# drilling holes in concrete not working, what now?



## anuvanoob (Nov 14, 2011)

I'm trying to drill a hole in the concrete basement floor so I can fasten a bottom plate to it and I'm not having much luck. I've successfully drilled one hole already, but I'm not getting far with this next one - I was advised to be patient when it comes to concrete drilling, but I think this is taking much longer than normal.

I'm using a Tapcon concrete drill bit, 3/16" x 5 1/4", and Craftsman 19.2v 1400 rpm power drill. Do I need a more powerful drill? Could the drill bit have gone dull from the first hole? Is there a cheaper yet effective alternative method to fastening the bottom plate to the concrete floor?


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## danpik (Sep 11, 2011)

Move your hole over a little. You may be hitting a piece of re-bar.


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## terry603 (Mar 12, 2012)

does that drill have a hammer effect?


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## TarheelTerp (Jan 6, 2009)

terry603 said:


> does that drill have a hammer effect?


^^This.
With a hammer drill and a good masonry bit you should be fine.
(I prefer Bosch and with tapcons to use 1/32" smaller hole than suggested)



> Is there a... effective alternative method to fastening the bottom plate to the concrete floor?


Powder actuated (if you have the tools)


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## bionictony (Apr 16, 2012)

looks like you're using a normal drill. use a hammer drill and a good masonry bit and you will drill the hole in less than a minute. if theres a harbor freight tool nearby, you can get it fairly cheap.


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## tony.g (Apr 15, 2012)

anuvanoob said:


> I think this is taking much longer than normal.
> 
> One of these might do it quicker


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## anuvanoob (Nov 14, 2011)

danpik said:


> Move your hole over a little. You may be hitting a piece of re-bar.


I tried several different spots with no luck.




terry603 said:


> does that drill have a hammer effect?


No, but I do have an impact drill (2400 rpm/3500 bpm) but it doesn't take drill bits, just regular bits (Philips, flat head, etc.)




TarheelTerp said:


> ^^This.
> With a hammer drill and a good masonry bit you should be fine.
> (I prefer Bosch and with tapcons to use 1/32" smaller hole than suggested)
> 
> ...


Why smaller? Unfortunately I don't have access to a powder actuated tool thing.




bionictony said:


> looks like you're using a normal drill. use a hammer drill and a good masonry bit and you will drill the hole in less than a minute. if theres a harbor freight tool nearby, you can get it fairly cheap.


are hammer drills and impact drills not the same? what BPM and/or RPM should I look for? what brand or type of masonry bit do you consider "good" (so far I've used a Tapcon and Skil drill bit, both not having an effect anymore)?


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## anuvanoob (Nov 14, 2011)

tony.g said:


> anuvanoob said:
> 
> 
> > I think this is taking much longer than normal.
> ...


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## danpik (Sep 11, 2011)

anuvanoob said:


> are hammer drills and impact drills not the same? what BPM and/or RPM should I look for? what brand or type of masonry bit do you consider "good" (so far I've used a Tapcon and Skil drill bit, both not having an effect anymore)?


 Two completly different animals. Impact drills/drivers "hammer" the bit in a rotational motion. This is why they are good for loosening stuck bolts/screws and are actually no good for drilling. Hammer drills, when rotating, have a mechanism that causes the bit to move in a linier motion while it is turning. This motion moves the bit in and out of the hole in a motion that allows the bit to clear the bottom briefly and them impacts back against the bottom briefly. Part of the issue you may be having also is the fact you are using a cordless drill. I rarely ever have good luck drilling masonry with batteries. I use a 1/2" drive hammer drill made by Makita and can drill tapcon holes all day on one bit.


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## tony.g (Apr 15, 2012)

anuvanoob said:


> tony.g said:
> 
> 
> > What is the exact name of that and about how much does a good one cost?
> ...


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## wkearney99 (Apr 8, 2009)

Tony is right. Use a hammer drill with masonry bits. Makes all the difference. First time I'd ever used one was after wasting time using a masonry bit in a regular drill. Barely any progress. With the hammer setting (corded 1/2" capable hammer drill) it drilled out the hole literally in seconds. I've got a dewalt 18v with a hammer setting and it 'works' but it's nowhere near as quick as the job the corded one does.


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## packer_rich (Jan 16, 2011)

You should be able to rent a rotary hammer at your local tool rental store. They usually come in a case with an assortment of masonry bits. If not, rent a bit also. The bigger ones have a different shaft and are called MDS or MDS plus. These corded drills will make fast work of the holes you need to drill.


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## anuvanoob (Nov 14, 2011)

LMFAO!!! Turns out I did have a hammer drill - I thought it was a regular ol' big drill! It truly does make all the difference in the world! Unfortunately the Tapcon drill bit snapped twice and is now bent. The Skil drill bit got red hot and it's tungsten-carbide tips burned off. I may have hit a piece of stone or re-bar which sucks because I seems like I keep running into this issue everytime I move further down my chalk line (I gotta drill along it or face starting this project over). The good news is the concrete basement appears to be thicker than 3/4" as I originally feared.

Is there a better masonry drill bit than Tapcon? Is there a way to prevent bending and snapping of the drill bits?


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## sixeightten (Feb 10, 2009)

Like some have posted, go rent an sds drill and buy a good sds bit. The bit is about 8 bucks and will do a lot of holes very quickly. You really don't need a lot of tapcons to hold each plate in place. Typically, I like one at each end, and one every 4' or so. Always nice to put one at each side of the door openings as well.


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## Duckweather (Mar 26, 2012)

tony.g said:


> anuvanoob said:
> 
> 
> > I think this is taking much longer than normal.
> ...


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

anuvanoob said:


> LMFAO!!! Turns out I did have a hammer drill -
> 
> Is there a better masonry drill bit than Tapcon? Is there a way to prevent bending and snapping of the drill bits?



The best commonly available masonry bits---Bosch--Lennox--

Stay away from the cheap ones--they fail quickly--


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## anuvanoob (Nov 14, 2011)

Picked up a new shorter Tapcon drill bit and I successfully drilled my all holes (6 total) in less than 2 minutes. I ran into a couple of areas that were tough to drill through so I had to pick new spots.

Lessons learned: use a hammer drill, use better quality drill bits and don't be stubborn and waste 4 days trying to drill in a spot that's obviously not drillable

Thank you everyone. Very much appreciated!


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## terry603 (Mar 12, 2012)

thanks for letting us know how this ended


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