Mounting Wall Bars on a Wall – Wall Types, Plugs and Drilling Step by Step

Wall bars are only as secure as the wall they are fixed to. This guide shows, briefly and step by step, which walls the plugs from the RINAGYM mounting kit are suitable for, when you need a professional, and how to drill correctly, clean the dust out of the hole and screw the wall bars to the wall.

This guide supplements the mounting instructions. Always check the drill bit diameter, the number of fixing points and the distances in the instructions for your model.

The key points

• ✅ Concrete and solid brick (fired clay brick without holes) as a load-bearing wall – mount with the plugs from the kit.
• ⚠️ Aerated concrete (Ytong, H+H), hollow clay blocks, perforated blocks, sand-lime brick and concrete blocks – the plugs from the kit are not intended for these walls. A professional chooses and fits the fixing.
• ⛔ Plasterboard, timber-frame walls without reinforcement, thin partition walls – we do not mount wall bars here.
• Every hole: the right diameter, at a right angle to the wall and cleaned of drilling dust.
• Use all the fixing points from the instructions. Retighten the screws after 10 days, then check every 10 days.

Which plugs are in the kit

With RINAGYM wooden wall bars we supply mounting brackets, wood screws for the brackets and wall plugs with a screw. They are plastic-and-metal plugs ZWY-6K Ø 12 mm from the Polish manufacturer Marcopol: a plastic plug body and a galvanised steel screw with a hex head, which you tighten with a spanner. A Polish National Technical Assessment from the Building Research Institute ITB exists for these plugs (ITB-KOT-2018/0538). It covers concrete and solid brick. These two walls are therefore the ones the plugs from the kit are suitable for.

The SPR C model, for example, comes with 6 mounting brackets, 24 wood screws and 6 wall plugs with a screw, and you drill the holes with a Ø 12 mm masonry drill bit. For metal wall bars the fixing parts may be different – see the instructions for your model.

Why the wall type matters so much

An expanding plug holds because the screw, as it is driven in, expands it inside the hole and it presses firmly against the wall of the hole. This works in hard, solid material. In soft aerated concrete the wall of the hole crumbles, and in a hollow block the plug ends up in an empty chamber and has nothing to brace against. From the outside everything looks fine – but a hard jerk can pull the plug out of the wall.

Wall types – what to do?

How to tell what the wall is made of

1. Ask. The building plan, the developer or the housing manager know best.
2. Tap the wall. Plasterboard sounds hollow.
3. Test hole at a spot where a plug hole will be drilled anyway, and watch the dust:
   • grey dust, strong resistance – concrete,
   • red dust, even resistance – solid brick,
   • red dust, the drill suddenly "drops in" – hollow clay block,
   • white dust, clear resistance – sand-lime brick,
   • white, light dust, the drill goes in as into chalk – aerated concrete,
   • white gypsum dust and a void after 1–2 cm – plasterboard.

Still not sure? Treat the wall as if the plugs from the kit were not suitable and ask a professional.

Mounting step by step

You will need: hammer drill, masonry drill bit of the diameter given in the instructions, cable detector, spirit level, pencil, tape, blow-out pump (or a vacuum cleaner with a narrow nozzle), hole brush, hammer, open-ended spanner, safety glasses.

Step 1. Choose the spot

• Load-bearing wall made of concrete or solid brick.
• Keep the distances given in the instructions – for wooden wall bars at least 30 cm to the ceiling and 1 m of free space at the sides and in front. Place a mat of at least 60 mm in front of the wall bars.
• Not in damp or unheated rooms.
• Use the cable detector to check whether there are cables or pipes where you will drill.

Step 2. Mark the drill holes

• Screw the mounting brackets to the wall bars as described in the instructions.
• Hold the wall bars against the wall, align them and mark the holes through the brackets with a pencil.
• On tiles, stick a piece of tape on the drilling spot – this stops the drill bit from slipping.

Step 3. Drill

• Masonry drill bit of the diameter given in the instructions (e.g. SPR C – Ø 12 mm).
• Drill at a right angle to the wall, do not tilt the drill – the hole must be round, not oval.
• Drill slightly deeper than the length of the plug. Mark the depth on the drill bit with tape.
• Through plaster and tiles without hammer action, in concrete and brick with hammer action.
• If you hit rebar or the drill bit "drops into" a void – stop, move the bracket a few centimetres and drill again.

Step 4. Clean the dust out of the hole

This step is skipped most often. Dust in the hole stops the plug going in all the way, and the plug expands "in dust" instead of in the masonry.

1. Blow out with the pump, inserting the tube to the bottom of the hole. Do not blow with your mouth, wear safety glasses.
2. Brush with the hole brush – several times back and forth.
3. Blow out again or vacuum until nothing more comes out.

Step 5. Set the plug

• Push the plug in, tapping it lightly with a hammer if needed – flush with the wall.
• The plug must fit tightly. If it slides in without resistance or spins – the hole is too big, do not use it.

Step 6. Screw the wall bars to the wall

• Position the wall bars, insert the screws with washers and tighten them with the spanner: first at the top, then in the middle and at the bottom.
• Tighten until you feel clear resistance – the bracket must lie against the wall. Do not overtighten the thread.
• If the screw keeps turning or the plug spins with it – this fixing will not hold. Move the bracket and drill a new hole.
• Do not leave out any fixing point and do not change anything in the construction (other brackets, spacers).

Step 7. Test and check

• Pull hard downwards, toward yourself and sideways. The wall bars must not move.
• After 10 days retighten all screws. After that check the fixing every 10 days.
• If something has come loose or the plaster cracks – do not use the wall bars until they are repaired.

The most common mistakes

• Plug in the plaster or insulation instead of in the masonry.
• Plug from the kit in hollow blocks or aerated concrete.
• Dust left in the hole.
• Oval or oversized hole.
• Mounting on plasterboard.
• A fixing point left out.

Do you have aerated concrete, hollow blocks or sand-lime brick?

The plugs from the kit are not intended for this wall. You can:

• have a professional do the mounting – they choose a fixing for your wall and fit it,
• or choose a different wall – often there is a concrete or solid brick wall in the same house.

If a professional cannot confirm that the wall and the fixing will hold the wall bars – do not mount them there.

Important

• According to the instructions, the wall bars may only be mounted on a load-bearing wall – not on plasterboard and not on a timber wall without reinforcement. If the wall needs a different fixing from the one in the kit, a professional chooses and fits it.
• Mounting by adults only.
• The warranty does not cover damage caused by mounting that does not follow the instructions. Your statutory rights as a consumer remain unaffected.
• Wall bars are sports equipment, not a toy: only one person at a time, children only under adult supervision, a mat in front of the wall bars.

Questions and answers

Can I mount the wall bars on aerated concrete?

Not with the plugs from the kit. Only with a fixing made for aerated concrete, chosen and fitted by a professional.

And on plasterboard with plasterboard plugs?

No. Wall bars need a load-bearing wall.

Are 4 fixing points enough instead of 6?

No. Use all the points from the instructions.

How do I clean the hole without a pump?

With a vacuum cleaner with a narrow nozzle. You can get a blow-out pump and a hole brush at a DIY store.

May I drill through tiles?

Yes, if there is concrete or solid brick under the tiles. Drill through the tile without hammer action, then continue drilling in the masonry. The plug must sit in the masonry.

More from RINAGYM

• Wooden wall bars & climbing walls
• Metal wall bars
• Indoor climbing frames
• Accessories
• Training safely at home – how to use your home sports complex
• Product quality certificates

Questions about the wall bars and the mounting kit? Write to us via the contact page. Assessing a specific wall and choosing other fixings is for a professional.