How to remove a broken masonry screw stuck in a wall
Masonry screws like Tapcons can snap off flush or deep inside concrete and brick blocks behind drywall, leaving them snug and difficult to grip. Standard screw extractor kits often fail to bite into hardened steel or tight spaces, leaving homeowners searching for specific tools and techniques to remove the broken shaft without cutting open the surrounding drywall.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Drilling a new hole in the bracket
- 2Using a small diamond core bit run in reverse
- 3Using a bulldog or toggle bolt
- 4Dropping brackets down or up 1/4 inch and drilling a new hole
- 5Drilling the new screw at a slight angle
- 6Using brass tubing in a hand drill as a screw extractor
- 7Cutting around the screw with a small hole saw and grabbing it with vice grips
- 8Using a reverse drill bit or left-handed drill bit
- 9Using an extractor set
- 10Drilling out the broken bolt completely and repairing the threads with a helicoil or timesert thread insert
- 11Applying extra sealant and ignoring the missing/broken bolt
- 12Towing the vehicle to a repair shop
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“We have a broken tapcon masonry screw stuck in the block of our exterior wall behind drywall. We need to get it out so that we can patch the drywall and put in a new screw to hang our shelves.”source ↗
“We've tried a bit/screw extractor kit, but it doesn't seem to be doing anything.”source ↗
“I'd really love to solve this problem without having to cut a chunk of drywall out, remove the screw, repair the drywall, repaint the whole wall, and then hang the shelves.”source ↗
“I was putting my transmission pan back on my 2002 Corolla and a bolt snapped off, I took the pan back off to try to remove it but the broken bolt is pretty far in there and is snug. What should I do?”source ↗
“What tools do I need and how then?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 46How to remove a stripped recessed retaining screw
- 5How to fix a stripped screw hole that won't hold
- 3Tie rod jam nut rusted solid and won't turn
- 5How to get thinset and cemented bricks off a concrete floor