I need to put a shelf up on the concrete wall in the garage. I used a masonry bit, but I could not make to hole. (electric drill) Does anybody know what type of drill bit I need to use, size etc?

Thanks:confused: :D

Sounds like you need a new carbide bit and a hammer drill. You should be able to rent the drill if you don't want to buy one.

A hammer drill, or a rotary hammer,both do the same thing.

You used a standard drill with twisting motion only,a hammer drill/rotary hammer used stutter step vibration and twist effect to penetrate concrete more effectively.

Ken

This "cement wall", is it cinderblock?

The choice of fasteners and thir location matters a lot since the cinder block is hollow in places.

For a few holes a masonary bit and a regular drill works. It generally requires lots of pressure and you need to drill in short steps with a fair amount of pressure. Clean out the hole and drill again.

I've successfully used a "stud finder" to determine where the block is solid to avoid drilling there.

With a good carbide bit, it isn't bad to drill small holes in cement or cinder blocks with an ordinary electric drill. Poured concrete is tougher, very bad when you hit some types of aggregate. When it comes to brick, I try to space holes to hit the mortar joints.

As for size, you match that to the anchors you use. The newer Tapcons give better holding for the size of the hole you drill. They are the usually blue sheet metal looking screws you see with the other masonry anchors.

A quick solution would be to nail a ledger board to the concrete using a Remington 22cal nail gun. You can rent these at Home Depot and other places but there is one for about $29 to buy. You then can attach you shelving to the ledger board. All of the advise prior to me re; carbide masonry drill bits and hammer drills is correct so you have several options.

Since the masonry bit would not drill the hole, I think the concrete must be very hard (well cured) I am not sure I would use a powder activated fastener on this. Very hard concrete has a tendency to flake around the edge of the pin. I think a "Hammer drill" or "rotary hammer" is the best way to go. As everyone has already said, a carbide tipped masonry bit would be best. You might try using a new bit of this type in your drill and see if it works. I imagine the holes are fairly small. Push hard.