How to attach hose reel to external polystyrene cladding?

[olitim]

Hi there. I really need some help about attaching a hose reel bracket to an external wall which is clad in polystyrene. How can I do this?

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @olitim. It's brilliant to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about attaching fixtures to polystyrene cladding.

The cladding manufacturer would be the most reliable source of information about their product. Do you have to know who made it? 

Fixing into polystyrene cladding is generally accomplished by using coarse thread plastic screws. Something similar to these Wallmates. My concern is that these smaller fixings won't be adequate for a hose reel. Hose reel fixtures endure quite a bit of stress from the reel's weight and the user constantly yanking on the hose. In the past, I've replaced countless Dynabolts wiggled free from concrete by hose reels.

My advice would be to concrete in a post directly in front of the wall and attach the reel to it instead. That way, you don't have to deal with attaching to a soft medium like polystyrene, which isn't designed to hold heavy objects on its facade.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell
 

[olitim]

Hi Mitchell,

Thanks so much for your helpful reply. Yeah I did think about concreting in a post but I don’t think that’ll work where I’m thinking of putting it. Do you think if I put two screws through the polystyrene to the stud, and secure a backing piece of wood to the hose reel bracket that would work?

[MitchellMc]

If you can locate the studs behind the polystyrene, then that sounds like a suitable solution @olitim. The board on the front will help prevent damage to the cladding. Make sure the screws you use are a reasonable length and gauge. 10 x 175mm Gal Batten Bugle Head Screws should be sufficient if they are long enough to reach the stud.

Mitchell