ORLANDO, Fla. – The dreaded dangling towel rack!! If you’re worried your towel rack will fall to the floor every time you step out of the shower, here’s how to tighten it.
We purchased:
We brought with us:
- hex key set (also known as Allen keys or wrenches) Eklind Hex-L .050 to 1/4 in. SAE L-Handle Hex L-Key Set 11 pc - Ace Hardware
- electric screwdriver
Step 1
Assess. What exactly is loose? Some towel racks are just a single knob while others have two bases connected by a rod. In both cases, the bases are attached to a wall mount and secured usually by just a tiny single screw on the bottom of the base. Is it the base that’s loose? Or is it the wall mount that is coming loose from the wall?
Step 2
Remove the base. Typically that tiny single screw that holds the base securely onto the wall mount has a hex head (also known as an Allen screw) - which means you’ll need a hex key (or Allen key) to unscrew it. If your towel rack is newer, you might just be lucky enough to have saved the hex key that came with the rack. If not, Ace sells a set of hex keys. It’s not a bad idea to purchase a set because sooner or later you’ll need another hex key. Also note, hex keys come in metric sizes and standard sizes, that’s why there’s usually 2 sets in a package. If your tiny single screw is not a hex head, it probably has a single slot head - which means you’ll need a tiny flat-blade screwdriver.
Step 3
Reassess. Now that you have the base off, is the wall mount tight against the wall? If so, put the base back on and tighten the screw. Once it’s tight, your towel rack should be tight! If your wall mount is loose, then proceed to Step 4.
Step 4
Tighten wall mount. This is the trickiest step and requires you to do some problem solving based on your specific situation. In our case, the existing drywall anchors were pulling out of the drywall so there was no way to tighten them - the drywall hole was already too big. We tried to use larger drywall anchors but the hole was already too big. The only answer - without remounting the wall mount somewhere else on the wall where the drywall wasn’t damaged - was to use toggle bolts (I put a link above). Toggle bolts fold when you push them through the hole and then expand once they’re behind the wall to brace themselves against the back of the wall for stability. Once we installed the toggle bolts through the hole and they opened up inside the wall, they provided plenty of support for the towel rack wall mount. We screwed the toggle bolts tight which then held the wall mount tightly in place.
Step 5
Reinstall towel rack base. Put the base back over the wall mount and tighten that hex screw.
You’re done. That wasn’t hard, right? You’re Getting Results at Home!