# Brick advice - Home Gym related!



## virgiltracey (Apr 19, 2017)

Hi Guys,

I've been assembling my own little workout space in a friends brick outbuilding.

At the weekend I installed a pull - up bar which is wall mounted, the bar is steel and is mounted to the brickwork with m6 throughbolts.

Now a colleague of mine asked me if the wall is single or double brick, I'm pretty certain it's single and it's quite old too!

Now I'm wondering if I may be putting too much load on a single wall by using the bar? I'm about 90kg so not exactly featherweight.

I have thought about adding some timber supports beneath the bars as this seems to be the quickest and cheapest way to support the bars, also as the building is not mine I do want the whole thing to be as removable as possible.

Below is a rough paint sketch i've done of the idea and of the current setup, can anyone tell me if this seems ok to do?










Current bar and wall -


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## Andy from Sandy (May 6, 2011)

If you used a through bolt how come you don't know how thick the wall is?

For a double thick brick wall I would expect to see more end on bricks tying layers together as opposed to just a cavity wall. Can you see any anchors in the mortar?

What you have there is just 4 bricks doing all of the work.

I found this article that offers a suggestion - https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/85614/how-can-i-install-a-pull-up-bar-on-a-brick-wall


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## virgiltracey (Apr 19, 2017)

Andy from Sandy said:


> If you used a through bolt how come you don't know how thick the wall is?
> 
> For a double thick brick wall I would expect to see more end on bricks tying layers together as opposed to just a cavity wall. Can you see any anchors in the mortar?
> 
> ...


The Throughbolts I used were M8 wedge style (these - https://www.screwfix.com/p/easyfix-throughbolts-m8-x-75mm-10-pack/11468?_requestid=19213) So they've been tapped into the brock and then expanded by tightening.

So i'm still not sure if it is double or single 

In either case do we think I should just add the wood supports for peace of mind?


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## GeeWhizRS (Nov 1, 2019)

If you've used M6 through bolts I don't think it would much matter whether the wall is one layer or two because I doubt your through bolt will be much longer than 3" in the first place. In which case it won't be anywhere near a second brick if it exists. Couple that with the fact you've got half it it hanging out of the wall it doesn't look like there would be much holding it in and I wouldn't fancy dangling off it myself.
Rather than using the timber support I think I'd be looking at re-fixing it with some thicker & longer bolts (if it is 2 layers thick). If the wall integrity isn't the best have a look at chemical anchors.
As an alternative, you could fix timber supports to the wall and then screw the brackets to the uprights with some coach bolts or such.


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## sevenfourate (Mar 23, 2013)

GeeWhizRS said:


> Rather than using the timber support I think I'd be looking at re-fixing it with some thicker & longer bolts (if it is 2 layers thick). If the wall integrity isn't the best have a look at chemical anchors.


This ^^^^^

Threaded studding (At least 8.8 grade if you can) fixed in with chemical resin would be my solution for this too.

Means you can make your own length fixing, and your not compromising a weak brick with an expanding bolt......


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## Andy from Sandy (May 6, 2011)

I would look to spread the load on the wall and not rely on just 4 bricks.

A person will be a dynamic load. I don't think the weight will just be downward, there will be a certain amount of horizontal load trying to pull the screws out of the wall.


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## kingswood (Jun 23, 2016)

chemical resin would be my solution for this too.

I used this on my pull up br in the garage into breeze block. and I'm 110kg!

more importantly, where did u get the pulley attachment from!?


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## virgiltracey (Apr 19, 2017)

Right, looks like I may need to start again!

I’ve inspected further and it is double brick, but it does sound like the m8 throughbolts used to wont be enough.

Could someone recommend the exact bolts / fixings to buy?


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## GeeWhizRS (Nov 1, 2019)

You say M8, but you said M6 earlier. Have you actually tried hanging off it and jerking up and down? If you actually try and pull it out and it doesn't come loose you may be okay. What you don't want is it coming away when you least expect it.
Give it a ragging and video it in case you can get it on 'You've been framed'. 😂


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## virgiltracey (Apr 19, 2017)

Yes sorry, did say m6 earlier but officially m8 used!

I have hung off it and it does feel solid. No movement at all, but as it’s not my wall I want to make sure I don’t cause any damage!


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## virgiltracey (Apr 19, 2017)

kingswood said:


> chemical resin would be my solution for this too.
> 
> I used this on my pull up br in the garage into breeze block. and I'm 110kg!
> 
> more importantly, where did u get the pulley attachment from!?


There's breezeblock on the opposite wall, would I be better off doing what you did?


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## kingswood (Jun 23, 2016)

This is my set up and like I say I'm 110kg.

My garage is intergrated and that's the wall holding the house up

I resin I used was r-kem11 from screw fix. That's the grey stuff in there. When I used the bolts in breeze block the drill destroyed the block abit so it went up but was wobbly. Injected the resin into this plugs then screwed in quick and is rock solid.

Wldnt want to say if that will be better than the brick but works for me

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Darlofan (Nov 24, 2010)

I'd go with the wooden supports if it worries you. Cheap, easy fix as long as they're not in your way. And no damage to your mates garage.


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## virgiltracey (Apr 19, 2017)

Thanks for the suggestions everyone, as it isn't my wall I was cautious of drilling any more holes in it, especially as the place is a rental and the fixtures need to be as reversible as possible.

I did go down the route of adding wood support beams to the bar, these are treated 2 x 4's braced at the base and supporting the horizontal arms. They were cut to be a very tight fit and are held in place by using the existing coach bolt in the bar through a modified joist hanger bracket.










The cable pulley thing is homemade, using old brake discs as the weights and a bicycle handlebar with ring attachment to fit to the cable. 
Cable is 4mm wire rope and matching clamps / thimbles from Toolstation and the pulley is an M50 thing off Amazon


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

I love that pull down you've made with the brake discs!!


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