An electric drill -preferably a hammer drill if you are drilling masonry

there are 2 sorts of hammer drill

percussion hammer

rotary hammer - (far more hardcore)

Drill bits and a level

(masonary drill bits have a cone shaped top)

A handy kit with 3 sizes of wallplug from Fischer is good. (The sizes of drill and screw are marked on each plug).

State of the art Screws in Metal Box

Concept KTX Drive Kit

These tried and trusted KTX screws are a huge hit with the building trade as they have a patented head that looks like posidrive but click fits into its bit for better traction.

The screw thread can also cut its own hole which saves time and gives a firm hold.

This comprehensive kit comes with bits supplied in a robust metal case. refill packs available at Jewsons and other builders merchants.

The drill shown above is an ancient and well used Hitachi cordless drill/driver.. Hitachi drills are renown for their longevity and this one is being used with the "patented fredshed emergency dust collector"

( cut the end of a plastic bottle and drill through it, most of the dust collects inside)

see further down the page for proper Dustbubble info

Electric drills can be purchased from as little as £10 and may be adequate for occasionally drilling onto softwood like pine or even into plasterboard.

The chances are that if you buy a drill you will at some stage want to drill into concrete or brick. For this you will usually need a hammer action or more accurately, a  percussion drill. These "hammer drills" cost more and need much more power than a standard electric drill.

A cordless hammer drill will cost even more than a mains powered one because it requires powerful rechargeable batteries and a charger. Cordless "hammer drills" have  a minimum of 12v volts but most builders prefer 18volts.

Remember - a cordless tool is only as good as its battery, that's why many adverts don't like to tell you the AMP hour of the battery and instead concentrate on the voltage!

 buy replacement batteries for Bosch, Makita, Ryobi, Dewalt and all other makes of powertool

If you cant afford a decent cordless hammer drill then you are better off buying a cheap corded one and a cordless drill driver. to go with it. Even the cheapest corded drills have more power than most battery driven drills.

Best Value Cordless Drills

The drill shown to the right is the Ryobi CDI 1802M 18v combi drill which is a tough work tool aimed at the serious DIY er to Semi professional user.

This drill can be bought with 5 other cordless powertools for approx £300 as part of the Ryobi plus 1 range.

The best cordless drills are made by Makita, Hitachi, Bosch and Metabo and are the choice of serious professional, and thieves!

For this reason many builders prefer cheaper ranges like Ryobi that can do the job but won't break a bank to replace.

The Ryobi  plus one range is changing colour from blue to Lime green in 2010

There are over 20 tools in the range with more to come!

I would advise going for the Lithium ion batteries now.

Breaking news!

The Ryobi plus one range of 18v tools can now be powered by new lithium ion batteries!

These batteries can retro fit the one plus range of tools but you will also need a new charger.

Serious DIY-  - Tradesmen's Drills

The drill shown right belongs to one of my test team and is the most poplar brand used by tradesmen. DeWalt is the "professional" arm of the American company Black & Decker.

DeWalt tools are very well marketed and appeal to the high end DIY-er because they have a wide range, good spec and are frequently used by every Tommy, Dick and Harriet on TV makeover shows. Dewalt drills still use Nicad or Nimh batteries whilst companies like Bosch,  Makita, Metabo and Hitachi have moved on to superior Lithium Ion batteries.

price and more details on entry level DeWalt Cordless Drill

Best Value Corded Drills

This is a bog standard 500watt corded hammer drill and the most practical, cost effective powertool you can own. It has no fancy gimmicks, is good quality and will do most DIY jobs. Price around £45- you can't go wrong with  the Bosch PSB 550RE. I used this drill for several years and unlike my cordless drills it was always ready to go.

Whilst this drill will easily handle brick and plaster it may struggle if you try to drill into concrete lintels that are found above some windows. For this type of work you would need a high powered rotary hammer drill that proper builders use.

Credit Crunch Tools!

Check out this similar mains powered drill, (with even more power than the Bosch) from my friends at Draper. You can't go wrong at this price

The latest version of this tool now has an extra 50w and an LED light incorporated into the side handle and is known as the PSB 550

For general DIY this simple drill has all the features and Bosch reliability at a great price.

If you do a lot of DIY or use your drill for work then the more powerful 2000w Bosch Rotary action drill for around £70 will make the job that little bit easier and should last longer. Rotary action hammer drills are the next level up from percussion action hammer drills and are usually mains powered.

* Green Bosch tools are designed for DIY use

Blue Bosch tools for professional use.

Professional Quality Cordless Combi Drills

This is the Makita MXT 14.4v hammer drill. (known as a combi)  This is the real McCoy, the Rolls Royce of cordless drills and a worthy holder of  my Golden Shed Award. It has now been replaced with new similar models with incredible lithium ion batteries that recharge in 22 minutes and stay charged for months even when left unused.

This is the drill of choice for professional work or one that will last the DIY enthusiast a lifetime. (As you would expect for this sort of price tool)

Bosch , Metabo and Dewalt make similar tools, all now available with Lithium ion batteries. If you have the older models these can take Nicad or Nimh, the latter is preferable, but Li-ion is the way to go and if you are spending a lot of money the only way to go.

Whilst the Bosch and Metabo drills are great quality they don't have such a large range of "sister products"  as Makita and Dewalt.  The advantage of this is that you can use the same battery in other tools and don't have to give over so much space to battery chargers.

The benchmark for cordless drills is set by  the new Li-ion batteries and I can see the day (in 2-3  years) when all powertools have them. At the moment they are still too expensive for many people and tools with the old type batteries can represent good bargains.

The cordless vacuum below can only be bought naked and is one of the dozens of tools that are powered by the Makita 18v battery.

I have been testing the new 18v Makita cordless vacuum and rate it higher than the new 22v Dyson.

 Click here for more details and best price on new Makita Cordless Vacuums

Your Makita 18v drill battery will also power this chainsaw!

The latest Makita 18v drill with Lithium ion batteries is lighter than my old 12v version.

SECOND-HAND MAKITA BARGAIN

 Used Makita 12 Combi drill and Impact driver for sale

If you already use 12v Makita kit I am selling some tools naked (no batteriers) to keep the shed clear for new products.

I have a Makita 8413D 12v Combi hammer drill with the top of the range marathon motor and metal gears

A 6980PD  Impact driver with that takes normal screwdriver bits

Both are in good condition and come with cases

£85 inc UK delivery

mail me at fred@fredshed.com

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Professional Quality Corded SDS Drills

(for drilling and chiselling)

If you undertake some serious DIY like drilling into lintels or chiselling away brickwork then you will need a much sturdier drill and unless you want to spend megabucks a corded one is best value.

Most drills calling themselves hammer drills are in fact impact drills and are not the real Mcoy.

A proper Hammer drill can have a "rotary stop" function which then enables the drill to just hammer, not turn. These proper hammer drills take SDS or SDS plus bits which come as drill and chisel bits.

This type of drill costs more and is likely to be quite heavy. However when it comes to serious drilling they will save you a lot of time and effort. There are cheap versions about but these are enormously heavy, (4-6KG) whereas lighter weight versions like the Metabo 2KG metal bodied drill shown right start from about £105 up.

Metabo are a top quality German power tool company with an excellent reputation and large range of professional hammer drills.

I recently tested these 2 Metabo Hammer drills and was very impressed. The silver one is a Metabo/Porsche design but for most people I recommend the standard green one.

The Porsche design version has carbon fibre panels, a full metal body and an interesting design of handle. In some areas the  performance was slightly better than  the standard drill but the extra £100 is the downside and the tool is so pretty that you wont want to get it dirty!

Bosch 100 piece titanium  drill bit set.

I recommend a kit like this for DIY use . It contains the common sizes of drill bit for wood, masonry and metal. It also contains a host of other tools that are useful for drilling holes and fitting wall plugs.

Many sets use poor quality bits but this one is made by Bosch and has top quality titanium drill bits. One thing that does annoy me about some sets is how hard it is to get the bits out.

The drill bits in this Bosch set tip forward in their rack for easy access but the screwdriver bits are harder to get out. and annoy me from time to time, but then I am a grumpy old git sometimes.

 buy cheaper 50 piece Bosch titanium drill bit set

My 100 piece drill bit and screwdriver set

Guide to Masonry Drill Bits

Drill bits for drilling masonry, (brick and concrete) can be identified and distinguished from other drill bits by the blunt wide blade on the tip.

There are many different designs of masonry drill and you usually get what you pay for.

One of the best is the Makita Brickmaster bit. This ingenious design enables you to drill masonry with a conventional drill - not a hammer drill.

Makita Brickmaster bits are usually sold in builders merchants and specialist tool shops.

Cheap plastic Wallplugs

For most DIY jobs a bog standard plastic Wallplug will suffice. They are available everywhere and for the UK market are often colour coded by size. Yellow, Red and Brown.

However you may come across different colours and even brown ones that are a different size. To be on the safe side drill a smaller hole first if the wall plug does not have the drill size marked on it. Then go up a drill size if your plug does not fit.

If you do drill the hole too large or have crumbly masonry then all is not lost, you could use the wet-n-fix to save the job.

NEW ALL PURPOSE WALLPLUG FROM RAWLPLUG!

box of standard plugs with screws - well handy!

Important safety info for using wallplugs

1 The screw should be slightly longer than the wallplug.

2 Blow the dust out of the hole after drilling

3 If in doubt use a longer plug and screw

Colour

Drill diameter

Hole depth

Screw size

yellow

5mm

35mm

nos 4-8

Red

6mm

45mm

nos 6-10

brown

8mm

55mm

nos10-14

General purpose Wallplug

For professionals and serious DIY people a Nylon wallplug is much better.

Fischer  Fixing Systems invented the plastic wallplug in 1958 and still make the best and most innovative wallplugs.

The classic is the Fischer S-Plug. This plug has 2 protruding plastic wings that grip the inside of the hole and stop it rotating.

This classic design has now been superseded by the SX with 4 wings and the Universal UX  - see below

Fischer SX Wallplug

This pro-quality wall plug has a flange at the top to keep it flush with the surface of the wall. It also has 4 splits for better grip.

These superb plugs  have the required drill bit and screw size marked on the side and can be used in voided material such as aerated concrete.

If you are a true craftsman and proud of your work, this plug won't let you down. (or your shelves)

 click to buy selection pack of Fischer Wallplugs

Fischer Universal Plug UX

for plasterboard AND concrete

This ingenious wallplug works like a conventional wallplug but can also work in plasterboard.

It works by "scrunching up" and twisting into a ball when the screw passes through the plug and plasterboard.. The "scrunched up part then pulls against the back of the plasterboard to form a secure fixing.

The UX Universal Plug  saves you having to carry 2 types of wallplug in your toolbox.

If you dont mind carrying more plugs then the best wallplug for plasterboard is a self drilling metal or nylon wall anchor.

Wall Anchors For strongest fixing in Plasterboard

These metal screw in wall anchors are even better than the Fischer wallplug and come with their own screw.

Available in a range of sizes

 click to buy pack of Fischer Universal Wallplugs

 buy self drilling plasterboard wall anchors

Being  perfectionist decorator this would p*** me off. So I just grind the top 5mm of the plastic wallplug down with a cone shaped grinding stone on my cordless Dremel. the I only need a small amount of filler that will not shrink back

You can also "bodge" this technique by cutting the top edge of the wallplug away with a Stanley knife - be careful not to slip and cut your finger or eye!

You know the story, your putting up shelves, drill a hole, go to push in the wall plug and dam!, the hole is too big and the wall plug is wobbly.

Then  you have to drill another hole, and move the shelves up an inch and get out the filler to repair the other hole.

This problem usually occurs because you are either crap at DIY or-  you have soft plaster that crumbles when drilled.

Well curse no more, simply soak the Wet-n-Fix disc in water, wrap it around the wall plug and push it in . 3 minutes later it is ready for screwing - magic!

I have found this product to be extremely useful when repairing other peoples bodges (like loose curtain rails and collapsing shelves) Obviously I I have  never bodged a job myself but keep some available just in case.

Buy a pack of 50 Wet-n-fix

Best Cordless Screwdriver

Golden Shed winner improved further!

The truly excellent Bosch IXO cordless screwdriver has been improved further with the addition of a LED work light and improved switches and accessories.

I gave the IXO a coveted Golden Shed Award as it was the first power tool to have the unbeatable Lithium Ion battery.

The IXO is one of my favourite tools and the IXO 2 was even better. The came the IXO 3 with angled head and now the IXO 4 has attachments.

 Use the IXO and you will never want to be without it! This is the smallest cordless screwdriver available and has been copied by many manufacturers.

Now Available IXO 4! with better charging station and optional right angled or offset head attachment. These new accessories make the IXO 4 the best and most versatile small cordless screwdriver.

Use the  link opposite to get the latest IXO at the best price and also support my work finding the best tools.

Impact Drivers For Easier Screwing

If you are driving in or removing a lot of screws or you have old rusted screws then a powered impact driver is the tool you need.

The difference between this and a powered screwdriver it that this tool "pumps and twists" whereas a screwdriver only twists and its performance largely depends on your arm strength.

I have used ta12v Makita Impact driver for many years and it has impressed me and many builders who have used it. My original model had a Nicad Battery but now new smaller Li-ion battiers have incresed the power of impact drivers AND reduced the size and weight of them.

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NEW KID ON THE BLOCK!

NEW PROFESSIONAL QUALITY TOOLS TAKE ON THE BIG NAMES

I love it when some new players enter the market and raise the game with new tools at great prices.

This new 10.8 volt impact driver is such a tool as it has the latest lithium ion battery that can be fully recharged in 15 minutes!

This tough looking tool has all the features you would expect from a professional quality tool and costs a reasonable £119 plus vat which includes 2 batteries, a proper strong box and some drill and screwdriver bits.

As this is a professional tool designed for heavy use you also get a spare set of motor brushes that can be easily changed without opening the body.

The new Durofix powertools are brought to us by Concept Distribution who also market the fantastic range of KTX screws and collated screw feed systems.

As well as the impact driver there is also a drill driver which uses the same batteries.

Breaking News !

Concept Launch 18v impact driver

see my new products page for details

Lightweight but Powerful Impact Driver

Lightweight impact driver with 10.8v lithium ion battery and 15 minute recharge

see below for Bosch Alternatives

Avoiding Dust when drilling holes

Use the Amazing Dustbubble

Some years back I met the Nick Noble, the Inventor of this little gadget and I have championed it ever since.

Over the years the product has developed and evolved into a range for use on different surfaces. Wood and plaster, wallpaper and painted surfaces, tiles and now the new Industrial Dust bubble!

 This fantastic invention collects the dust when you drill and is basically a little plastic bag that opens up and sticks to the wall. As it is see-through you can drill you hole and 99% of the dust collects in the bag.

A pack of 12 costs about £3. This is a brilliant product and a must  for tradesmen working in offices with electrical equipment or in  posh houses. Available at B&Q.