Ask Alice: What am I doing wrong?

Dear Alice, Every time I hang curtain rods using wall anchors, they still wiggle loose in the drywall after a while. What am I doing wrong? Sincerely, Joanne

via De Le Cuona

Dear Joanne, There is a simple fix to your problem: use different anchors. When you buy curtain rods, or towel bars, or about a bazillion other kinds of things that you have to attach to the walls, they come with screws and anchors already in the packaging. I suspect that there is some awful factory somewhere churning out undersized inadequate plastic anchors just for the purpose of making people cry.

via Alibaba

Throw them away. The whole baggie of fasteners. Garbage. Yes, even the screws. Next, take yourself to an actual hardware store, in other words, not Fred Meyer, or Kmart, or Target. Go to Ace, or True Value or even Home Depot. There you will find a whole aisle of fasteners that will actually work.

via D&L Grain and Pro Hardware

I usually buy my fasteners on the paranoid side, I would like each one to support me hanging on said curtain rod or towel bar. Most recently I hung a large mirror in our hallway. It had four little tabs for fasteners. I bought a package of six, {which was good since two of them had to be re-done. Long story. Buy extra.} and each one was weight rated at 80 pounds.

No, the mirror didn't weigh 320 pounds, but the anchors were only about $4, and I know it's not falling down anytime soon. Plus, they worked well, which is more than I can say for those little plastic pluggie things. The anchors will most likely come with machine screws, and they will most likely be silver. If this is unacceptable color wise, and you need black or brown or something like that, go buy some nail polish that corresponds to your metal finish and just paint the head after the whole thing is up and anchored in the wall.

via She Knows

You will never ever notice once you are more than 6 inches away. I promise. Don't get silly and pick red nail polish either. You will regret contrasting screw heads, believe me.  There are a few things I need to point out. First, If you are the proud owner of a stud finder and can install your curtain rods into a stud, this method is much preferred. You will still need to throw away the fastener baggie that came with your product, and you will still need to go to a hardware store and buy proper screws. My favorite is the 'gold screw', in 2" or 2.5".

via Tool King {this link is for 3", but I just wanted you to see what they looked like, in case you go shopping}

Then, you can proceed to the nail polish step. Second, if you are installing your curtain rods into sheetrock, or some other kind of hollow wall, you will need to get the kind of anchor that toggles behind the wall, creating kind of a 'fastener sandwich'.

Via Home Depot

Like this.

via Buildex

DON'T buy these spring toggle ones:

via Toggler
The expanding anchors are ok, but really won't hold up to the strain of a set of curtains.

via ITW Proline

Are you totally thrilled about all these images of screws and anchors? It's beyond interesting.

Buy the most heavy duty ones you can find, within reason, basically each one should be able to hold up double the weight of the whole shebang.  Like, if your curtain rods, with curtains on will weigh around 20 pounds, get a package of anchors where each one can hold 40 pounds, and so on. It will save you heartache later. 

Also, I should mention that most of this should not be done without an awesome drill. The E-Z Anchor Toggle  can be installed with only a screwdriver, which is really nice, but if you are installing anything into a stud, you're going to want one. I have a Milwaukee impact driver, and I don't know how I would do anything without it. It's like having super drill power.

Have a friend make sure you are installing your curtain rod at a good height*, and that it is level. Mark your holes and check them several times before you actually start anchoring. The last thing you want is a solidly installed crooked curtain rod.

via Honey and Fitz

Have fun!

Taking a walk, Alice

*Height is a personal choice, and my two cents is to split the difference between the top of the window and the ceiling. Many people will tell you to go as high as you can, but sometimes it just looks silly. Use your best judgement, and keep your curtain length in mind. I don't recommend placing your curtain rod right down on the top of you window, unless you have a really good reason. Which you might. I don't know. That's a different question, and can usually only be answered on a case by case basis. Whew.

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Comments

[Alice]

Hahaha! I have had to learn! There have been so many times when I tried to make things work with the wrong part, that I ended up with a complete disaster. Tools are my friends! I ask for them each Christmas...

[Patricia G]

Gosh! you know your screws and plugs don't you. (Brits call them plugs)