Can I hammer a wall anchor into a smaller drilled hole?
Forcing a wall anchor into a hole drilled with a smaller bit will leave a hole that is way too big. Because the anchor gets stuck partway in, hammering it the rest of the way ruins the drywall and prevents the hardware from installing correctly. This forces you to abandon the anchor and patch the wall with spackle instead.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Wiggle the drill bit around inside the drywall to widen the holeDid this help you?
- 2Borrow the correct size drill bit from a neighborDid this help you?
- 3Buy new drill bitsDid this help you?
- 4Abandoning the anchor and using standard picture hangers instead.Did this help you?
- 5Using metal self-drilling anchors instead of plastic ones that break easily.Did this help you?
- 6Skipping the drill and using a large screwdriver to twist self-tapping anchors directly into the wall.Did this help you?
- 7Switching to toggle bolts for heavy items like mirrors.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Hello, am I looking for a drill bit that is about the size of the top half of this anchor? It seems like I would need a massive one.”source ↗
“I tried 7/32 and it was spot on for the bottom half but then obviously got stuck. I’m scared to make a hole that’s too big!”source ↗
“Hammering in the anchor to the wall created way too big of a hole and I will be using picture hangers and picking up some spackle 😓”source ↗
“Trying to get this one into the wall created a hole that is way too big.”source ↗
“I’m trying to install a toilet paper holder, and the instructions say I need a 1/4 inch bit for the wall anchors. Could I drill smaller holes and then hammer the wall anchors in?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 10How to fix a stripped screw hole that won't hold
- 5How to torque bolts without a torque wrench
- 2How to hang gutters on a gazebo without drilling holes
- 3Hit metal when drilling into a wall. What is it?
- 2Shelf brackets or hooks don't match wall stud spacing
- 3Can I use standard bolts instead of specialty fasteners?