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View Full Version : Need some fastener advice.



McGary911
04-16-2009, 07:31 AM
Always some smart people around here. Maybe someone can point me in the right direction.
We had some pretty wicked winds a few days ago, and it played a little havoc with my lanai (that's Florida-speak for screened enclosure around my pool). It seems the screws holding it to the concrete patio are all crap, and horribly weakened by rust. The heads just popped off under stress, allowing the 1 x 2 aluminum base to shift around. All the screws are in pretty sorry shape.
How to fix? Is there a way to drill new holes in the 1 x 2 base ,then get a screw through there (good quality ones this time) without pre drilling into the concrete? I'm hoping can pre drill new holes in the base extrusion, then with a hammer drill, get some kind of treated hex head screw that'll go into the concrete patio. Am I on the right track here? Any suggestions on the screws I'd need (if this is a viable fix)? I'm open to any and all ideas at this point. Next tornado warning, I don't need to be fishing this thing out of the lake, ya know?

VetteLT193
04-16-2009, 07:38 AM
Almost every screen is like that and it still amazes me.

My suggestion is to use Tapcons, but you'll have to paint them white because they come in blue. You can get a kit that includes the drill bit. If you use them, it will work. The bit is designed to go into concrete and will be the correct size for the screws.

McGary911
04-16-2009, 08:21 AM
Thanks Vette. Since I posted, I asked a few people at work, and someone mentioned Tapcons as well. I won't be needing the percussion drill for them either. I think that may be the way to go. Luckily I'm old fashioned, and still keep a powerful corded drill around for heavy duty jobs like this. Thanks again for the help. :wrench:

Conquistador_del_mar
04-16-2009, 10:12 AM
Did the angle base move out of position? If it did, you will probably have a little trouble getting it back into position with the weight of the Lanai. I had the same trouble with one of my storage buildings after a high powered 85MPH wind broke some drive pins loose on one building which were used to hold the angle to the concrete. Fortunately, most of the drive pins held, so I was able to drill and install quite a few new ones. Here is a website with quite a few concrete anchor fasteners. If you decide to go with the Tapcons, they offer them in stainless steel as you can see on one of the tabs. Bill

http://www.confast.com/products/tapcon-concretescrew.aspx

McGary911
04-16-2009, 10:22 AM
for about 4 feet, the base is shifted out of it's proper place. That piece is just behind my waterfall. I think it's just caught on the edge of the patio slab. I'll know more when I take a closer look today or tomorrow. I just noticed it last night. Even if it is a touch tweaked, I'll try to get it back into place with a comealong if need be.

handfulz28
04-16-2009, 10:42 AM
The hurricane hardware section of Home Depot/Lowes might offer white Tapcons.

BUIZILLA
04-16-2009, 11:22 AM
for about 4 feet, the base is shifted out of it's proper place. That piece is just behind my waterfall. I think it's just caught on the edge of the patio slab. I'll know more when I take a closer look today or tomorrow. I just noticed it last night. Even if it is a touch tweaked, I'll try to get it back into place with a comealong if need be. you'll be very surprised how flimsy these things really are... with flimsy mean's it very light.... if it shifted out of place get a 20oz hammer and a 2x4 about 16" long and you can tap it back in place with little to no hassle as long as there are no kinks in the upper header or uprights.. mine broke about 10-12 base screws in the last storm because they were rusted and I fixed the entire thing in less than 2 hours... they DO make the tapcons in white, and you can rent a 22 cal. inserter...

VetteLT193
04-16-2009, 11:53 AM
...they DO make the tapcons in white...

Son of B@#$ that would have saved me a lot of time painting the blue ones. I wound up using a pint of Rustoleum and a mini brush last time. Total PITA.

glashole
04-16-2009, 12:28 PM
don't go stainless you will just bust the heads off the screws when you are screwing them in

Tapcons work great

we however have stopped using them and have switched to a #10 zinc wood screw
we have done this for a couple reasons

once the hole is drilled with a proper concrete bit 5/32" any screw will wind into the hole

the tapcon are only avaliable with philips heads and we prefer the robertson heads (square) because the don't strip as easy
(except the hex heads which are better if you don't need to countersink the screws)

and the wood screws seem to be stronger and don't break off as easy

cheaper

also if you want the screws to go into the concrete easier (whatever type of screw) get a bar of soap and rub it onto the screws before hand

Shea

McGary911
04-19-2009, 06:27 AM
Thanks for all the great advice. There are now about 40 tapcons holding down the lanai. Knocked out the job in just over 2 hours. Next tornado may still put it in the lake, but that will be without the base channel, that's for sure. Thanks again.

Cuda
04-19-2009, 10:09 AM
Another vote for tapcons. I, like Vette, thought they only came in Merc Racing Blue. :)

Conquistador_del_mar
04-19-2009, 10:28 AM
Thanks for all the great advice. There are now about 40 tapcons holding down the lanai. Knocked out the job in just over 2 hours. Next tornado may still put it in the lake, but that will be without the base channel, that's for sure. Thanks again.

Out of curiosity, what size and color did you go with? Bill

McGary911
04-19-2009, 11:31 AM
Out of curiosity, what size and color did you go with? Bill

Bill,
I went with 2 1/4" length X 1/4" Dia......For these I had to drill a 3/16" pilot hole. You can get phillips head or slotted heads. The slot are also hex heads (the phillips aren't). I went with the hex heads, on which I used a 5/16" socket to drive them in.

I went with blue. I didn't see white in the TapCon brand, just the store brand. The white coating looked a lot thinner. After this adventure, I want the best corrosion resistance I can get. I'll hit them with a dab of white paint. That won't be a big deal at all.

Choprpilot
04-19-2009, 07:37 PM
Try locating a Ramset. It uses a 22 caliber cartridge, no need to drill into the concrete floors, just pull the trigger and the wall is set.

Rootsy
04-20-2009, 09:35 AM
Studs anchored in the concrete... washer, lock washer and a nut....