How to Install a Shelf on a Plaster Wall

To hang shelves and other heavy items on plaster walls, you need to attach them to the upright studs that support the lath and plaster. Your efforts to find the studs may involve some exploratory trial and error.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Stud finder
• Electric drill
• Spackle
• Putty knife
• Spirit level
• Screwdriver

1. Note the screw locations of anything else that is currently hanging on the wall, or that you are removing to make way for your shelf. These should show you the locations of at least two studs. Use any known stud locations to find the others that you need. Studs are typically 16 inches apart, although the gaps can vary significantly on old construction.

2. Measure either from existing screw holes or from the end of the wall in multiples of 16 inches to work out the approximate locations of the studs.

3. Find the exact locations of the studs. Start with the stud finder. Stud finders work best with sheetrock walls, but you may also be able to find studs in a wood lath plaster wall with one. Mark the places where you think the studs are.

4. Drill small exploratory holes where you think a stud should be, and then at 1-inch intervals on either side of it until you hit it. Vary the levels of your drills holes by an inch or so, to avoid unduly weakening the plaster. Continue to drill to establish the approximate center of the stud, and mark the spot with your pencil. Repeat this process until you have located enough studs to hang your shelf.

5. Fill the drill holes with spackle after you have marked the locations of the studs, and smooth off with the putty knife.

6. Measure and drill any necessary holes in your shelf to match the locations of the studs (this will depend on the kind of shelf that you are hanging).

7. Place the shelf against the wall at the required height and with the screw holes aligned with the studs. Level the shelf using a spirit level (you may need assistance for this). Mark the exact locations of the screw holes with your pencil. Drill guide holes of appropriate size at the marked locations.

8. Screw the shelf to the wall.

Tips & Warnings

• Old plaster can be fragile. Be as gentle as you can with it.
• While you can often hang quite heavy things from sheetrock walls without drilling into the studs if you use the right kind of anchors, this is not a good idea with lath and plaster walls. It is a particularly bad idea when the laths are wood, and an even worse idea where the plaster is cracked or crumbly.

References

• Popular Mechanics: Hang Anything on Any Wall
• Popular Mechanics: How to Put Any Shelf Anywhere