the scrooz blog

OK so you need to remove a sleeve anchor or dynabolt from your brickwork or concrete, here’s how :

Firstly you need to figure out which one you have, it will be either a standard hex head or a flush head, the difference being the hex head has a nut on top and the flush head is a bolt, don’t bother trying to drill either of them out, your wasting your time.

a zinc plated ‘flush head’ sleeve anchor

a galvanised standard ‘nut type head’ sleeve anchor

To remove the hex head version

To get one out you need to understand how they work and appreciate that they are not designed to be removed, so it’s not that simple. They are made up of a solid internal post with a wedge formed at the base, and a thread at the top, this post is surrounded by a sleeve and topped off with a nut. When you tighten them the post is drawn up into the sleeve and the wedge locks against the sleeve expanding it and locking against the side of the drill hole. So if you try and lever them out they just get tighter because your just pulling the wedge further up into the sleeve. So here’s what you do :

1. Take the nut off and try and hammer the threaded stud down into the shell until you can see around 20mm or more of hollow shell, if it won’t hammer down then the drill hole isn’t long enough and so you need to cut the stud off at the surface with a grinder and then punch it down. Then you can either
2. Knock a tight fitting wall plug into the shell, put a screw in the plug and lever the whole lot out with a claw hammer.
3. Try and find a bolt or coach screw with a coarse thread just about the same diameter and force it into the shell, twisting it so it cuts a thread and then lever the shell out.
4. Try and grab the edge of the shell with a pair of grips or long nose pliers and twist it out.
5. Once the shell is out just lift out the stud and you’re done.

To remove the flush head version

These are far easier to deal with, they are made up of a standard bolt in a sleeve which screws into a wedge shaped cone at the base. So to get them out just undo the bolt and the wedge will most likely fall away into the hole, you then simply remove the sleeve as above, simple really.  Or even better, if you don’t need to re-use the hole, just take out the bolt and leave the sleeve in place.

Click to find out more about our sleeve anchors

Our new trade counter is now open and fully operational, so you can place an order through the webstore and collect when convenient (saving you the shipping) or your welcome to pop in and order in-store with one of our Ipad’s, if you just want to pop in for a mooch when passing then your also quite welcome, we look forward to seeing you 

We’re at 5-11 Jardine Drive, Redlands Business Park, Redland Bay, QLD 4165.

We’ll be on display at the Brisbane National Tradesman Exhibition again this year showcasing some of our new products for 2011 including our Gripr Plasterboard Fixings range. Its a great show with some excellent trade bargains and offers to be had so do come along and see us if you’re in the area. We’re on stand J5 24th-26th June at the Exhibition Centre RNA Showgrounds.

We’ve excitedly just launched our new range of Gripr plasterboard and drywall fixings. These are the latest in cavity fix technology, and are incredibly strong, holding up to 70kg in double boards. They are simple to fit needing only a clean drillhole in the board before tapping in. Once the fixture is in place just tighten the screw and the job is done, they are ideal for heavy applications such as kitchen cabinets, shower screens, grab and handrails etc. Variants include panhead, countersunk, hook and eye headstyles.

Recommended by leading European plasterboard manufacturers Gripr’s can be used in filled or insulated cavities as well as other boards such as fibre cement sheet, timber and man-made boards and can even work on tiled walls.

• Holds up to 40Kg per fix in single boards and a massive 70Kg in double boards.
• Designed for medium to heavy loads in plasterboards yet suitable for any application.
• Torx 25 star drive for a high torque positive connection, free bit included in each pack/box.
• Manufactured from high strength PA6 nylon and reinforced glass fibre.
• Fixes everything from lightweight brackets to kitchen units and ceiling fans.
• Supplied and packaged exclusively for Scrooz Australia.

find out more about gripr’s here

No doubt most people will be aware of the recent severe flooding in Queensland regional areas and Brisbane city. This tragic natural disaster has been astonishing to witness and has left the many areas completely devastated, we are grateful to all the volunteers who have and continue to help those in need. Scrooz has donated several screwcases for raffle prizes to the Grantham Flood Appeal, which was one of the hardest hit areas and sadly suffered the most loss, we’d like to congratulate the winners and hope people continue to offer there much needed support to this area, more information on how you can help and donate can be found here

A fairly common topic this one and one that often sparks huge debate amongst professional deck fixers, tradesmen and renovators. I guess the right answer is ….there isn’t one,  it’s largely down to personal preference and there are pros and cons for each. Firstly it should be borne in mind that there are lots of factors that affect choice of fixing such as, the location, type of decking timber, type of joist timber, finish requirements, exposure, labour and of course cost.

Generally speaking nails are much cheaper to buy and a lot faster to lay, typical deck nails should be rounded or rose headed with a twisted shank to grab the timber and they are usually fitted in hardwood decks by predrilling the timber and then hand nailing, nail guns can be used if the nails are specific for decks but beware of using standard nail gun timber nails, they are fast to fit but simply not suitable for the purpose and will lead to problems later.

Screws give a far better fix, however they can be more expensive and a lot slower to lay, they have considerably more longevity once installed and are unlikely to need any maintenance. The most common guage of deck screw is 10g (or 5mm) with a 8-9mm diameter head so they gain a lot of strength in the body from the thickness and create a lot of hold down force in the board due to the size of the head.

Nails can be far more unobtrusive than screws although screw heads are available in smaller sizes for a more aesthetically pleasing look. Dependant on your climate, nails can require a considerable amount of maintenance and if you live in a hot temperate area then I wouldn’t recommend nail use at all. The following images are from my own personal decks, there are 2, one on an upper level which is fully exposed to the extreme Australian summer sun and humidity and a lower ground floor deck which is mostly shaded, they have both been nailed and are both 19mm hardwood on softwood structural joists.

The nails ‘walk’ out of the timber creating loose boards and splits and lifting above the surface,  they need punching back down approx every 4 weeks in summer to prevent injuries to bare feet.

The ends of the boards start to lift as the nails lose there grip in the support joists.

The nailing and then re-nailing operation can lead to splitting of the joists and subsequent loosening of the nails.

The boards can start to ‘cup’ and lift at the more exposed ends leading to trip hazards.

A run of nails ‘walking out’ of the boards, these are pretty dangerous, I can tell you from experience they hurt when you catch your feet on them.

A less exposed ground floor deck also shows signs of lifting nails although not as extreme as the deck with direct sun exposure.

My conclusion, from personal experience, is that nailed decks are simply too high maintenance, nailing doesn’t provide enough hold for the constant timber movement in high temperature zones and the deck needs constant checking, particularly if there are children around. Screws offer a far more professional and permanent fix, they may be more expensive, slower to lay and maybe aren’t as attractive as nails which can be ‘lost’ in the finish, but once there in that’s it done. It’s simply a no-brainer in my opinion.

So what types of deck screws do we have available at Scrooz.

We carry 3 ranges, one is a hardened carbon steel range which is galvanised for corrosion protection, these screws are an extremely tough and cost effective solution to deck board fastening, especially designed for use with powerdrivers these fasteners are all 10 guage in diameter and up to 65mm long.

For increased protection, and also our most popular range is our extensive  range of stainless steel 304 grade screws which can be used in any treated timbers, these are available in both 10 and 12 guage and are available up to 125mm long (special order). For ultimate corrosion protection and strength we also carry 316 marine grade decking screws.

For special applications we have a range of trimhead deck screws which have a fine shank and reduce head diameter for an unobtrusive yet strong fix, due to the reduced shank thickness of these fasteners, to make them very strong they are manufactured from high grade 316 stainless steel which also provides the best corrosion protection available.

All our deck screws have self drill slash points and are sold under our Razr brand, these sharp Type 17 points are designed to  pre-drill the softwood structural deck timbers allowing fast driving with cordless screwguns and powerdrivers etc. They are all designed with ribbed countersinks for self embedding and all have square drive fittings to stop the heads ripping or burring when powerdriving.

Deck screws are specifically designed to hold down timber or composite deck boards to structural timber or steel beams (joists) and are easily identifiable from standard wood screws. Typically they will have a parallel rather than tapered shank and most likely will have a self drilling and countersink feature enabling the screw to be fastened in one operation without predrilling the deck boards. Other features include corrosion protection by either a coating or manufacture from stainless steel and usually a high torque drive fitting such as square, hexagon and torx drives.

It’s important to realise that the self sinking and drilling features of all decking screws are designed for use in softer timbers such as pine etc, if used in hardwood decking boards then the timber would still need to be predrilled and pre-countersunk, these hardwoods, by nature, are simply too tough for any fastener to drive  straight in.

For fixing boards to steel a wing tip self drill screw with a countersunk head is the preferred choice, again, these screws are designed to drill and fix in one operation, the wings drill a clearance hole in the timber (to prevent the board jacking up) and then snap off to allow the drill point to drill a hole in the steel and then tap a thread as it is driven in, securing the board to the steel joist in one single operation.

Well were fresh off our recent National Trademan’s expo’s in Sydney and Brisbane and we had a great time meeting our customers face to face.

We had 2 very successful shows,  and I’m glad to say we were very busy for the full 3 days of each show, the special offer decking screws and screwcases being particularly popular and our new Raptr screw self tapping screw for brick and concrete demo went down far better than we hoped and generated some big crowds and lots of interest.

So a big thank you to all who visited our stands and we look forward to seeing you all again at the trademans expo’s next year. We will be exhibiting at other shows throughout the rest of year and will drop a note on here nearer the time to let you know when and where.

Hollow wall anchors are very popular cavity type fixings for plasterboard, drywall and general board materials. Many plasterboard fixings work by biting into the board or expanding into the core material to get a ‘fix’, hollow wall anchors work by expanding in the cavity behind the board  clamping the fixture and making a much stronger anchor point. They are a captive fixing which is a great feature and means once its fitted you can remove the fixture and screw but the body will stay in position allowing refitting.

Installation is carried out in 1 of 2 ways, either by using  a hollow wall anchor setting tool (one size fits all) or by simply screwing the anchor in using a standard screwdriver or cordless driver. The tool makes fitting the anchors very simple and quick and is ideal when there are several fixings to make or if you are regularly using this type of anchor.

To install using the tool, firstly you need to make sure you have enough space in the cavity to insert the anchor and allow it to expand (so avoid fitting near to studs, corners etc). Start off by drilling the correct size hole in the board and insert the anchor, give it a light tap to make sure the teeth under the head bite into the board (this will stop it turning as its tightened). Insert the nose piece of the tool between the flat collar and underside of the screw as shown above.

Squeeze the red handles together and the anchor body will start to collapse, opening the legs up behind the board, keep pumping the handles until you feel firm pressure, the anchor is now fully expanded so you can press the silver trigger which releases the tool. You then undo the centre screw, position your fixture over the installed anchor body, replace the screw and tighten, and that’s all there is to it, very quick very simple and very effective.

To install without the tool you just tap into a drilled hole (as previous) but instead of connecting the tool you just tighten the centre screw by hand until you have expanded the legs behind the surface, then remove the screw, place the fixture and retighten.

For more information you can check out our full range of hollow wall anchors here.