How to anchor heavy shelves or curtain rods in old plaster and lath walls
Older walls often combine unpredictable plaster sections with studs spaced too far apart for standard mounting. This makes it difficult to secure fixtures safely without hitting empty drywall or crumbling material.
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.
- 1Using electronic stud findersDid this help you?
- 2Drilling small pilot holes to check for wood dustDid this help you?
- 3Screwing directly into wood lathDid this help you?
- 4Using anchor bolts sized to clear plaster keysDid this help you?
- 5Using drywall anchors for the unsupported edgesDid this help you?
- 6Using a rare earth magnet to find nails in baseboards that line up with studsDid this help you?
- 7Drilling a few inches away if a spot stops youDid this help you?
- 8Using command strips insteadDid this help you?
- 9hammering angled nail type hangers carefully with patienceDid this help you?
- 10pre-drilling pilot holes with a small drill bit before driving nails or screwsDid this help you?
- 11using coarse thread screws with wall anchorsDid this help you?
- 12using picture rails with wire hangersDid this help you?
- 13Using a specialized, high-strength magnetic stud ball and hovering it very closely to feel for slight pullsDid this help you?
- 14Drilling an exploratory hole and probing inside the wall cavity with a stiff bent wire or coat hangerDid this help you?
- 15Giving up on finding a stud entirely and using heavy-duty toggle bolts insteadDid this help you?
- 16Patching the inevitable exploratory drill holes with hot mud or Fix-It-AllDid 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.
“tried using nails to hang up some pictures frames and the nails just wouldnt go into the wall. I googled and I think my walls would be plaster then which makes sense because its an older building.”source ↗
“I think I need a drill and drill bits but I also dont know if I should be using nails or screws to hang up the frames? Or is there a different type of fastener (?) that is better suited for plaster walls?”source ↗
“Some of the walls are plaster while others are drywall, but I can't always tell which.”source ↗
“I am running into an issue where the studs are too far apart. If I line the 2 boards side by side, at least one edge of each will mount onto a stud (the far edges) while the center edges (where they meet) will be directly into dry wall.”source ↗
“i'm trying to find a way to mount a floating bookshelf in my bedroom. i'm having so much trouble finding the studs, though!”source ↗
“when i first moved in, i tried using an electronic stud finder to no avail. it kept picking up studs in places there decidedly were NOT and i ended up drilling into what seemed like concrete.”source ↗
“I'm trying to mount a TV on a bedroom wall and all the traditional advice regarding plaster/lath walls don't seem to apply.”source ↗
“the plaster is so old and hard it's like concrete, every drill hole (even small) cracks the plaster.”source ↗
“Magnet to find studs: I can't find a magnet strong enough to hit through the thick plaster walls onto a stud nail/screw. Tried 4-5 types of magnets, no luck.”source ↗
“I have lathe and plaster. Ultimately, after going through all the usual methods you described, I probe in the wall with a wire looking for a stud, seeing how far from the hole the stud is.”source ↗
“Ive got the same walls in my place and honestly Id just go with toggles at this point.”source ↗