[Joe F]

I'm going to install some shower "grab bars" for my neighbor. The house is '50s construction and I'm sure there's no blocking in the walls. The shower walls are mud/tile. Any tips for installing these? I have a tile bit and I (think) my stud finder is good enough to locate a stud.

 

[Bud Cline]

I think you're nuts!
Do you have a good lawyer and plenty of liability insurance?

I know you're going to do this no matter what anyone says to you about being sued when someone falls because your grab bar pulled out and killed grandpa.

So.......

I would use the heavy duty stainless steel ADA approved grab bars.
I would also install them at whatever angle it takes to put the anchors securely into the wall studs because the way they are made never seems to match studs on center at 16" or 24".

DO NOT USE PLASTIC ANCHORS INTO THE TILE ONLY.

You are sticking you're neck out there my friend.

 

[user1007]

I have a tile bit and I (think) my stud finder is good enough to locate a stud.

You think your stud finder is good enough to find the center or at least a trailing edge of a stud because you put new batteries in it? Come on bro, don't do something stupid here.

And even if you find centers of studs and can live with the angle of the safety bars to hit them (ADA guidelines will not match) you will still be hanging the bars and the person holding them on 2x4s toenailed with 16p if the framing contractor was cheap or 20p nails toe-nailed top and bottom? Just because there is an existing tiled wall there does not mean you can hang anything, including even a tiny person from it. Guessing given national trends, the need for a safety bar leans toward a more portly or substantial person?

As Bud Cline warns. This is rift with danger. Physical and legal.

I know you are trying to do your neighbor a favor but do so in a different way. Find him someone bonded and insured to do this sort of ADA work. He/she may qualify for direct financial assistance to get the bars installed---and the wall rebuilt or enhanced and tile in the process. You can supervise to make sure your neighbor does not get fast talked and ripped off.

This is not a DIY project. IMO. You most certainly cannot approach this with a tile bit and a questionable stud finder.

 

[Bud Cline]

I can add that I am required to carry $1,000,000.00 of liability insurance coverage because of things like grab bars and potentially dangerous tile-surface co-efficient of friction values I may install, among other perils.

 

[djhaleah]

LMAO @ BUd Cline comment.

"I think you're nuts!
Do you have a good lawyer and plenty of liability insurance?"

? How secure are the studs you will be using? Has the bathroom been demo since the 50's? I agree this may be out of the scope of a DIY project. Be very careful. Those studs must support the weight of the bar as well as the weight of whoever is pulling on it. If you don't know the condition of the studs themselves that can be another point of contention. Hopefully, they are not compromised by water damage, termites, dry rot, etc.

 

[95025]

This is not a DIY project. IMO. You most certainly cannot approach this with a tile bit and a questionable stud finder.

As much as I love doing things myself - and even helping out friends and neighbors - I wholeheartedly agree with you on this one.

There are just too many things that can go wrong. If they're the old 4x4 plastic tiles, they won't stand up to a grab bar. If they're ceramic tiles, it's SO easy to crack them. Even 16" OC studs are usually not in the "right" place for this.


My advice: Call Bud Cline!

 

[Bud Cline]

My advice: Call Bud Cline!

But don't call me to work on a roof for pay, or over water for pay, or work within 150 feet of a shoreline for pay, or do welding for pay.

Or install grab bars for free.