Drilling in concrete with a regular drill

[Anna Bo]

I'm wondering if it's possible to drill into concrete with a concrete drill and a regular drill (not a hammer drill or rotary hammer) as long as you don't hit any stones. Does anyone know?

 

[Klass0n]

My experiences are that it doesn't work.
Tried many years ago to make some holes in a concrete wall in the apartment.
First, I used a regular drill (green Bosch, heirloom). Got about 1cm then it stopped. Then it was a Ryobi hammer drill, and then it was like drilling through butter...

 

[Matti_75]

There are special bortar for this, but it still doesn't go well.

 

[Utdelning]

I'm wondering if it works to drill into concrete with a concrete drill bit and a regular drill (not a hammer drill or rotary hammer) as long as you don't encounter any stones. Does anyone know?

No. The drill setting in a screwdriver is usually meant for light concrete or brick. You probably won't get very far into the concrete before the concrete drill bit becomes dull.

 

[Anna Bo]

Ok, then it's not even worth trying in other words Thanks everyone!!

 

[cpalm]

Ok, then it's not even worth trying in other words Thanks everyone!!

Hold on now, with the right drill it is actually quite feasible to drill into concrete.
A regular concrete drill won't work, you need a special drill, e.g. Bosch multi construction.

 

[Utdelning]

Stop and hold on now, with the right drill bit, it actually works quite well to drill into concrete.
Regular concrete drill bits won't work, you need special drill bits, e.g., Bosch multi construction.

Is it better to drill with the universal drill bit than the concrete drill bit?

 

[Rickard.]

Is it better to drill with the universal drill bit than the concrete drill bit?

There is a greater chance that it will work, yes.

Concrete drill bits are blunt and require percussion, whereas this type is sharpened to be sharp and should not be struck. They aren't really made for hard construction concrete but can work under the right conditions.

 

[BSOD]

Depends. If it's a single 4cm deep hole with a 5mm diameter, you might be able to stand and work on it for a long time, but if it's a larger/deeper/multiple holes, I would never consider not using a proper drill with a hammer function.

 

[cpalm]

Is it better to drill with the universal drill bit than the concrete drill bit?

Not only better. It doesn't work with a regular concrete drill bit, it just gets warm.
I've drilled a lot of (smaller) holes with a universal drill bit. It works perfectly fine, though not as efficiently as with a hammer drill.

 

[Utdelning]

There is a greater chance that it works, yes.

Concrete drills are blunt and require the hammer action, whereas this type is sharpened and should not be hammered. They're not really made for hard structural concrete but can work with the right conditions.

Not just better. It doesn't work with a regular concrete drill, it just gets hot. I've drilled a lot of (smaller) holes with a universal drill. It works perfectly well, but of course not as efficiently as with a hammer drill.

It sounds incredible that you've managed to drill into concrete with a universal drill using a drill driver. Do you drill at high speeds or low?

 

[Cerb]

Depends a bit on the concrete.

Last weekend, I drilled 5 holes of 10mm through an 8cm thick concrete pot I cast using a regular drill driver and a concrete drill bit. It took 2-3 minutes per hole as I drilled slowly to prevent the drill bit from getting too hot, but otherwise no major problems.

 

[globaljuggler]

I'm wondering if it works to drill into concrete with a concrete drill and a regular drill (not a hammer drill or rotary hammer) as long as you don't hit any stones. Does anyone know?

My guess is that a neighbor will come knocking and offer to lend you a proper drill before you manage to finish (if you live in an apartment building, that is).

 

[Anna Bo]

My guess is that a neighbor will knock on your door and offer you to borrow a proper drill before you manage to finish (if you live in an apartment building that is).

Haha… I hope no neighbor comes. I’m going to drill two small holes in a concrete bridge.

 

[cpalm]

It sounds incredible that you managed to drill into concrete with a universal drill bit using a drill driver. Are you drilling at high or low speeds?

Relatively low speed and high pressure. Similar to when drilling into steel.
I use them where it's too tight to reach with the hammer drill and also to get through thicker rebar.

However, don't buy any cheap junk. I tested several cheap universal drill bits before I found Bosch that actually worked.