A plasterboard plug is a special fixing used to attach objects to a thin plasterboard or hollow wall. Because an ordinary plug finds no grip in the soft gypsum, a plasterboard plug spreads or clamps itself behind the board, so that the load is distributed over a larger area.
Application
Plasterboard plugs are used to hang light to medium-weight objects on a plasterboard wall or suspended ceiling, such as pictures, shelves, lamps or small cabinets. They are indispensable with lining walls and partition walls of metal stud, in which there is no solid material to drill into.
There are various types: the metal toggle (which opens out behind the board), the plastic umbrella or expansion plug, and the self-drilling metal or nylon plug that screws into the board. The choice depends on the weight and on whether the fixing must be removable again later.
Characteristics
Characteristic is that the plug takes its strength from the back of the board, not from the gypsum itself. Self-drilling plugs are easy to fit without pre-drilling, while toggle and expansion plugs can generally carry more weight. For heavy loads it is always better to fix into the frame behind or into an extra timber batten.
Related terms
- plasterboard
- cavity fixing
- metal stud
- expansion bolt
- fixing
- nail
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