Concrete Fasteners & Anchors

Concrete Fasteners and Anchors - Part 1

Applies to concrete, brick, block, stone & mortar.

Anytime that you need to fasten something, be it racking, cabinets or other objects to a wall, floor or ceiling made from concrete you must consider the best method to anchor it. One of the most common errors made by the diy home handyman is to look in his glass jars to find a fastener that "might" work. After spending countless hours and dollars on a home improvement project skimping on the fasteners is foolish to say the least.

concrete anchors

Figure 1 - Selection of concrete anchors

There are hundreds, if not thousands of fasteners and anchors designed for mounting items to concrete.

In this review we will attempt to cover the most popular fasteners and describe their differences. By no means have we listed every concrete fastener or anchor that exists and there may be some that have been left out that have benefits that the ones we have listed do not.

It should also be noted that many manufactures make the same basic fasteners and anchors and although there are some subtle differences, in order to differentiate their products, the end result, in most cases, will be similar.

The reader should not assume that the position in the list represents the quality of the product. The items are listed randomly and their position should not be taken to imply anything what-so-ever.

Concrete Anchors & Fasteners
	Identification	Features	Base Material	Application
	Nylon Nail-It Anchors:	Through fastening Tamper resistant Corrosion resistant	Concrete Brick Block	Light duty. Dead, variable or vibratory loading.
	Metal Hit Anchors:	Tamper resistant Corrosion resistant	Concrete Brick Block	Light duty. Dead loads. Not recommended for overhead applications.
	Double Expansion Anchors:	¼" to ¾" bolt size Machine bolt expands anchor Work well in most materials, even soft masonry and mediums of questionable strength. Holding value is unaffected if bolt is removed and replaced. Made of zinc alloy, rust-resistant.	Concrete Brick Stone Block	Medium to heavy loads. Dead, variable or vibratory loads.
	Sleeve Anchors:	¼" to ¾" bolt size to 6¼" long. Provides full 360° hole contact over large area and reduces concrete stress. Heavy-loading capacity.	Concrete Brick Block	Medium to heavy-duty fastening into solid concrete. Dead loads only.
	Single Machine Screw Anchors:	Setting-tool required to set anchor. Body of anchor flows into irregularities in hole for excellent holding values. Bolt can be removed and reinserted into anchor without affecting the holding values.	Concrete Brick Block Mortar	Light duty. Dead loads only.