How To Hang A Medicine Cabinet Without Studs

People ask this question, How to hang a medicine cabinet without studs. others wish to know if one can hang a medicine cabinet without a stud. Let us take you through what a stud actually is.

What is a stud?

A stud is a piece of metal with a large head. It does the work of piercing and projects more from a surface, it is usually used mostly for decoration.

It’s the most secure way to hang a hook, a rack or cabinet. Many studs have vertical structures that are usually spaced up to sixteen inches apart. However, there are some that do run horizontally.

They can also be wood beneath drywall that acts as the frame of the wall.

How to hang a Medicine Cabinet without studs?

There are several ways you can hang a medicine cabinet without studs, take a look at some of these methods. In a case where there is no stud, if you are able to make holes in your wall, there are some other ways which we will explain right here:

Make use of Toggle bolts

Toggle bolts work really work great for heavy loads, especially heavy bathroom cabinet. They are usually a little more difficult because to install, that’s because they do require larger holes and proper insertion into the drywall.

If you want to make use of the toggle bolts, what you need to do is first of all drill a hole, a large one that will be big enough for the screw and toggle to be able to fit into the drywall.

Next, you fit the medicine cabinet you want to hang over the bolt, then you insert the toggle and then tighten it. What this will do is that it will anchor the toggle bolts inside the drywall and you have a well-hung medicine cabinet. Check out for Toggle bolts here.

Make use of nails

In a situation where studs are not available, you can make use of nails to hang your bathroom cabinet.

To hang your bathroom cabinet with nails, the most widely used pin nail is 11/4-inch long. You need pin nails that will be able to handle the weight.

To make use of the nails what you need to do is to pick the exact spot that you want to hang the bathroom cabinet, mark it, probably with a pencil.

Take the medicine cabinet and place it exactly where you want to hang it, fix in the nail and then use your hammer or nail screw to drive the nail inside. It would definitely be able to hold the bathroom cabinet fit as long as you make use of the right size of nails. You can get pin nails here.

Make use of a drywall anchor

A drywall anchor can be used as an alternative when the stud is not available. What exactly is a drywall anchor? It is a fastener that is usually used to provide a very strong connection when you are using screws to hang items.

It could also be used to hang a medicine cabinet. The drywall anchor looks like a hollow plastic screw. They are usually designed to lodge directly into the drywall.

When you hang your medicine cabinet, the anchor then slides inside the wall and then the hook moves in such a way that you will not be able to pull it back out.

The drywall anchor is designed in such a way that when you hang your bathroom cabinet on the wall, it remains there and remains very intact.

This tool is a very good one and it keeps your medicine cabinet intact after it has been installed. You can purchase drywall anchors HERE.

Can you hang a cabinet on one stud?

Have you ever wondered if you could hang a cabinet on just one stud? It is actually possible and this is the best way to go about it.

You may have bought a cabinet and you want to install it, but you have just one stud available.

You figure out that it also does not have any neighbours to screw into just the way you find it in some other cabinets.

The way to go about it is to install it securely is to screw the stud at the top and bottom, as usual, then support or add about four heavy-duty drywall anchors.

When you are adding the drywall anchors, it is usually best to screw two at the top and two at the bottom.

You can also do it by making use of a couple of three inches screw into the stud would be enough. To give a sense of security you may also make use of four more toggle bolts.

However, this all depends on what you are storing in this cabinet since you are not storing a dumbbell or some other heavy stuff in the cabinet.

It is just a couple of toiletries that do not have so much weight and will not pull down the cabinet.

It will be fine in there. It’s usually advisable to attach something to a stud, however, the modern toggle bolts and drywall fasteners are rated for a bit of weight.

You will not have any problems with it.

How many screws do you need to hang a cabinet?

How To Hang A Medicine Cabinet Without Studs

In case you are wondering how many screws you need to hang a cabinet, here is a perfect answer. Some people do ask, “If I want to start installing my cabinet, do I start installing it from the wall or from the base?”.

When you want to start installing the cabinet, you have to start the installation from the wall cabinet and not from the base cabinet.

You should ensure that the screws go into the studs and make sure that you pay close attention to the water pipes that are inside the wall.

How many screws do you need to hang a cabinet? Take note that you need to put a screw in every wall stud. It is best for the cabinet to be secured from the top and bottom.

If the wall cabinet will be two wall studs then it is best that you secure the cabinet with two screws from the top and two from the bottom.

If the cabinet is sixteen inches or even smaller and there is also one stud, then you need two screws to hold the cabinet. One from the top and then one on the bottom.

How to find studs in the wall

In case you have been wondering if there is a way you can find studs in a wall, there is actually one, and we will be explaining that right now.

You can head to a store where you can find the tool called stud finder, it’s actually on sale and you can find it in home improvement stores where they sell it.

The good thing about buying this stud finder is that it is also easy to use, it’s not as difficult to use as you may think.

You also need to be very careful when you are using it, take note that inside the walls you will find water pipes and also drains in the wall. However, if you are not sure, it is best you open drywall and check to see where the studs are.

Usually, they should be every sixteen inches, if you find any stud, you should use your discretion, measure it well to figure out where the other stud would be.

What kind of screws should use to hang a wall cabinet?

You should not expect to have a thick cabinet and then use small screws to hang it on the wall. When you have a thick cabinet, it is usually best to have screws that are long enough to go through the kitchen cabinet, the drywall and also, at least one inch in the wall stud.

The best option to go for when you are looking for the best type of screw to hang a wall cabinet is to make use of screws that are about 2.5 inches long.

These kind of screws are usually the best to go for as it will hang the wall cabinet and hold it firmly.

Do not think small screws will do the job, it definitely will not, you should make use of larger ones just like we have explained above.

What can I use if I don’t have a stud finder?

There are a lot of home projects that you will need additional tools for, many people already know that you are to make use of a stud finder to find a stud in your drywall.

If you have asked the question of what can you use if you do not have a stud finder, we will give you an answer to that in this segment of the article.

Before you set out to search for a stud without a stud finder, you need to understand how walls are being constructed. Despite the fact that the walls are unique, there are some similarities you will find in there.

Use magnets

Using a magnet in place of a stud finder may seem a little bit old-fashioned. When you make use of it, you can make use of tape to drag a refrigerator magnet across the wall, doing this will enable you to find the stud.

While using it, you should wait till the magnet sticks to the wall and then you have found your stud. It is always best to use a very strong magnet. When you use a strong magnet, it makes the job much easier.

Use the switch

You can make use of the switch. On one side of an outlet and a light switch, there will be a switch mounted on a stud. Then you should tap the sides of the outlet to locate and find the side that has the stud support.

The next step do is to measure about ¾ inches away from the outlet on the stud side, also use it as a starting point to determine the sixteen inches interval. By doing it this way you will be able to find a stud by making use of the switch.

Take a look at the trim

Look at the trim and check to see if there’s a spot where the baseboards have been nailed. The holes are commonly known as dimples, they are usually painted over and also filled with caulk.

Despite this, you may be able to see one to locate a stud. In a situation where you find a stud measure in sixteen inches increments to locate the additional studs.

Measure from the corner

Generally, we all know that studs are usually sixteen inches on the centre, you can do calculations by measuring a corner of the room.

Take note that all rooms were not built the same way, so, not all are built-in numbers divisible by sixteen inches.

It is also possible that you find a stud that is less than sixteen inches from one corner.

Take note that you can also try the ‘knock test’ near the corner so as to see if there is a way you can determine where the shorter stud-spacing might have been added.

This method is also very effective, that is if you are measuring a corner of the exterior of the house, this reason makes it the least effective way to find a stud without a stud finder.

What if the studs are too far apart?

If you are wondering what to do if you notice that the studs are too far apart, there is a way to go about this.

To achieve this, you need to do it by adding support. How to do this is by taking two strips of plywood, cut about two inches wide and screw them into the length of the wall. It is best to make sure that they are fully secured to the studs.

What this does is that it takes the weight of the cabinets along with the studs. This is the best way to go if you notice that the studs are too far apart.

How much weight can a screw in a stud hold?

When hanging stuff on a wall stud people do not really pay attention to weight, weight is one of the important things you need to be aware of.

People do not really know how much weight they can hang on a wall stud, well, we will be answering that question in a bit, if you are attaching a cabinet to a wall, you also need to pay attention to weight. How much weight can a screw in a stud hold?

Generally, a screw can hold about eighty to a hundred pounds. This actually depends on the grade of the screw. That is how much weight a screw in a stud can hold.

Take note that you should not overload the screw in a stud, this will help it to last longer. In case you are asking the question if it is possible for you to increase the amount of weight a screw in a stud can hold, we will answer that in the next segment.

There are some simple tricks you can use to achieve this, take a look at these:

How to increase the amount of weight a screw in a stud can hold

There is a hack in which you can use to increase the amount of weight a screw in a stud can hold, the simple way to do this is by doubling up. If there is space for a few more screws, you should add more to it.

If one screw can hold about eighty to a hundred pounds of weight, then adding more screws, for example, two screws should be able to add about 160-200 pounds.

If you add three screws it should be able to hold about 240 to 300 pounds of weight.


Final words – How to hang a medicine cabinet without studs

How To Hang A Medicine Cabinet Without Studs

We have been able to give a few hacks on how you can hang a medicine cabinet without studs, we gave a solution that you can make use of toggle anchors.

We also said earlier that toggle anchors with bolts are majorly used for heavy-duty.

It can hold more than 235Lbs. It is usually installed in drywall or in hollow concrete blocks. I hope this has been of help to you and have got some great value out of it.

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