Looking for a heavy-duty drywall anchor? A toggle bolt allows you to mount heavyweight objects to hollow walls. Its metal wings expand once inserted into a hole to distribute the object’s weight and keep it in place.
Toggle bolts, also known as butterfly anchors, are metal wall anchors with spring-loaded wings. You can mount cabinets on hollow walls and hang ceiling fans using toggle bolts. In this article, you’ll learn about the unique features of toggle bolts, how they work, and when to use them.
How Toggle Bolts Work
A toggle bolt has three main parts: the pair of steel wings attached to a wire spring, the screw, and a threaded nut. You’ll need to drill a hole in a hollow wall and fold the metal wings to insert the toggle bolt into the wall.
Once the wings are on the other side of the wall, they will spring open and will expand the more the screw is tightened. The toggle bolt’s steel wings allow it to distribute the weight of the mounted object to a larger area to avoid damaging the wall.
Read More: How Do Drywall Anchors Work?
When to Use Toggle Bolts
You can use toggle bolts to hang heavyweight objects, such as towel bars and ceiling fans, on hollow walls without drilling into wall studs. Unlike molly bolts, toggle bolts are single-use anchors and cannot be re-used.
A toggle bolt can typically hold up to 50 lbs. of weight depending on the thickness of the wall. If you’re working with thinner walls, check the length and diameter of the bolt written on the packaging of the toggle bolts to know which size suits your wall.
Types of Toggle Bolts
There is another type of toggle bolt called a strap toggle. It has a durable plastic strap instead of a threaded bolt attached to its metal wings. Unlike the traditional toggle bolt, its metal wings are flat and aren’t foldable so you won’t need to tighten a screw to secure its position.
White traditional toggle bolts are used only on hollow walls, you can mount heavyweight fixtures on plaster, wallboard, concrete, and hollow walls using strap toggles. You can drill smaller holes when installing a strap toggle because of its more compact wings.
If you have hollow walls in your home you’d like to mount heavyweight objects on, you can trust an expert to do the job for you.
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What to read next:
- How to Use Toggle Bolts
- Different Types of Drywall Anchors
- How to Use Drywall Anchors
- How Much Weight Can Drywall Hold
Main Photo Credit: Yuyao Kangrui / Flickr / CC BY-ND 2.0
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