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Plaster Walls
Hello. I just moved to Brussels from the United States. Can anyone tell me how to hang pictures, shelves, etc on the walls without using Command strips? In the States I've only dealt with drywall and I'm assuming the walls here are made of plaster. The walls crumble with nails and I tried drilling but around a half- inch into the wall, I hit something rock hard (maybe brick). Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you!
You'll need a strong drill bit to go through the concrete blocks (béton in French). Also, put your drill on hammer mode once you hit the concrete.
Keep as steady as possible so you don't make a larger hole than you want.
The hole should be just big enough to snuggly fit in a plastic plug (chevilles in French). Once the plug is all the way in, you can screw in hooks, etc into the plug.
I made a mess of some holes until I got the hang of it. So I suggest using a smaller drill bit at first.
I don't suppose I'm the only user of this site who doesn't know what a 'Command strip' is.
However, walls here are typically brick and faced with plaster. You can easily tell whether yours are the same by the sound if you tap it. Brick sounds solid.
If you are going to nail into it you need masonary nails. Hanging hooks fitted with short masonary nails are readily available in any DIY store. They are usually hammered in at a 45° angle. If you are going to drill into your wall you need a masonary bit which has a hardened head. The head is slightly wider than the shaft of the bit. A hammer drill is also a big help!
Good luck.
Emilyh Be aware if you damage the walls you will be charged when you move out because the way that the surveys work. It's very hard to drill into the Beo. Walls here to hang stuff you need very heavy duty drill bits in my experience
