What Type Of Wall Plug Do You Need | The N°1 Clear Guide

Sometimes, in your workshop or at home, you have something to hang.

No matter if it’s a frame, a mirror, a cabinet, or a TV mount, if you want to hang things on a wall for a long time, you will need the right wall plug types.

But when you want to get started, you will ask yourself what type of wall plugs to use.
There are so many varieties!
That huge amount of wall plug types makes it hard to decide which one to use.
After all, you don’t want to pick the wrong plug and taking the risk of things falling down after a while.

Well, thanks to this wall plug guide, this will no longer be a difficult choice.

After reading this article, you will know exactly which wall plug types you need for your job and how to use wall plugs.

Tip: save this blog in your favorites, if you ever need to hang something you can decide in no time which wall plug types to buy.

Disclosure: At zero cost to you, I may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. I earn from qualifying purchases as an Amazon associate. Products featured are selected based on quality, performance, and reputation, regardless of affiliate relationships.

What is a wall plug used for?

The function of a wall plug is to ensure that screws can be firmly anchored in a wall.
If a screw cannot get into the material of the wall, it is recommended to use a wall plug.

In this way, things such as cabinets, frames, etc. can be securely and permanently attached to walls.

Do you need to use wall plugs?

If you want to fix things on a wooden wall, you don’t need plugs.
The screw can grip perfectly in the wood and ensure a firm fixation.

However, if you want to fix things to a wall that is not made of wood, such as drywall, aerated concrete, hollow bricks, or concrete, you need a suitable plug.

In this article, you can quickly and easily find out which wall plug types are most suitable for your job.

What are the different types of walls?

To find the right wall plug types to use, it is important to know what material the wall or ceiling has been made of.
I will discuss some of the most common building materials, so you can recognize them easily.

Hollow bricks

Many walls will be built of hollow bricks.
The red stone consists of baked clay.
The inside side consists of a grid structure so that the weight remains limited, but a high degree of sturdiness still can be guaranteed.

Depending on where you drill in this stone, when drilling you can sometimes end up in hollow spaces in the grid and quickly go through the stone.
When drilling, fine red drill dust will be produced.

Another material used for hollow building blocks is concrete.
When you want to drill in these stones, you will notice that this goes a lot less smoothly.
The drilling dust that is released during drilling is gray and grainy.

Drywall

A very popular building material nowadays is drywall.
This sheet material consists of a plaster core, with a cardboard layer on both sides.
The plate is rather thin, about nine to twelve millimeters thick.

So when you want to drill in a wall made from drywall, your drill suddenly shoots through.
That way you know your wall has been made from drywall.
Also, you will recognize the sticky white drill dust.

Aerated concrete

Aerated concrete is a light, well-insulating white building block.
The stone is soft, so drilling goes very smooth and regular.
When you drill in aerated concrete walls, it will produce dry, very fine, drill dust.

Wooden walls

There are also houses in timber frame construction, where the walls consist mostly of OSB.
However, you should not use a plug here because you screw directly into the wood.

An exception where you should use plugs is where you have worn out screw holes.
To fix this, you can use wooden wall plugs.

To use wooden wall plugs, you need to drill out the worn screw hole until the wooden wall plugs fit.
After driving in the wooden wall plugs, you can screw directly into the wooden wall plugs so that your screw has grip again into the wood.

What tools do you need to drill holes?

It doesn’t really matter whether you opt for a corded device or cordless to drill the holes you need.

The only thing you have to pay attention to is that a hammer drill function is present.
With lighter screw drills, this function can sometimes be missing.

If you want to drill in concrete, you can also choose an impact drill with an SDS head.

The advantage is that it will drill faster in concrete, but the drill hole will be less clean.

For the choice of the drill, go for a masonry drill.
Unlike a metal drill or wood drill, a masonry drill has no sharp point or edge.
Drilling with a drill like this can be done thanks to the vibration that the power tool produces.

Note: 

If you need to drill a hole in ceramic tiles, you must use a tile drill with a diamond head or a glass drill with a carbide tip.
Also, always switch off the hammer drill function, otherwise, ceramic tiles will break.

What wall plug types to use?

Ok, now that you can recognize what material your wall has been built from and which tools you need to drill holes, you can determine which plug you need to use.

For each material from which walls can be built, I will discuss a few plugs in this wall plug guide.
From this list of types of wall plugs, you can select the wall plug types that are most suitable for your job.
In this wall plug guide, you will also learn how to use wall plugs.

Wall plugs for hollow bricks

1. Universal wall plug.

The first plug that you can use for hollow stones is the universal plug.
The name “universal” explains itself, you can use this type of wall plug in many situations, such as with hollow stones.

When you use universal types of wall plugs, it is best to pay attention to the drill and screw diameter, as well as the length of the screw.

Depending on the space available on the inside of the hollow stone, the plug will form a “knot” when you tighten the screw.

2. Hammer fixing plug.

The hammer fixing plug can be described as a combination of a plug and a nail screw.

After the hole has been drilled in the wall, you can simply knock the plug into place.
In most cases, you will install the plug in the wall if it has already been placed through the piece you want to hang.

The advantage of these types of wall plug is that you save time with this type of plug by not having to screw.

A hammer fixing plug will be stuck a lot deeper in the wall than a universal plug.
The plug itself will spread open in the borehole.

3. Chemical anchor.

As a final anchor for hollow stones, you can use the chemical anchor.
For this, you drill a normal drill hole.
After that, you need to inject the chemical anchor deep into the hole until it is full from the end to the beginning.
Then insert the threaded rod with a slight twisting motion.

The chemical anchor will quickly harden and form a rock hard plug.
As a result, the threaded rod will be firmly anchored in the wall.

Wall plugs for drywall

1. Universal drywall plug.

When using this type of wall plug, make sure that the screw is long enough.
Your screw should extend beyond the end of the plug.
Because the screw goes through the plug, these wall plug types will contract and form a block at the rear of the drywall.

2. Self drilling drywall anchor.

The advantage of these types of wall plugs is that you don’t have to pre-drill.
The tip finds its own way into the sheet material.
After placing this drywall anchor, you simply tighten your screw, or your hook, into the plug.

The drill point, which ensures that the plug goes through the drywall, is pushed aside when you will place the screw.

3. Toggle bolt.

The toggle bolt has two sprung wings that spread out once they pass through the borehole.
When you tighten the screw, the two small arms will grip behind the drywall.
Like that, you can be sure the thing you want to hang will be secured in place.

Wall plugs for aerated concrete

1. Chemical anchor.

A chemical anchoring can also be used in aerated concrete.
The difference with hollow stones is that when drilling, you have to make a drill hole that widens out at the back.
You make such a hole with a cone drill.

The chemical anchor can be used in the same way as with hollow stones to fix threaded rods in aerated concrete.

2. Aerated concrete plug.

You can use this aerated concrete plug with spiral ribs to hang lighter weights.
It is a lot faster to use than a chemical anchor.
You just need to insert these types of wall plugs into the drill hole with a hammer, and you can place your screw immediately.

Wall plugs for concrete

1. Universal plug.

The universal wall plug types can also be used in concrete, a solid material.
However, here the plug cannot spread open or cross-link.
What happens is that the plug expands and presses against the edges of the drilled hole.

2. Expanding Shield Anchor.

If you want to secure things in concrete, you can opt for a metal anchor. Make sure that when you are going to use it for an outdoor application that it is corrosion-resistant.

Installation is very simple.
Drill a hole and place the metal anchor by hitting it into the hole with a hammer.
By tightening the nut of the anchor, the nut in the end will pull itself into the anchor.
Like that, the anchor clamps itself in the concrete.

3. Chemical anchor.

A chemical anchor is also a good choice for fixing things on a concrete surface.

Just like with hollow bricks, you inject the chemical anchor deep into the hole until it is full from the end to the beginning.
Then insert the threaded rod with a slight twisting motion.