Why am I not hitting regular

Build101 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:10 PM

Hello all builders, I want to hang the TV and the bench on the wall but despite all my attempts, I haven't managed to hit a stud behind the plasterboard and wood panel. Behind that wall is the boiler room, I've drilled with a 3 mm drill 5 cm in... I took a very thin and long nail and pushed it into the hole until it stopped and it went in 8 cm before it stopped. Could it be that there is no stud at all and the finder is showing incorrectly?

Jansson69 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:11 PM

The detector is probably showing the wrong spot, can't you tap to find where the stud is with, for example, the back of a screwdriver? It usually sounds duller where the stud is.

Build101 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:19 PM

J Jansson69 said:
The detector is probably showing incorrectly, can't you tap to find where the stud is with e.g. the back of a screwdriver, it usually sounds more solid where the stud is..

Hi, that's probably the only thing left to do, tap and test drill... But I also want to add that the distance between two points the detector showed was 45 cm, which is normal if it's a load-bearing wall... Hence my frustration.

Kane · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:21 PM

B Build101 said:
Hi all builders, I want to hang the TV and bench on the wall but despite all my efforts, I haven't managed to hit the stud behind the drywall + wood panel. Behind that wall is the boiler room, I drilled with a 3 mm drill 5 cm in... I took a very thin and long nail and drove it into the hole until it stopped and reached 8 cm before it stopped. Could it be that there is no stud at all and the finder is showing incorrectly?

Metal studs?
Take a magnet and look for the screws that hold the drywall, then you'll find the studs.

Build101 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:24 PM

K Kane said:
Metal studs?
Take a magnet and find the screws that the gypsum board is attached with, then you will find the studs.

I have a stud finder that is magnetic and it only attaches to where the screw heads are... I'm thinking if it were a metal stud then the finder would attach along the entire vertical length and not just at discrete points.

Jansson69 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:25 PM

B Build101 said:
Hello, that's probably the only thing left to do, tapping and test drilling... But I also want to add that the distance between the two points the detector showed was 45 cm, which is normal if it's a load-bearing wall... Hence my frustration.

If it's load-bearing, then there should be wood in the studs...
Tap and feel...

Kane · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:36 PM

B Build101 said:
I have a stud finder that is magnetic and it only attaches where the screw heads are... I think if it was a metal stud, the finder would attach along the entire vertical length and not just at single points.

But if you've found the screws, you've found the stud! Just drill in 13 mm (if you have single plasterboard) and you should be able to feel the stud.

Build101 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:39 PM

K Kane said:
But if you found the screws, then you've found the stud! Just drill in 13 mm (if you have single drywall) and you should be able to feel the stud.

From what is coming out of the hole, it seems like plasterboard + wooden board. I drilled a bit below where the needle pointed at the screw and unfortunately, it's just empty as I can go in 8 cm with a long nail....

Kane · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:43 PM

B Build101 said:
From what emerges from the hole, it seems like drywall + wood board. I drilled a bit below where the indicator pointed to the screw, and unfortunately, it is just empty because I can go in 8cm with a long nail....

Then it's probably the screw that fastened the drywall to the wood board you found. Keep looking.

tergo · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:44 PM

if you have plaster+plywood you don't need the studs, mount the TV with Molly bolts for double plaster

Build101 · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:48 PM

It is one of the options I have also considered, but then I think that the TV weighs 57 kg... would 6 pcs of M8 with molly be able to hold it in place without it tipping over?

Kane · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:50 PM

B Build101 said:
That's one of the options I've also considered, but then I think the TV weighs 57 kg... could 6 M8 with Molly hold it in place without tipping?

Even without Molly. The bench then, how heavy is it?

PappasHammare · 23 Dec 2025 at 1:54 PM

B Build101 said:
coming out from the hole it seems like drywall + wood board

If there is a wooden board behind the drywall, it's quite difficult to find studs with the finder since it finds a "stud" that's as big as the wall, i.e., the wood board.
But a major advantage is that the wall can withstand much more than you think.

If you use molly, make sure to use the installation tool. If you use the screw to tighten the plug, you will most likely damage the drywall.

Build101 · 23 Dec 2025 at 2:04 PM

K Kane said:
Even without Molly. The bench then, how heavy is it?

P PappasHammare said:
If there's a wooden board behind the plaster, it's pretty hard to find the studs with the finder because it finds a "stud" as big as the wall, i.e., the wooden board.
But a big advantage is that the wall can handle much more than you think.

If you use molly, make sure to use the setting pliers. If you use the screw to pull the plug together, you'll most likely mess up the plaster.

The finder is magnetic, so if the person who put up the board did it right, nails/screws should be approximately in the middle of the studs?

PappasHammare · 23 Dec 2025 at 2:07 PM

B Build101 said:
The finder is magnetic, so if the ones who put up the board did it correctly, the nail/screw should be roughly in the center of the studs?

Did it correctly? Hmm..
You might hit the drywall screws which might be a little off next to the stud.
Or they might have screwed the drywall here and there.