KITCHENS

Put up a spice rack on a lath and plaster wall

Fit a light spice rack safely, checking your wall type and using the correct fixing before you drill.

AB-01Check what your wall is actually made ofThis guide is written for a lath and plaster wall, but kitchen walls are often mixed — you might have solid brick, a stud partition, or dot-and-dab nearby. Tap the wall: solid brick or block sounds dull and hard everywhere; lath and plaster sounds hollow with a slight spring; a stud wall sounds hollow between the uprights and solid on them. If you find a stud, run a detector or magnet along it tracking screw heads, and drill a small test hole — timber dust means a timber stud, fine grey swarf means a metal stud.
1 each · Cordless drill
1 each · Stud and cable detector
1 each · Pencil
AB-02Mark the height and fixing holesHold the rack against the wall at a comfortable reaching height, away from the hob or sink splash zone. Use a spirit level to draw a level pencil line, then mark the fixing hole positions to match the back of the rack exactly. Double-check the marks are level before you drill — it's much easier to fix now than after two holes are already in the wall.
1 each · Spirit level
1 roll · Masking tape
AB-03Check for cables and pipes before you drillCables and pipes can run almost anywhere in a wall, not just in the usual 'safe zones', and a cheap detector can miss ones that are deep, in metal conduit, or behind old metal lath fixings. Find your stopcock now — usually under the kitchen sink — and check it turns, so you can shut the water off fast if you hit a pipe. If there's any doubt, isolate the circuit at the consumer unit before drilling, and turn the water off at the stopcock before cutting into anything that could carry water.
AB-04Drill and fit the right fixing for your wallOn lath and plaster, drill a 3mm pilot hole first — if you hit a solid timber stud or joist behind the laths, drive a wood screw into its centre. If there's no stud behind your marks, use a spring-toggle or spiral lath fixing rated for the rack's weight, which spreads the load across the laths instead of relying on crumbly plaster alone. On solid brick or block, drill with a 6mm masonry bit to 40mm depth, fit a matching wall plug, then screw in. On plasterboard over timber studs, screw straight into the centre of the stud; between studs, use a plasterboard toggle rated for the rack's weight. On plasterboard over metal studs, use a self-drilling metal-stud fixing or hollow-wall toggle — never a plain plastic plug or wood screw, as these strip straight through 0.5mm steel. On dot-and-dab plasterboard, use a fixing long enough to pass through the plasterboard and adhesive dabs and grip the solid masonry behind, usually 60-75mm.
4 each · Wood screws 4x40mm
4 each · Wall plugs (masonry)
2 each · Spring toggle fixings (lath and plaster / plasterboard)
2 each · Metal-stud self-drilling fixings
2 each · Long dot-and-dab fixings 75mm
1 each · Masonry drill bit 6mm
AB-05Hang the rack and check it's levelLift the rack onto the fixed screws or toggles and push it flush against the wall. Recheck with the spirit level, and tighten any loose screws so the rack sits square. Give it a gentle tug to make sure it feels solid before loading it up.
1 each · Spirit level
AB-06Load it up and tidy upAdd the spice jars gradually rather than all at once, and check the fixings hold with no movement or crumbling plaster around the holes. Brush away plaster or masonry dust and vacuum the floor and windowsill. If any pilot holes cracked the plaster, dab on a little filler and let it dry before touching up with paint.
1 small tub · Fine surface filler
1 each · Dust sheet

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