How to install towel rack?

[Jams]

My wife and I recently purchased a house and are slowly going through and making repairs now that we've moved in. One thing that I noticed early on was that the towel racks in the ensuite bathroom were quite loose and wobbly, so I wanted to change them.

First attempt was to get some WallMate wall anchors to embed in the plasterboard, but no matter how hard I tried I couldn't get them into the plaster. Best I could manage was maybe 1-2mm deep before the anchor itself would start to deform.

Am I taking the wrong approach here, and if so what would you recommend? Any idea what the reason is I can't install the wall plugs? A drill goes through fine and there's no stud on the other end from what I can see. Thank you!

Here's a photo of where I tried to install the wall anchor. It is about 5cm from the shower tiles.

Unfortunately I've never had anyone to learn this stuff from, so hoping I can grow my knowledge with your help! Cheers!

[JacobZ]

Hi @Jams,

Thank you for your question and welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is fantastic to have you with us.

The problem you are experiencing with the WallMate anchors is because it's likely that the wall is not plasterboard, rather a fibre cement product such as Villaboard. 

To confirm this, you can scrape the inside of the hole you've put through the sheet material with something like a key or a small screwdriver. If you get a white chalky material, it is plasterboard, if it is a grey cement looking powder, it is fibre cement.

The WallMate anchors will work with plasterboard because the inside of it is quite soft and the screw shank can bite into it and rotate through, whereas Villaboard, being a cement product is not soft, so it can't get through.

My suggestion is to grab some Ramset 16mm Hollow Wall Anchors. They open outwards behind the sheet and pull against the back of the sheet to anchor themself in place.  

You might like to have a look at How to hang just about anything for some further guidance.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Jacob