I'll probably mount on drywall.  What fasteners do I need, and is it safe?

BACKGROUND (or skip to the recommendation!)

Of all the mounting surfaces, the least "strong" is drywall, and yet over 90% of all the VintageView^® racks sold are mounted to this surface.  Typically the rack is mounted to drywall with self-drilling drywall anchors or toggle bolts, both of which are readily available at Home Depot and Lowes stores and which we offer prepackaged in several combinations.  One such brand is E-Z Ancor^®, but there are others.  (So-called Molly bolts are not recommended, nor are the plastic anchors that you hammer into a hole you drill.)

In the following detailed discussion, please keep in mind that we are assuming you are mounting only to drywall and are not hitting a stud.  If you do hit a stud with the middle or top hole on a rack, then you are probably safe using 50-pound anchors as discussed below for the other two holes.

E-Z Ancors come with a pull-out pound rating (other brands may or may not), and the shear force rating (direct pull 90 degrees to the anchor against the wall) is generally considered to be three times that amount.  We will discuss the 50-pound anchors, with consideration also given to the 90-pound toggle anchor.  The additive affect of cantilever weight (the weight some distance away from the wall) cannot be adequately determined, but it negatively impacts the overall weight rating.  According to the manufacturer, the rating is not additive when multiple anchors are used.  Thus one might conclude that the safe rating for the weight on the racks is somewhere between 50 and 150 pounds, but certainly not 150 with more than 1-bottle deep racks, due to the cantilevering effect.

A rack weighs about 5 pounds, and a bottle of wine weighs about 2-1/2 pounds.  To be conservative, we'll assume heavy glass and call the bottle 3 pounds.  Thus, using 4-foot racks, a loaded 1-bottle deep rack weighs 41 pounds; a 2-bottle deep rack weighs 77 pounds, and a 3-bottle deep rack weighs 113 pounds.

RECOMMENDATION

NOTE:  If you are planning on using E-Z Ancors, please read the first "Technical Note" below!

Given the numbers and the logic above, it would be reasonable to assume 50-pound anchors would be safe for 1-bottle deep racks; probably safe but somewhat questionable for 2-bottle deep racks; and not recommended by the E-Z Ancors manufacturer for the 3-bottle deep racks (though, in fact, it is not uncommon to use them).  If you use 90-pound toggle anchors, you should be safe with the 2-bottle deep racks, but the manufacturer is still uncomfortable recommending them for the 3-bottle deep racks.  In this case, a regular toggle bolt (pictured below) is recommended for at least one of the holes (top or middle).  Regular toggle bolts have a wider flange behind the wall, though they rarely come with stated holding weights.  NOTE - as of MAY 2008 a 75-pound E-Z Ancor is now available, replacing the 50-pound version, so this may be safe to use all around.

If you don't like E-Z Ancors, use toggle bolts.  Or if you have any trouble with the E-Z Ancors (such as the units pulling out of the wall or rotating during installation or attempted removal of the screw), the hole left behind after extraction is no bigger than that required by a standard toggle bolt (typically 1/2" or 5/8"), so you can always insert a toggle bolt instead.  We at Bracksco have successfully used 3/16"x2" toggle bolts by Crown Bolt, sold at Home Depot, for installation in new drywall.  Just make sure the toggle opens fully before tightening.

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

Hitting a stud is good news/bad news.  You really do want to mount your rack on a stud, if possible.  But if you find this out after you start an E-Z Ancor in the wall or drill a hole for a regular toggle bolt, you have a chewed out hole in the drywall where you don't want one.  There are two solutions:

1. If you are using regular E-Z Ancors, drill a 1/16" pilot hole first, to find out if there is a stud (or use a stud finder!).  If so, just use the screw instead (after drilling a pilot hole).

2. Alternatively, use the new E-Z Ancor Stud Solver.  This metal variation is designed to cut right into a stud if you happen to hit one.

If you are unlucky enough to come right on the edge of a stud, drill a pilot hole for a long screw into the stud at a slight angle.

Technical notes on E-Z Ancors:  (be sure to read the new note 3)

1. Each 50-pound unit comes with a 1-1/4" #8 screw.  This is a tight fit; and if you try to back it out, the whole unit will unscrew.  In fact, you may not be able to insert the screw all the way without turning the E-Z Ancor itself, so we do not recommend that you use the supplied screw.  The longer screw is supplied by the manufacturer because they are allowing for you to put an object up to 3/4" thick on top of the anchor (and they say you only need a 1/2" bite to hold).  We at Bracksco recommend a 3/4" or 1" #8, preferably with a hex top so you can use a nut driver to install.  While the manufacturer says you may substitute a #6 screw, we do not recommend this either, except to hold the rack briefly while lining up holes.  In our experience, a 1" #6 will NOT hold.

2. Also, if you use the 90-pound toggles, you may find the directions a little bit misleading.  The design has changed such that you do not need to push the screw through the hole first, before tightening; just insert the screw and tighten normally, and the toggle will rotate into place.  If the screw doesn't "bite" in the outer hole, then you have the old style in which you have to push the screw in to get the toggle rotated before it can be screwed down.

3. NEW MAY 2008:  We just went to buy some more E-Z Ancors and found that the 50-pound ones had been replaced with a 75-pound one called a TWIST-N-LOCK.  When you drive the screw in, it breaks the back open, offering extra gripping power.  We were able to use the supplied screw, though we miss the ease of a hex top screw for use with a nut driver.  We didn't try substituting a shorter screw, because we wanted to make sure it work as advertised, breaking the back away.

A reminder for anyone trying to mount on drywall over cinder block (such as is found in outside walls in Florida):  the drywall is often mounted on furring strips, not studs, and there is not enough room behind the drywall to open a toggle bolt.  Also, NEVER MOUNT ON DAMP DRYWALL, as the anchors won't "bite" properly, and the toggles will pull through the wall.

With hundreds of thousands of bottles hanging on VintageView racks mounted on just about every surface you can imagine, we have never had a report of a rack coming off the wall, nor of a bottle coming off a rack.  The information given above is primarily for peace-of-mind installation; but ultimately, the buyer/installer is responsible for making the best choice.

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