picture hanging

I need to hang loads of pictures, mirrors, etc on plastered concrete walls. Can you recommend a good drill for the job and for my hands (female, very small)? Also, how do I make sure I don’t drill into wires, pipes, etc? What are the best devises to use to secure the pictures etc. to the wall? Thanks for any advice.

use masonry drill bits - not wooden ones. just hang off a screw thats in a rawl plug.
dont worry about pipes if they are concrete walls and dont ever drill over a plug socket

Hi,

I always use a 6mm masonary drill bit and rawlplugs to suit (for regular size pictures etc, and really heavy mirrors etc may need plasplug fixings), stick the screw in then and hey presto, as mickman said, be very careful when drilling over sockets, socket are usually centred on a wall right about where you wanna hang a picture (!) so be careful, just drill slightly off centre (or indeed drill two holes either side of centre and hang the picture across the two screws).

As for a drill itself, do you want a cordless (battery operated) or an electric drill ? Obviously an electric drill will have much more power, but I would personally recommend a cordless drill (I have an 18v Black & Decker) which tackles all the basic household tasks, such as drilling walls for hanging pictures etc etc. See here - http://www.woodiesdiy.com/productdetail.aspx?pid=7097&loc=P&catid=104.4 but you can buy cheaper.

If you are still unsure about drilling into pipes, wires etc there is this gadget you can buy - [broken link removed] and you should be able to get one of these in your local woodies/b&q/Atlantic etc.

Happy drilling and be safe !

While battery power drills are handy. Even when not used that much, the batteries can often only last a couple of years. They'll die over time regardless how they are used. Replacement batteries can more than buying a new drill. (At least they did with my 18v B&D). Whereas a decent corded drill will probably last you your lifetime. As a result I wouldn't spend too much on a battery drill just get a small one. Which is handy for small jobs. If you need a big drill get a corded one. Thats my 2 cents.

What way do you guys fix the pictures. I often put two rings on the back of the frame and run string through them. The only problem being its hard to judge how far the string will sag, especially if you've a few frames in a line. Sometimes I use a metal rings from keyrings through the loops on the frame. But it can be very hard to get them actually over the screw in the wall.

What way do you do it?

depends on the size of the painting. most of the time a screw will do just fine

I kinda meant on the picture itself. The little pressed tabs they put on there are rubbish usually. Another problem in my own house is the plaster board is quite poor. So you have to use a heavier plasterboard fixing than you would expect. Never had the problem in any other house.

oh rite, well again it depends on the size of the painting. some have a hollow that will fit over screw. otherwise use the string