Pull-up bar broke out of the wall. How do I actually secure it on a sandy stone wall?

Submitted by Toitonic t3_10hkz6i in DIY

Tl dr; pull up bar broke out of the wall, how do I actually fix and secure it?

Okay so I mounted a pull-up bar to my wall and since it hangs on 8 14mm dewels i thought no way this is gonna give. Unfortunately I was proven wrong when after a couple of months, the pull-up bar broke out of the wall while I was working out. The problem was, that the wall is made out of some kind of sandy stone (1950s Germany) and the stress slowly ground the wall that holds the dewels to dust. Now I have some pretty big holes in my wall, want to put the pull-up bar back on though.

By my research the best way forward is to use composite mortar and put in perforated sleeves (hope the translation is correct). But my knowledge is limited so I thought why not ask people more experienced than myself.

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bms42 t1_j5b4lq5 wrote

Without knowing more about the wall it's impossible to say. "Sandy stone" isn't really a good description. Is it mortared stone blocks? Is it wood framed with stone facade? interior or exterior wall?

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Toitonic OP t1_j5b6zp3 wrote

Interior load-bearing wall, not wood framed as far is I know. It's not my house and there is a wallpaper on it so I can't really get a good look on it other then through the holes I drilled. The dust coming from it is red in color (kinda like rust). I can scrape off part of the surface easily with a metal tool so it's pretty soft. The house was build on the 1950s in Germany if that helps.

Edit: just googled wood framed facade and I am pretty sure it's not. The holes are about 10-15 cm deep and even at the end of the hole there is still stone. So it's probably mortared bricks

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bms42 t1_j5b7x3l wrote

Probably a brick wall then. You'll want some kind of expanding metal anchor to insert into holes you drill. Don't try to use the existing holes, don't drill new holes within 6 inches of the old holes.

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Toitonic OP t1_j5b9eqg wrote

I don't really have another place to put it so would you say component mortar would be suitable? I just googled a bit more and it's definitely brick.

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bms42 t1_j5bahot wrote

Personally I wouldn't trust it. You've compromised the bricks in those locations already. Brick is very brittle, it's difficult to mount to properly.

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Toitonic OP t1_j5bbnr6 wrote

Alright thanks a lot for the advice. I will try the mortar cause I have no other choice unfortunately but I will take care when doing the pull-ups. And when I deal with brick walls again I know what to do from the start.

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bms42 t1_j5bharo wrote

I'd be tempted to drill the existing holes out a little larger and epoxy large wood dowels into the voids, then predrill and lag bolt into those. Like 3/4" dowels.

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Toitonic OP t1_j5bmolf wrote

Definitely an interesting idea. But wouldn't the epoxy Drip out of the hole cause it's liquid? Or would you seal the hole with tape while hardening the epoxy? I will also drill the holes bigger in the back either way (mortar or epoxy) to make the sealant itself like a dewel.

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bms42 t1_j5bnnda wrote

The hole would mostly be full of dowel. Tape the opening during curing.

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