Mounting grab bars

Mom decided that she wanted a grab bar on the two-step transition from the front hall to the back hall/laundry room, and another one at the bottom of the main staircase. (Wow!  she’s letting me change her house!)

After shopping a bit, it looked as if nearly everything was going to be by one of the major faucet/plumbing manufacturers.  Delta had a couple of different styles and colors that she was willing to let me get.  We got one like this – concealed mount, stainless, fairly basic.

Installation is a pain — it may well be worth hiring someone with experience to do this.  I was not dealing with tile, just plaster.  They tell you what size drill bit to use (a plus), but fail to tell you how deep you need to drill your holes in the wood studs (a major minus).  The screws are longer than the drill bit by a good 1/2″ — which means that you will be putting a 3″ long screw into wood without the benefit of a pre-drilled hole at the very end.  Where you have to use the most torque to get that screw to advance.

I can see why they specifically say not to put in the screw with a powered screwdriver or drill, you’ll just over-torque and mess up the screw head.  What I can’t see is why they don’t provide a drill bit that is appropriate for the screws.  I’ve purchased many products over the years that do exactly that, to make sure you use the right size/length.

My hand hurts, and I don’t even have 2 screws fully placed.  🙁