way to fix it.

Home warranty may be able to determine what kind of studs you have.

What you have is a wire shelving clip (nail) which is basically pressed into place, which expands a hollow wall anchor into place. These commonly fail. In fact, they should no longer be used. The head which you are looking at is basically a nail. If you’d like to message me I can give you details on removing and replacing it. This is an easy repair.

Yes, it is just a nail. The builder uses them because they are faster to install then plastic anchors. Pull it out, drill a small hole, and tap in a small plastic expansion anchor. Then, insert a screw that is designed to fit the plastic anchor. There is no reason to locate a stud.

These anchors are actually quite effective and have a decent weight rating. ClosetMaid still uses them. To remove the anchor, use needle nose pliers or a putty knife to pull out only the nail itself. Once removed you can pull out the plastic anchor carefully. The anchor expands in the wall like any drywall anchor so be careful to not damage the drywall when you pull it out. These are large so you'll end up replacing with a very large drywall anchor.

OP, first if you have metal studs, you cannot use plastic anchors. Now the easiest way to determine the studs, use a small (1/16 inch) drill bit, drill into the area where the stud is, if it stops under light pressure, you have a metal stud, if it continues in slowly, you have wood, if it stops and goes in suddenly you have metal. As noted above there are special devices for metals studs, but I have successfully used the 1/16 inch bit to make a small hole, and then used a sheet metal screw large than the hole, do NOT over tighten. I had to redo all of the metal shelving in our house as i wanted it a heights different than what the builder installed and wanted a second layer of shelving. That was several years ago everything is still standing.

Grab a bag of the metal shelving clips I've attached a photo of (Home Depot or Lowes) Don't bother with the plastic push-in clips the installer used. They are junk. If you're going into a stud, simply use the screws from the package. You won't be using the plastic wall anchors. It doesn't matter if you have metal or wood studs, as the screws work fine in either. There is no need to pre-drill.

If you are placing them where there is no stud, pre-drill a 1/4" hole, and insert two wall anchors.

Regarding what type of wall studs your home has, wood or metal (your home might have both), the easiest way to find out which you are dealing with, is to use the magnets I've attached a photo of (available from Amazon). I use them all the time, and there is absolutely no need to pre-drill holes, open up the wall, etc, to find out what type of studs you have. The magnets are quick and easy to use. When it finds a stud which is wood, you'll be able to tell, as its attaching itself only to the drywall screw locations. If it's a metal stud, the magnet will attach the entire vertical length of the stud.

Hope this helps.

Ebensburg

Enen with a metal stud you can use screws. The one you had was hammered in so it is probably a wooden stud.

I have installed a lot of heavy duty shelving using drywall anchors. Trying to locate studs makes the job much more difficult and it is usually not necessary. If you use the proper dywall anchors with the proper spacing, the shelving will hold a huge amount of weight.

Go to Ace or Lowes
and get a toggle bolt. Very easy to install and permanent.

Many thanks to all who have helped me with your knowledge.

Locate Stud
 

A strong magnet will help you locate the stud.
First tap the wall, just like you would do in NJ, to locate where the stud is located.
Then, using your magnet, go up and down the stud.
If the magnet is attracted about every 12 inches, you have wood studs; you are detecting the Sheetrock screws.
If the magnet is attracted along the entire length, you have metal (steel) studs at that location.
It is not uncommon to find one wall with wood studs and the next with steel studs.
Armed with this information, head to ACE Hardware.
Cheers.

Ohiobuckeye
 

You’ve got to pre-drill a pilot hole, then use a screw & hope you hit the pilot hole. That’s the way I had to mount a TV mount to hang a 40 lb. TV.

If you're putting a 1/4 or 5/16" lag bolt into a wood stud for a tv mount, yes, you definitely want to pre-drill. But for the screws used in wire shelving clips, pre-drilling is not necessary and is a waste of time.

It depends on the builder. I was in Caroline in an Amarillo built in 2006. The eterior walls were wood studs but the interior was all metal studs. Metal studs do not hold screws very well. The wire shelf fastener is just a stubby nail that is just pushed into the plastic clip to expand the little wings. A hole is drilled in the drywall then the plastic clip is pushed in without the nail then the nail is pushed into the plastic clip to expand the wings.

I just had the same problem. The easiest fix i found was I pulled the nail in the middle of the hanger out with a small screwdriver. Then I twisted the plastic hanger in circles and got that out of the wall. The back of the hanger that was in the wall I used a hacksaw and cut it off. I then got 30lb screw in molly's. The plastic ones that you use a philips screwdriver to put into the wall. I then used the original hook. That I cut the back off that went into the wall on. I then mounted it with the screw for my new molly. Putting it all back up in the original hole . I had to fix 6 that were coming out. Not one was in a stud. Plus mine were for the shoes on the bottom shelf. I also had to fix everyone of the hangers that hold them on the 45 degree angle. The ones that clip on the top rail. All my hooks were broken and slid down.
Good luck with what ever you do.

We live in Sabal Chase and our studs are made of folded sheet metal. Wood blocking would be needed for a screw to hold.

Forget the stud as you may not hit it. Mist are Metal Studs on interior walks. Use a Molly Bolt.

You can buy preloaded wall clips made by Closet maid at most hardware stores. Replace the damaged clip with one or more new clips in a new place on the wall. No stud needed.

My My goodness.....that was an "easy fix" hacksaw and all? I don't think I would have attempted that!

I did the repair using a heavy duty wall anchor....the type that has to be screwed into the wall with a Phillips head screw driver. There was no stud in the location I placed the anchor. I screwed in a long screw, let it stay out long enough to support the rung of the wire shelving and now the shelf is very stable.

I left the original "fastener nail" in the wall which is a couple of inches away and now it is not coming out of the wall because there is no more pressure on it. I know the original fastener is not really doing anything to support the shelf but i left it in for cosmetic purposes and not have to repair the wall if I pulled it out.

The reason I figured there was a stud behind the wall where I placed the anchor is because it was located at the end of the wall where this is an angle to it. Glad I got the job done.

Thanks again to all who have taken an interest in my plight and helped me along with my repair.

If u live in Mallory, u have wood studs. Builder was not using metal studs in 2006-07 time frame.

I recently installed lots wire shelving. I do not use the "nail in" fasteners provided because they are junk. I am a contractor and the following procedure works without fail: Purchase plastic "screw in" type drywall anchors. Determine placement. Make a small hole in the drywall with an "awl". Screw the anchor into the drywall. If the anchor does not go in all the way you have hit a stud, which probably is metal, so remove the anchor and use a sheet metal screw into the stud. Using the support clip provided, remove the nail, snip off the plastic arms and insert the screw provided with the anchor through the support clip and into the drywall anchor. Done.

Ohiobuckeye
 

Yea but those clips have a hole in them for a screw. Yes you’re right about one thing I did use a 1/4” lag bolts & anything you hang on the wall except a picture you have to drill a pilot hole because no screw will penetrate these metal studs. So how are saying how to mount any kind of shelving? It’s got to be fastened to the wall somehow!

Metal studs
 

Little trick I learned with those metal studs...I like to use the self-tappers, so you need to drill a pilot hole into the stud first...you may have to use a couple of drill bits, starting with the smallest you have and then move up a one or two until you have a hole in the stud that will accommodate the screw...we did our own custom closet and I'm confident I could hang on the shelving and it would hold me

We bought in Mallory in the fall of 2005. Our CYV had steel studs in all interior walls. Only the exterior walls had wood studs. I suspect this was standard home construction in TV long before we purchased.

NOT TRUE , if you use sheetrock screws meant for metal studs.