Hanging floating mantel

joec

joe
User
I bought a 3"X 78" metal bracket from a company to hang a beam for my daughter. It screws to the wall and has five 1" rods that go into the beam to a depth of 6". Just wondering if anyone has drilled a beam for this and any hidden ways to screw it up. My plan is to drill the holes with a 1-1/16 forstner bit to give a little play. The rods seem to be at right angles to the bracket. Any advice appreciated.
 

Roy G

Roy
Senior User
Joe, is the wall flat? Any bow will make your bracket bend slightly, throwing off the alignment.

Roy G
 

joec

joe
User
As I am going to install this at my daughters house, and she lives away from me, I have not crossed that bridge yet. I know I will need to shim the bracket to make it flat in spots where it may curve in. I will make sure it is flat before installing the mantel.
 

Bryan S

Bryan
Corporate Member
Made and installed this floating mantle a few years ago. The mason that did the rock work drilled into the brick and mortared in threaded rod for dowels. I used a piece of plywood cut to the same size as the back of the mantle as a template for the hole location and made a jig to hold a spade bit straight. My memory says it was 9/16 threaded rod and I used a 5/8 bit.

I think I still have that jig and template. If I do I will take a couple of pics and post them

1603240197868.png
 

cobraguy

Clay
Corporate Member
Wow. That looks a lot like the mantel in my house. Same deal with the mason and threaded rods. The pre-made bracket sounds like it will essentially be the same. The only thing I would offer for consideration is drilling the holes at a very slight angle to provide some slope toward the wall. My thought was twofold: 1) if things move, would rather they move toward the wall instead of the front edge, 2) future-proof any sagging in the support bolts. These slabs can get quite heavy. It's been a while since I installed it, but I believe the angle was only 2-3 degrees. Not noticeable at all.
 

joec

joe
User
Drilled it very carefully yesterday. It fits, but I have to pound in the last 1". Wondering if I should do that against a sheetrock wall when I install it. I think I may get my grinder out and do some slight tapering on the very ends of each 1" rod.
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
Doesn't the metal bracket get fastened to the wall studs before the mantel gets hung on the pipes? If so, I doubt that a little pounding on the front of the mantel will damage the sheetrock. The bracket and the studs behind it will absorb all of the "pounding" force.
 

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