Independent comparisons. We may earn from shop links. More info

How to install aircrete anchors without spinning the hole

Updated: 22 October 2026

The fixing fails in the hole more often than it fails in the packet. You drill too small, leave the dust, hammer a soft block until it shifts, or drive a dab screw into plasterboard and never reach the masonry. This is how to install aircrete anchors from the ten amazon.co.uk listings in the [aircrete fixings comparison](/hub/screws-and-accessories/aircrete-fixings). Prices in the examples are October 2026 shelf prices. Follow the leaflet in the box you bought. The steps below are the order of work, not a replacement for it. A qualifying purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

The fixing fails in the hole more often than it fails in the packet. You drill too small, leave the dust, hammer a soft block until it shifts, or drive a dab screw into plasterboard and never reach the masonry.

Our top picks

Corefix Corefix 100 mm (24)

Best overall

Corefix Corefix 100 mm (24)
9.0/10about £21.00
View offer
fischer fischer GB Green 8 mm (20)

Alternative

fischer fischer GB Green 8 mm (20)
6.9/10about £8.49
View offer
Corefix Corefix 100 mm (4)

Best value

Corefix Corefix 100 mm (4)
8.6/10about £6.30
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Check the wall, then check for pipes and cables
  2. 2.Drill the diameter the packet expects, and get the dust out
  3. 3.Set each family the way it is built
  4. 4.Mistakes that feel tight and then let go

Check the wall, then check for pipes and cables

Before you fit a bit, decide whether you are in bare aerated block or plasterboard over block. Bare Thermalite or Celcon takes a hammer-in spiral such as GB Green. A dabbed wall needs a bridge: Corefix, DDF or Rigifix. Hollow board, then a gap, then block, is the second case. On a dabbed wall, assume a cable or a pipe could sit in the cavity. Use a cable detector, and isolate the circuit near sockets. If you cannot tell where the services are, do not drill shallow and hope. Boilers, external leaves and party walls need a competent person. Mark the holes from the bracket. Two holes mean two points, whatever the four-fixing bullet says.

Drill the diameter the packet expects, and get the dust out

GB anchors and Corefix do not share a hole. Use the diameter on that packet. The only box here with a 10 mm masonry bit is the Corefix television six-pack at £9.49. The four-pack, the 24-pack and the 120 mm box expect you to supply the bit. Drill at a steady speed. A blunt bit polishes aerated block and blows the face out. On a dabbed wall, go through the board, across the cavity, and into the block. A hole that ends in the gap feels tight in the gypsum and then pulls the board off the dabs. Vacuum or blow every hole out. The dot and dab fixings page is the longer account of that cavity.
Corefix Corefix 100 mm (24)

Testsieger

Corefix Corefix 100 mm (24)
9.0/10about £21.00
View offer

Set each family the way it is built

For GB Green or the grey GB 8, drill, clear the dust, and hammer the anchor flush. Stop before you knock the block along the joint. Pair the grey 25-pack with an A4 screw on a façade. A hammer-in anchor does not unscrew neatly later. For Corefix, drill, clear the dust, insert the plug into the block, then drive the screw so the steel core bridges the cavity. The 100 mm screw is the usual dab length. The 120 mm screw is for a thicker bracket, not a bad hole. Stop when the fixture is firm. The 55 kg lines assume this prep. For Rigifix, tighten by hand with a hex key. An impact driver can damage the block. For FPX, follow that box's setting method in bare aerated concrete. Do not bridge plasterboard with it. DDF is for a dabbed cavity, not a stud.

Mistakes that feel tight and then let go

If the plug spins, stop. A bigger screw rarely repairs an aerated socket. Move to sound material. A screw that feels firm in the plasterboard and then drops the television never reached the block. If the board flexes, you are loading gypsum. Drill on until you are in block, or abandon that point. Load the finished bracket flush to the wall, not with your weight on a long arm. Corefix's cantilever warning still stands after a neat install.

Common questions

What size hole do I drill for these anchors?
Use the diameter printed for the packet in your hand. This comparison does not give one millimetre that covers GB, Corefix, Rigifix, DDF and FPX. The television six-pack is the only listing that includes a 10 mm masonry bit. Every other box expects you to bring the bit that matches its leaflet.
Should I hammer a Corefix plug the same way as GB Green?
No. GB Green and the grey GB 8 are hammer-in spirals for bare aerated block. Corefix is drilled and then screwed so a steel core crosses the dab cavity into the block. Hammering a dab fixing as if it were a GB anchor, or screwing a GB anchor into plasterboard, puts each product in the wall it is not listed for.
How do I know the screw has reached the block?
On a dabbed wall the drill should pass through board, cross a short gap, and then cut block. The dust changes and the drill loads up. If the screw snugs up while you are still in the gap, it is only holding board. Clear the dust and drill to the depth the fixing needs before you drive it again.
Can I use an impact driver on Rigifix?
The Rigifix listing's tool line is hand torque with a hex key. An impact driver is how sleeves get overtightened and how soft block gets damaged. If you do not have a way to tighten by hand, do not set this sleeve on power and hope the clutch is gentle enough.
What if the anchor spins?
Stop and do not keep driving. Check that the family matches the wall and that the hole is the stated diameter and is free of dust. A spinning plug in aerated block usually means the socket is already ruined. Move to a new position in sound material rather than upsizing the screw in the same hole.
Do I need to remove the dust from every hole?
Yes. Dust left in aerated block or in a dabbed hole is a repeated reason the core or the spiral never grips. It takes longer to say than to do. Vacuum or blow each hole out before the plug goes in, including the last hole on the bracket.
When should I stop and call someone?
Stop if the fixing will carry a boiler, a heavy stone surround, a grab rail, or anything whose failure would injure a person. Stop on an external leaf you cannot identify, on a party wall in a flat, and where the lease says an installer must do the work. Also stop if a detector suggests a cable or a pipe and you cannot isolate or avoid it. The packets in this comparison do not sign those jobs off.

Related pages

Best aircrete fixings

Aircrete fixings

Aircrete fixings buying guide: match the wall before the box

Dot and dab fixings for blockwork behind the plasterboard

Aircrete fixings vs standard wall plugs after a spin-out

Sources

Listing pages named in the research digest, last checked on 22 October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are the stored amazon.co.uk figures for October 2026. Kilogram lines are seller wording, not a pull-out test.

  1. fischer GB Green aircrete anchor, amazon.co.uk B011O6L016 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. fischer FPX aircrete metal anchor, amazon.co.uk B00BTFYC36 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. Corefix dot-and-dab fixings, amazon.co.uk B072JYXJL6 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. Rigifix M8 anchor fixings, amazon.co.uk B00D98LHLG (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. fischer DDF dot and dab 50 pack, amazon.co.uk B0DVCCSKHK (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. fischer SXRL frame fixing range, amazon.co.uk B077YKRBF2 (retrieved 22 October 2026)