With a crown and drill
If you did everything as described in the previous paragraph, but nothing worked out for you, it doesn’t matter. Most likely you just have a wall of dense concrete or sand-lime brick. But that doesn’t mean you can’t drill a hole in it. You just need to spend a little more time and effort.
First, stop trying to starve out the wall. Nothing good will come of it, either grind off the crown or burn the motor in the drill. Then examine your handiwork. One way or another, you cut a small groove, consider that the markings are already there.
We remove the crown from the perforator, install the drill with a win and start drilling holes in the circle of your future socket. It’s a long business, but worth it. When about 20-25 holes have been drilled (the main thing is not the quantity but the uniformity) we put on the crown again and “continue the exercise”. Do not hesitate, it will go much more fun.
Varieties of holes for connection devices
It all depends on what exactly will be installed. If an ordinary socket, then make a round hole. It is easiest to do it because you need one operation. you installed a drill with a crown on concrete, drilled it and that’s it. Fast, convenient, technologically advanced and dust-free. If you need to make a recessed outlet, then you have to tinker and make a square groove over the round one. It will look much more aesthetically pleasing. And if you need to install a block of several outlets or mount equipment (usb sockets, etc.), then it is easier to cut a rectangular recess in the wall with an angle grinder. Or, for example, if there is no tool. Except angle grinder.
Strictly speaking, the shape of the hole is not that important. The main thing is that the diameter of 72 millimeters (the size of the glass of the socket) fits into the hole in the concrete along the outlet. The excess space can then be covered with plaster, alabaster, putty or at worst with cement.
There is also a nuance regarding the material of the walls. If this is a tree, drywall, then everything is fine. Holes of any shape and size can be drilled. If a cinder block, then everything is fine too. You will have to tinker with concrete or brick. But if the tile does not tolerate vibration well and tends to crack. The most optimal way out is diamond cutting with a core bit.
How to make a hole in a tile for an outlet?
Many people ask themselves the question: “how to make a hole for an outlet?” This is probably the most difficult construction process that requires additional training and special skills. Tile is a very capricious material and in this case, a conventional drill for concrete is not enough. If you push a little or press hard, the crack will go through the entire tile. And then just shoot it and it’s good if you have a spare fragment. In addition, the tiles are very slippery and hard, especially glossy, so the drill constantly strives to jump off or starts to “walk” along the surface, leaving scratches.
However, if the tiles have already been glued, and you still have to drill the holes for the outlet, then it is worth carrying out a number of preparatory measures:
- Buy a diamond core bit. Yes, it’s expensive, but it’s better than changing the entire tile later if it suddenly turns out that there are no spare fragments, and the view itself was taken out of production. In addition, if this is a panel or a picture, the problems will be even greater. The diamond core bit acts on the material more evenly, therefore vibration is reduced.
- Before drilling, cover the drilling area with construction tape or adhesive tape. This will prevent the drill from slipping when marking the center hole.
- Moisten the tile. This way things will go faster, and there will be much less dust.
- It is best to do the cut with a drill at low speeds. Strong vibration from the punch, from which chips and cracks appear along the edges of the cut.
In general, if everything is done carefully, then the tile will not crack, especially if it is wet. However, it is better to have a stock of tiles, just in case.
Safety regulations
First of all, it is worth knowing that concrete dust (like asbestos) is very harmful to the respiratory system. If you drill without personal protective equipment, you can earn respiratory diseases and in a very severe form. Protection is also needed for the eyes, since dust falling under the conjunctiva and on the cornea causes very painful inflammation, after which one can easily lose sight. Therefore, when working, be sure to remember to use goggles, a respirator, overalls and, if possible, a helmet. It is also worth getting a face shield. The thing is very convenient, and it can be used together with glasses, and strong enough so that nothing extra won’t come.
When carrying out this kind of work, in accordance with safety regulations, there should be no unauthorized persons without personal protective equipment within a radius of 2.5 meters from the object. Also, to work at a height of more than 1.5 meters with a hammer drill, you need a solid foundation. scaffolding or goats. A stepladder or ladder is not an option. Before starting work, carefully study the diagram of electrical and gas communications. Pay special attention to the moment whether there is reinforcement in the wall. To make sure for sure, “ring” the wall. However, not a single device gives a 100% guarantee that there are no wires in the wall, especially under the decorative finish. Therefore, if you are not sure, do not drill.
Choosing a tool for drilling holes in concrete for sockets and switches
Drilling holes in concrete for a socket is a lot of difficulties, especially if you are faced with it for the first time. This is due to the fact that concrete itself is a fairly hard material and working with it requires some effort. The most difficult is the installation of secret sockets, since it is not a through hole that is needed, but a recess with specific dimensions.
This non-trivial task, as it may seem, requires specific construction skills and a special tool. However, it is not. To make a recess on the surface of the wall for an outlet, even a person who is far from the construction topic can do it. In this article we will try to consider this issue in more detail and tell you how to do it and what is needed for this.
How to fit a flush double metal back box and double socket into a solid brick wall
What you need to know before starting work?
Before starting work, you need to know 2 things: how to drill, and how to drill a hole so as not to injure yourself or others. We will talk about safety in more detail below, and now we will dwell on the tool. There are many options. It all depends on what your walls are made of. If these are walls no more than 30 cm thick, then an ordinary drill or perforator is enough for the eyes. And if a hole needs to be punched on an internal non-bearing wall (for example, between a bathroom and a kitchen), then you can do without it.
If the walls are thicker than 30 cm and are made of concrete monolith or silicate bricks, then a more serious tool is needed. For this purpose, a 1 kW perforator and a set of diamond or victorious nozzles are quite suitable. It will be a long, dreary and dirty business, but quite feasible. Well, if everything is completely sad and you need to drill very hard concrete or reinforced concrete, then you need a drilling rig called a motor drill. It has a power of 5-8 kW and this machine for drilling holes in concrete punches everything.
Drilling holes in concrete with a hammer drill
There are several ways how to drill a hole in the wall for an outlet using a puncher. The choice depends on the density of the concrete and the availability of some instrumentation. Let’s start with the simplest and easiest and end with the longest and most laborious.
With the crown for the socket
The crown is a piece of pipe with a cutting edge on one side and a flange for screwing onto a pin (included in the kit) on the other. The pin, in turn, is fixed in the punch chuck. Typically, shank diameters range from 68 to 80 millimeters. Cutting elements are installed on the edge of the crown. These can be pobedit inserts, diamond dusting or simple teeth with one side sharpening. Inside the crown there is a passage for securing the drill. This element is intended for centering the crown relative to the future hole. You can do without it, but the result will be unpredictable.
The for bits are very reasonable, and you don’t have to buy an expensive diamond-coated one if you just need to move the sockets or add new ones. In addition to the walls, it is very convenient to use a crown to cut holes in the table (for office equipment wires) or in the kitchen unit (for installing the mixer above the sink). To drill a hole using the tools described above, it is tedious to perform the following sequence of actions:
- First you need to mark the wall where the new outlet will be.
- Then we define the center of the marked circle.
- Then we direct the drill to the center (together with the perforator) and drill.
- Then we put a crown on the perforator, not forgetting to screw in the drill and continue drilling until the passage of the desired depth is obtained. As a rule, it is enough for sockets when the crown is recessed into the wall by 2/3.
As you can see, nothing complicated, the main thing is not to rush and, if possible, make a deepening in one movement, smoothly and without jerks.
We make drilling
Now let’s move on to the most important thing. making a socket box. If you have never performed these manipulations with your own hands before, then we advise you to carefully consider each recommendation.
Security
Working with concrete is accompanied by the formation of a large amount of dust, small fragments of stone.
The sharp edges of the particles are dangerous for the eyes and respiratory organs, therefore, protective goggles and a respirator (gauze mask) must be used.
Power tool work requires specific safety rules.
It is forbidden to use faulty tools that have damaged the power cord.
When operating with a hammer and chisel, it is necessary to monitor the strength of the hammer attachment to the handle. Hold the chisel perpendicular to the work surface. The riveted ends of the chisel must be removed.
Choosing a tool
Now let’s move on to the choice of tools. Drilling holes in concrete for sockets can be of varying degrees of difficulty, depending on the surface. For this reason, the tool should be selected appropriately.
Let’s consider all possible options:
- The wall is no more than 30 cm in thickness; in this case, a drill with a power of 350 W or more with an SDS chuck will suffice. In this case, the shank diameter must be at least 1 cm.
Monolithic walls require a powerful tool
- Concrete monolith from cement grade 400 and higher. In this case, the tool should be more powerful, for example SDS Max. Shank diameter should be about 18 cm.
- Professional drilling of reinforced concrete (and other heavy structures). Here you will already need a hammer drill with a capacity of at least 1 kW.
Important: due to the high power, the motor-drill cannot be connected to a standard network (1-2 phase).
Therefore, in domestic conditions, it is practically not used.
Probably, many might think that you should just purchase the most powerful tool and that’s it.
However, not everyone knows that the price of such devices is very high.
Of course, if funds allow you, you can give preference to such a tool, and it will significantly speed up the process of completing the task.
This is what the tip of a motor-drill looks like
Crown size for sockets and switches
All household appliances are installed in installation boxes, which require a 68 mm diameter recess and 45 mm depth. When installing switches and sockets in the same row under the common decorative panel, the centers of the boxes are at a distance of 71 mm.
For laying pipes, cables and other purposes, crowns of appropriate sizes are used.
What you need to know before starting work
Oddly enough, but we focus our attention on the theoretical aspect. The most important thing when performing the operation described by us is to know all the safety rules and types of tools.
How to drill a hole in concrete for a socket: safety rules. Tool selection
Nowadays, people use a huge number of electrical appliances. In this regard, the question of how to make a hole for a socket in concrete is very, very relevant. Many people believe that only a professional can do this operation, but we will refute this myth.
If you have the tools, creating a box is not so difficult.
Features of installation with ceramic tiles
Drilling holes in ceramic tiles has its own characteristics. Here you also need to calculate the installation depth of the socket box so that it is located in the same plane with the wall surface. Sometimes a complicated version is used, when the socket box is initially mounted on the wall, and only then the tiles are mounted. In this case, several parameters are taken into account, the layer of adhesive mortar, the thickness of the tiles and the dimensions of the socket boxes.
A certain difficulty is the calculation of the location of the hole for the mounting box. It must be marked and cut directly in the tile and the discrepancy of 3-4 mm will already be critical and will not allow installing the socket in its place. In such cases, a new tile is cut or a hole is re-drilled in the wall itself. It is necessary to take into account the distance between the centers of the socket boxes.
In a simpler version, a strobe is made, after which the wire is fed to the hole in the wall without tiles. The location of the hole and the center-to-center distance of the socket boxes must be marked, after which it is closed for the period of leveling the plaster of the walls and the subsequent laying of tiles. After the solution has dried, a hole for the box is cut in the marked place in the tile.
To cut the tiles, a diamond-coated socket crown is used. Such a nozzle is able to cut a hole not only in the tile, but also in the wall.