How to fit a building support
Updated: 23 October 2026
The pack is already on the bench: a steel post base, a plastic decking pedestal, or a telescopic rod. This is how to fit a building support in the order the fitting allows, and where to stop. The [building support comparison](/hub/diy-supplies/building-support) is the set these steps refer to. Peter F. used amazon.co.uk listings, review notes and public UK fitting sheets. This is not a lab test. A qualifying purchase through the links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The pack is already on the bench: a steel post base, a plastic decking pedestal, or a telescopic rod. This is how to fit a building support in the order the fitting allows, and where to stop.
The pack is already on the bench: a steel post base, a plastic decking pedestal, or a telescopic rod. This is how to fit a building support in the order the fitting allows, and where to stop. The building support comparison is the set these steps refer to. Peter F. used amazon.co.uk listings, review notes and public UK fitting sheets. This is not a lab test. A qualifying purchase through the links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Support type | Adjustment | Fixings supplied | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Ceta Composite Decking Ceta Composite Decking pedestal, pack of 10 | Decking pedestal | Collar, then base | Not supplied | 8.9 | about £33.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  FWEEK FWEEK 4-piece elevated post base, 100–150 mm | Elevated post base | Threaded, 100–150 mm | Not concrete anchors | 8.9 | about £23.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  Eummy Eummy telescopic support rod, 30–59 cm | Telescopic prop | Telescopic, 30–59 cm | n/a | 7.7 | about £15.99 | View offer |
On this page
Before you drill
Buy the fastener that matches the substrate before you mark a hole. FWEEK reviews say the supplied machine screws were no use as concrete anchors. Ceta reviews say no screws arrived. AHAQU’s bullet names 16 screws while the components field prints 1. LLB’s components line is No. A joist screw does not resin a post base to a slab. Trade sheets, including Simpson Strong-Tie’s PPA, name the anchors and then coach screws into the post. That capacity does not travel to a listing that states no load. Check the plate and the height band while the fitting is still in your hand. The building support buying guide is that check.
Elevated base on a pad
Set the base on sound concrete, with the post restrained at the top by the frame. Mark the plate, drill for the anchor you bought, clear the dust, and fix the lower plate so the end grain stays clear of the wet surface. Then drive coach screws through the upper plate. Aleawol is the only listing here that names a pipe wrench. LLB is 80 × 80 × 250 mm, and one review says the centre-bolt hole was awkward without a jig. Fountain Timber and Surefix both say an elevated base is not for an unrestrained fence post.
Pedestal under a joist
Sweep the slab so the foot sits flat. Turn the collar to the measured height before any screw goes through the cradle. On the Ceta pack, reviewers set the collar, screw the head, then fine-tune at the base, because the collar loses travel once the head is fixed. Ceta reviews say no screws arrived. Assured Composite’s notes say fixing the base down is optional on a solid substrate, and that you should not screw through a roof terrace. That instruction belongs to that foot. Spacing and the planning line are on the decking pedestals for a shed base page.
Third hand, then the real fixing
A rod holds a cabinet or a sheet while you fix it. Wickes puts the brackets in the wall first. Working alone, set the pads on a sound floor and on the carcase, lock the clamp, fix the brackets, then take the rod away. Eummy is 30–59 cm, Dandelionsky is 50–115 cm, and INCENDIOS is titled 120–290 cm. If the clamp slips, stop adding load. Reviews describe locks that slid and an INCENDIOS clamp that needed a G-clamp. A seller line of 40 kg or about 70 kg is not a test. Propping a wall or a floor needs a design, which is the Health and Safety Executive’s point on foreseeable loads.
Where the sequence stops
Buy the anchor or the joist screw before you drill. Set a pedestal collar before the joist is screwed. Fix an elevated base only under a post whose top is already restrained. Use a rod for the minutes the brackets take, then remove it. A pipe wrench, a drill jig and a 30 mm spanner each belong to one named fitting.
Common questions
What do you buy before you drill, if the pack screws are wrong?
Buy a concrete anchor or resin rated for the pad, and coach screws for the post, if the listing does not name those parts. FWEEK reviews say the supplied screws were not concrete anchors. Ceta reviews say no screws arrived. AHAQU’s bullet names 16 screws while the components field prints 1, and LLB’s line is No. A trade capacity applies only with the fasteners on that data sheet.
Do you set a pedestal height before or after the joist is screwed?
Set the collar to the measured height before you screw the joist through the head. On the Ceta pedestals, reviewers then fine-tune at the base. They say the height cannot be finished only after the head is fixed, because the collar no longer has its full movement. Check that fine-tune while the boards are still off.
How do you fix an elevated base to concrete?
Mark the plate, drill for the anchor you bought, clear the dust, and fix the lower plate so the end grain stays above the concrete. Then screw the post to the upper plate. Simpson’s UK sheets name the anchors and publish a capacity only with those fasteners. Do not copy a trade kilonewton figure onto a pack that states no load. Confirm the top plate covers the post before the first hole.
Where does a telescopic rod sit while you hang a cabinet?
Stand the rod on a sound floor with the pad under the cabinet carcase, inside the length you bought: 30–59 cm, 50–115 cm, or the longer title of 120–290 cm if you have measured it. Lock the clamp, fix the wall brackets, then remove the rod once the bracket holds the cabinet. Wickes assumes the brackets are the fixing. The rod is the second pair of hands for those minutes.
When is the job temporary works rather than a third hand?
Holding a cabinet or a plasterboard sheet while you screw a bracket is a third hand. Propping a wall, a floor, a balcony, or any load people will rely on is temporary works. The Health and Safety Executive expects that support to be designed for the foreseeable loads. These listings are not acrow props, and their 40 kg or 70 kg lines are seller figures.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources and the amazon.co.uk listings compared on this page. Shelf prices read 19 and 20 October 2026. Updated 22.10.2026.
- Planning Portal decking permission (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- GOV.UK householder technical guidance (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- Approved Document K (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- Dorset Council decking note (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- Approved Document A (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- HSE temporary works (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- EGGA galvanizing specification guidance (retrieved 22.10.2026)
- Simpson Strong-Tie elevated post base PPA (retrieved 22.10.2026)