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One of the key advantages of walls built using Celcon blocks is that it is easy to place services such as electric cables, water pipes etc. wherever required. The physical nature of the material means that cutting and chasing of the wall is quick and simple.
Holes can be made with a normal drill, and chasing can be carried out with a chisel or similar wood-working tools. Depths of vertical chases should be limited to one-third of the wall thickness, and horizontal chases to one-sixth of the wall thickness. Back-to-back chasing in walls should only be carried out with the designer's approval and should never occur in walls where acoustic performance is important.
Fixing into Celcon Blocks
Fixing into Celcon blocks is easy and plugs, with screws or nails as appropriate, will provide a very secure and reliable fixing.
Lightweight Fixtures
For lightweight fixtures such as light duty door frames, skirtings, linings and cladding battens, recommended fixings include cut nails, driven in pairs, skewed into the blockwork, or proprietary nailed fixings. The nails should be driven to a minimum depth of 50mm into the block.
Medium-Weight Fixtures
Medium-weight fixtures, for example heavier duty door frames and battens, and small fixtures, should be fixed using proprietary plugs and normal woodscrews. The screws should penetrate the block to a minimum depth of 50mm, and when deciding the screw length, allowance must be made for the thickness of the internal finish as well as the item to be fixed.
Heavy-Weight Items
Heavier-weight items such as radiators and cupboards should be fixed using proprietary plugs.
General Rules
As a general rule, fixings should not be closer to the free edge of the block than the depth of embedment, nor should they be over-tightened as this can affect the pull out strength.
Diameter of Holes
The diameter of holes drilled in blocks should be a size smaller than that normally recommended to ensure that the plug fits tightly in the block before the screw is driven.
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