17.05.2014 08:33
Quite often with renovation works ah we have to drill a solid concrete base - be it holes for hanging shelf, place for an outlet or work on the installation of a new ceiling. And the task is quite difficult, as it might seem at first glance. Moreover, concrete is a very heterogeneous and extremely dense material.
Let's figure out how to properly and what is the best way to drill concrete at home.
How to drill a concrete wall?
1. Conventional drills are not suitable for concrete. It is better to use solid carbide drills, for example, winder. Such drills for concrete have at the ends special brazed inserts made of carbide material (mainly a mixture of tungsten carbide and cobalt in a ratio of 10 to 90%). Carbide tips are easily recognizable - they have the shape of a kind of "house".
2. If the holes are planned to be few and they are relatively narrow, then at home you can use a drill with
shock loading function. An impact drill at home is suitable for holes in concrete with a diameter of no more than 12-13 mm, otherwise it is better to take a more expensive hammer drill. As for a conventional drill ("hammerless"), it is advisable to use it for concrete only as a last resort, if you do not have other working tools at hand.
3. The hammer drill is suitable for any drilling in concrete - it is more effective due to its "crushing" function, although it is more expensive than a hammer drill. In the hammer drill, the rotation of the drill is combined with its reciprocating movement, which makes the drilling work much faster. The hammer drill is good when a lot of drilling work is foreseen (for example, when you need to fasten the lathing to the ceiling or walls). Keep in mind that a hammer drill is more powerful than a drill. Therefore, for example, for aerated concrete (aerated concrete), it is not suitable, as it will completely "collapse" the wall. And when drilling with a hammer drill ordinary concrete do not overdo it - make sure that the plaster does not fall off.
4. For the hammer drill, special drills ("SDS Plus" and "SDS-Max") of various diameters are used - from 4-5 mm to 7-8 cm. future dowels, and just in case "plus or minus" a couple of neighboring sizes.
5. In addition to drilling with impact drill and perforator there is another way - the so-called diamond drilling. Only this option requires special drilling rigs and diamond drills... This type of concrete drilling is very expensive, and, as a rule, a team of master repairmen is hired for it. Diamond drilling is used in the case when a lot of repair work on drilling a concrete base is planned, or is needed large holes or longitudinal grooves (for example, when laying communications in a wall or floor). The advantage of this method is that after the drilling rig there is no dust left - it supplies water to the hole, washing away the dust and cooling the drill.
Concrete drilling stages
1. Before starting work, be sure to think if there are any communications, cables, etc. in this place, so as not to damage anything.
3. The outer part of the concrete is usually looser than the inner layers. Therefore, before starting drilling in concrete, be sure to mark and expand the point of the future hole, that is, deepen (cover) the base of the drill entry in this place. This is to ensure that the drill does not slip or move to the side. For the core, you can use a hammer and a large sharp nail, a self-tapping screw or a special dowel.
4. During work, hold the working tool perpendicular to concrete base otherwise there is an increased risk of the drill breaking.
5. If you are drilling a hole with a hammer drill, switch modes from time to time. In order to "hit" the surface, turn on the "hit" option in the drill.
6. As a drill, as well as a drill (perforator), it is necessary to "rest" from time to time - about once every 10-15 minutes. pause work.
7. Still such a moment - the same victorious drills do not like overheating, therefore, with a strong operating load, their tips must be periodically cooled with water.
8. For work on concrete, you will also need a triangular solid steel punch and an ordinary hammer - suddenly there are crushed stone in the concrete. By the way, an old victory drill is also suitable as a punch. If reinforcement or stones (crushed stone) are encountered during the drilling process, they are removed separately. The armature can be processed with ordinary tools (punch and traditional metal drill), but stones lend themselves well only to a punch.
9. Suddenly, you urgently need to make a couple of holes for the shelf, and only a regular drill is at hand (without impact mode), then during the drilling process, if necessary, you can periodically insert the punch into the hole and make several blows on it with a hammer, and then turn it in the hole , then - drill again with a drill, etc. Remember that the drill itself must be carbide-tipped.
10. Periodically remove cement chips and dust from the working hole - they interfere with drilling. They can be removed with a vacuum cleaner or natural brush.
11. If the drill is stuck - do not loosen it, but carefully detach the tool, then put on a larger diameter drill and release the stuck tip, being careful not to touch it.
12. It is necessary to drill holes in concrete 1 cm longer than the length of the dowel, so that the latter will fit into the wall without any problems.
Successful renovation!
For every apartment owner, from time to time, it becomes necessary to hang a picture, a shelf on the wall or fix a new lamp on the ceiling. In each case, you may need drilling a hole in concrete.
Concrete is wonderful building material... He strong and durable... But if it is necessary to drill a hole in it, its properties cause difficulties.
To cope with this matter, you need to consider some features of working with concrete.
Tool selection
Before you start drilling the wall, you must determine the size of the holes and their number.
The holes in the wall can be of small or medium diameter, which is usually the case when it is necessary to hang home accessories in the apartment. Their number may vary.
In cases of arranging a new building or overhaul apartments, when large-diameter through holes for ventilation or blind holes for installing electrical fittings may be required, the number of holes can be quite large.
Depending on the scope of work, drilling tools are also selected. In the first case, it can be impact drill or hammer drill, and in the second case - a device for diamond drilling.
Choosing a drill or hammer drill
If you need to drill holes in the wall, the question arises of what is better to buy - a drill or a perforator. When choosing, it must be borne in mind that drill is universal tool , and it is suitable for both concrete wall drilling and other operations.
A hammer drill - a tool specially adapted to work on concrete... Its cost is much higher than the cost of a drill.
Therefore, when choosing one of these tools, one must consider the amount of work and the prospects for using the tool.
If only a few holes need to be drilled, it is best to purchase an impact drill.... If there are a lot of holes and such work is planned in the future, then it is better to purchase a perforator.
When choosing a drill, you need to pay attention to its following characteristics:
- power (not less than 500-600 W);
- maximum speed (not less than 2500 rpm);
- the ability to regulate the speed;
- the possibility of reverse motion;
- the presence of the strike mode.
The Drill Impact Mode is introduced to facilitate drilling in concrete. In this mode concrete splitting occurs, which facilitates further drilling.
In addition, it is desirable that the drill has a keyless chuck that can accommodate drills with a diameter of up to 12 mm.
To drill concrete with a hammer drill, special carbide drills are used. They differ from conventional drills by the presence of carbide inserts on their edges.
When choosing a perforator, you need to pay attention to its main characteristics:
- power;
- impact energy;
- impact frequency;
- rotation frequency.
The rotational speed of rotary hammers is usually lower than the rotational speed of the drill and does not exceed 1500 rpm. The frequency of impact depends on the speed of the hammer drill when drilling holes.
For example, compact rock drills use an SDS + chuck with a maximum drill diameter of 30 mm.
Using diamond rigs
In order to make large-diameter holes in concrete, it is often used diamond drilling devices... These units are fixed to the wall with special devices... For dust removal and cooling cutting tool water is supplied to the installation.
With diamond drilling, the hole is clear and precise in shape and size... Only big company... But if necessary, you can always order such wall drilling for yourself.
In this video, you can see the process of drilling a hole for a mounting box using a diamond core bit:
Hole drilling features
When drilling concrete, it must be borne in mind that concrete is a heterogeneous mass in which, in addition to cement and sand, crushed stone is mixed, and metal rods are installed in reinforced concrete for the fortress.
Therefore, in the process of drilling concrete, it is not uncommon for the carbide drill bit of the drill to hit a pebble or metal.
If it hits a stone, the drill is pulled out of the hole and the stone is crushed using a punch and hammer. Then drilling continues.
In the case where the drill has an impact mode, for crushing stone, an impact mode is used... When the drill hits the metal, the drill produces replacing the carbide drill with conventional drill ... After drilling the metal, the concrete continues to be drilled with a carbide drill.
When a hole is drilled in concrete with a hammer drill, the following rules must be observed:
- Switch the hammer drill to hammer drilling mode.
- Aim the drill at the drilling point and turn on the hammer drill.
- When working, apply light pressure on the rock drill.
- Every 1.5 cm of drilling lift the drill and enable it to clear the concrete dust... This will also prevent strong contact between the drill and the reinforcement.
Holes in concrete are necessary for conducting, installing communications. The works are distinguished by an abundance of dust, noise, high labor costs, and require high-quality power tools. To drill a hole in this material, it should be borne in mind that each hole in the structural frame of the building reduces its strength, is fraught with damage to the engineering systems located inside (mainly electrical wiring, ventilation ducts), and is traumatic.
Through holes with poor tool quality cause shedding of adjacent wall sections at the exit of the drill / bit from their back side... Additional finishing is required, the terms of work are increasing.
Safety precautions for making holes in concrete
The structural frame of a building made of reinforced concrete is a durable non-uniform material. Inside it is metal reinforcement, gravel or crushed stone of various fractions. Therefore, drilling a hole without observing safety standards means exposing yourself and those around you to the risk of injury. Experts recommend compliance with the following requirements when drilling / drilling reinforced concrete structures:
- use of protective equipment - workwear in combination with goggles / mask, petal respirator, helmet;
- installation of fences: during through drilling, when the worker does not see the opposite side of the wall, there is a risk of pieces collapsing on passers-by or his colleagues;
- the use of reliable scaffolds: without them, work at a height of more than one and a half meters is prohibited, since the stability of the operator is not ensured; when using ladders, it is necessary to strengthen them with stops.
To drill a hole in concrete, it is necessary to change the speed of the drill, hammer drill, special diamond machine smoothly, use only a two-handed tool. The presence of plaster dramatically increases the risk of destruction of internal communications. Therefore, before you drill a hole in supporting structure buildings, you need to make sure they are absent.
Drilling with a hammer drill in percussion mode is allowed only when a drill or drill is used as a working body. If a crown is immersed in concrete, no impact rotation is applied. The tool is able to drill a hole, cut high-quality internal reinforcement, stones.
Unlike a conventional drill, which destroys crushed stone inclusions by impact, it is not able to drill through the reinforcement. To drill monolithic wall, it is necessary to study the location of the seams. It is in them that the internal wiring of the power cable, gas, sewer pipes is often hidden.
Back to the table of contents
DIY technology for making holes in concrete
In the process of construction, finishing of buildings, there is a need to manufacture blind or through holes of different diameters. Blind holes are created for fasteners, their diameter is limited to 2-16 mm. Wherein important factor is the compliance with the declared diameter. Otherwise, in the broken holes, plastic dowels for self-tapping screws and nails will loosen over time, reducing the fixing strength of wall cabinets, curtains, pipelines, and decorative elements.
For drilling blind holes of large diameter or through penetration of reinforced concrete walls, crowns are used to enter communications. They represent a cylinder, one side of which is attached with a shank to the chuck of a drill, perforator, the second has a victorious or diamond core bits welded to it. A winder drill is installed in the middle of the structure to provide direction.
Drilling with a drill or drill leads to the destruction of the entire volume of concrete at the point of contact of the tool with the structural material. If there is reinforcement inside the reinforced concrete structure, it is impossible to pass it with a drill, the hole is moved to the side.
Drilling holes in concrete with a crown differs from the previous method:
- concrete collapses only along the perimeter of the hole;
- a concrete cylinder remains inside the crown.
Therefore, after reaching required depth blind hole, the inner concrete cylinder remains connected to the wall by the rear end. To remove it from the hole, destructive methods are used: a chisel with a hammer or a perforator. During through-drilling, concrete cylinders are removed from the tool by light blows with a mallet on the body
Drilling holes in concrete is done with the following tools:
- spiral impact drill - more often used for blind holes, the diameter of the carbide tip inserts is always larger than the spiral body of the tool, the shank is round, not intended for working in concrete with a perforator with SDS chucks;
- spiral drill - instead of a pobedit, a zirconium or tungsten tip (spraying) is used, the shank with grooves is suitable only for SDS cartridges (Max, + modifications), dust-free, low-noise drilling is ensured;
- The diamond core bit is a large diameter tool exclusively for high speed rotary drilling.
In the marking of the impact drill, the caliber is indicated, not the diameter. This is the distance between the protruding edges of the solder / insert. Holes are drilled with this tool in the following modes:
- 800-1200 turns for diameters within 4 mm;
- 300-500 turns for diameters 5-13 mm.
Even the presence of a red marking on the tip of this instrument does not guarantee that the tip material will match the metal declared by the manufacturer. Cheap substandard at the first use adds up to an incomprehensible configuration, becomes unsuitable for work.
Zirconium, tungsten burs are suitable for the following operating modes:
- 60-100 revolutions with a diameter of 42-76 mm;
- 150-400 turns for diameters 4-60 mm.
The length of the drill can reach 1 m, a small amount of dust when working with this tool allows you not to take furniture out of the room. The concrete to be destroyed "flows" from the hole in a trickle along the spiral channels, collects on a lined film, paper.
Professionals make blind holes for large-diameter socket boxes in a few seconds. House master, who does not have regular practice of working with such a tool, most often runs the risk of damaging the crown at the slightest distortion. Working modes when using crowns are 2,000-3,000 revolutions for any diameter. The advantage of the crown is the high-quality cutting of reinforcement of any diameter, granite, basalt crushed stone inside the concrete at high cutting speeds.
- segmented tubular drill - difficult to operate, used by specialists in areas with a high probability of the presence of thick reinforcement;
- a crown drill with a centralizer - a carbide modification, inside which a drill is located in the center, facilitating the setting of the direction, reducing the sensitivity to pressure, distortions of the working body; these options are not suitable for cutting reinforcement.
The latest modifications of the crowns are operated at 600-1200 revolutions; when in contact with the reinforcement, the teeth crumble instantly. Therefore, before drilling, the walls are carefully examined with a special tool for the presence of an armored belt.
It is impossible to foresee all openings and niches in the walls during the construction of the premises. Therefore, after the construction of the monolith, you have to drill it.
The most common structural material is concrete. The technique of making holes in this material is different from that of wood, brick and metal.
Drilling concrete - pitfalls
- Concrete generates a lot of dust during processing. It is harmful to the respiratory system., in addition, abrasive particles are clogged in ventilation holes tool. Cooling is impeded, and dust trapped inside contributes to accelerated wear. It is necessary to use devices for collecting suspended matter. There are special attachments for a vacuum cleaner, sometimes it is enough just to substitute the container.
- The structure of the concrete does not form chips, so the removal of material from the deep hole is difficult. In order not to overload the drill, it is necessary to periodically (every 3-5 cm of passage) clean the borehole with a vacuum cleaner. Working in a hole clogged with slurry can break the drill.
- The abrasive constituents of concrete contribute to strong frictional heating. The drill metal is “released”, loses its hardness and grinds off quickly. Therefore, it is desirable to provide liquid cooling, or at least take breaks during continuous drilling.
- Power tools for drilling concrete (drills, hammer drills) are heavy. It is difficult to control the horizontal level. It is therefore recommended to equip the tool body with a small bubble level for such work.
- Concrete is a heterogeneous material. Hard stones come across in the thickness of the wall, steel reinforcement... When hitting such an obstacle, the drill tends to leave the trajectory. If you come across an armature- you should choose a different place for the hole or go through the section using a metal drill. Then continue working again with the same attachment.
- The walls are usually very thick. The drill may not be long enough. If you do through hole, you can pass it from two sides. Mark out as accurately as possible, or locate the drilling point on the other side using a magnet and compass.
Sometimes when doing finishing works it becomes necessary to make holes in the wall, for example, to fix metal profile when installing drywall. If the wall is concrete, then this procedure can cause certain difficulties, since this material has high strength, has an inhomogeneous structure and contains metal reinforcement. Next, we will consider in what ways you can solve this problem.
Required tool
Due to the nature of concrete, you will need special tool :
- (hammer drill) - provides rotary-translational movement of the drill.
- Drills for concrete for hammer drills made of carbide. Their shank and screw part are made of tool steel, and the cutting working area is a carbide metal plate, sharpened at 60 degrees, which is soldered into the groove of the cutting part of the tool.
- (needed when drilling with a conventional drill).
It must be said that it is possible to cope with the task at hand with a tool without a strike function. Below we will take a closer look at how to drill a concrete wall with a drill.
Drilling procedure with a hammer drill
The procedure for drilling a wall using a punch and a special drill is quite simple:
- The concrete drill should be switched to hammer drilling mode and the operation should be started. The drill should be positioned strictly at a 90 degree angle to the wall, unless the drilling is specifically done at a specific angle.
- After a while, the drill must be soaked in cold water and continue working.
- If the tool rested on something solid and stopped going deep, then you will have to try to drill the wall in a different place.
- After the desired immersion depth has been reached, pull out the drill without turning off the drill. To clean the hole from dust, it is necessary to deepen and pull out the drill a few more times.
This completes the procedure.
Advice!
The hammer drill can be used not only for drilling hard materials.
There are special attachments that turn this instrument into a mixer.
Thanks to them, the drill - mixer for concrete does an excellent job of stirring the mortar.
Drilling with a drill
Many home craftsmen doubt whether it is possible to drill concrete with a drill? Of course, this procedure will take much longer than when working with a hammer drill, however, it is quite possible to make a hole.
To perform this operation, you will need a special punch. This tool is a rod with a pointed solid end. It is used to break the surface in the drilling area.
The instructions for doing this work are as follows:
- First of all, to the place where the future hole will be located, you need to attach a punch and hit it several times with a hammer.
- Then, a drill is inserted into the resulting funnel and a hole is drilled. As with the hammer drill, care must be taken to ensure that the tool does not overheat.
- If the drill stops deepening, you must again use the punch and insert it into the hole and hit it hard with a hammer several times.
- In this way, drilling is carried out until the desired hole depth is reached.
Advice!
Often there is a need to cut concrete, in which case a grinder is used.
However, it should be borne in mind that cutting of reinforced concrete with diamond wheels is performed.
As a result, although an ordinary drill for concrete is not suitable, in the absence of a perforator, it can also be used to drill a reinforced concrete wall.
In the photo - working with a punch
Advice!
The drill can be used not only for making holes, but also for some other purposes.
For example, on our portal you can find out how to make a vibrator for concrete with your own hands from a drill.
This technology implies the use of special equipment, which is a set of the following elements:
- Electric motor;
- Rack, which is fixed to the base;
- Drill bits.
With this design, water is supplied directly to the drill to cool the tool. Therefore, there is no need to interrupt the process. In addition, water washes away dust, so that it does not have time to get into the surrounding space. Often, such an installation includes a water vacuum cleaner, which allows you to remove the mixture of water and dust from the surface.
Of course, it makes sense to use diamond drilling of holes in concrete only for industrial purposes, where it is necessary to make a large number of holes, especially of large diameter. For domestic purposes, the equipment is unlikely to come in handy.
In addition, the price of the kit is like any other professional tool rather high. Therefore, if it is necessary, for example, to fix a shelf on the wall, it is more expedient to use a puncher. (See also the article.)
Output
With a reasonable approach, it will not be difficult to make a hole in concrete. The most important thing is to use the right equipment for this and follow a specific procedure. In addition, of course, safety precautions must be followed so that the work does not end in injury.
From the video in this article, you can find out Additional information on this topic.