How do I replace a towel bar?

Replacing a towel bar is a one-hour job with a drill, a level and a screwdriver. The order is always the same: work out how the old bar is held on, lift it off, deal with the old brackets and anchors, then mount the new brackets level and hang the new bar. Where you can, put at least one post into a wall stud.

What you need

The new towel bar usually comes with its own brackets, screws, anchors and a paper template. One Moen towel bar's instructions list a Phillips screwdriver, a drill with a 1/4-inch bit, a hammer, a level and tape,^[2] plus the small hex wrench that comes in the box. Add a stud finder, a pencil, a utility knife, spackling and a putty knife for the old holes.

Read the instructions for your bar before you start. Drill bit sizes and anchor types differ from brand to brand, and the right hole size matters more than anything else in this job.

Taking the old bar off

Most towel bars hang on a bracket screwed to the wall, with a decorative post that slips over it. Moen, for example, sorts its accessory mounts into four basic styles,^[1] and the base of each post tells you which one you have:

• Set screw. Look for a small set screw in a hole at the base of each post, loosened with a 3/32-inch hex wrench.^[1] You do not need to take the screw all the way out. Loosen it and lift the post off.
• Tab. If there is an opening with a tab, insert a small flathead screwdriver into the opening and pull it away from the wall to depress the tab, then slide the bar up and off its bracket.^[1]
• Opening with no tab or screw. Push a small screwdriver up into the opening while pulling the post forward.^[1]
• Escutcheon over a bracket. Slide the cover away from the wall to reach the screws underneath.^[1]

Other brands use the same ideas. If you cannot see a screw, look underneath with a flashlight before you start prying, because prying bends the posts and tears paint.

Dealing with the old brackets and anchors

Once the bar is off, unscrew the brackets. What is left in the wall is usually a plastic anchor or a metal self-drilling one.

Be careful pulling anchors straight out: ordinary self-drilling drywall anchors tend to pull a chunk of drywall out with them.^[5] For a plastic anchor, TOGGLER's advice is to cut through the plastic neck with a razor blade or thin knife held flat to the wall, push what is left slightly into the hole, and fill it with spackling or joint compound.^[5] Let it dry and sand it smooth.

Choosing where the new bar goes

You can reuse the old position or move it. Either way, check two things first.

Spacing. A new bar rarely matches the old holes exactly. The mounting posts on that bar have slotted holes, so the spacing can be adjusted a little after they are on the wall,^[2] but do not count on reusing a hole that already held a loose bar. Shift the new holes slightly to one side so each anchor bites into solid drywall.

Studs. Studs are usually 16 inches apart,^[4] so it is often possible to put one post over a stud. The instructions on one Moen towel bar say: "Directions below are for installation into drywall. If installing product into a stud, use the wood screws only."^[2] A screw in wood holds better than an anchor, and mixing the two (wood screw at one end, anchor at the other) is fine.

Putting the new bar up

Tape the template to the wall, set the level on it, and mark the holes. Drill to the size the instructions give. For the common split-wing anchor, which takes a 5/16-inch hole in Moen's set-screw hardware,^[3] Moen's set-screw instructions have you fold the anchor's ends together, tap it in flush, then push in a plastic pin to open it behind the wall.^[3] Screw the brackets on with any arrow or notch the way the instructions show, then slide the bar and posts over them and tighten the set screws underneath.

Tighten the bracket screws firmly but stop once they are snug. Overdriving a screw into an anchor can strip it or crush the drywall around it, and that is the most common reason a new bar starts to wobble. If yours ever does, see why a towel bar keeps pulling out of the wall.

Towel bar or grab bar

A towel bar is made for towels. Anchor makers rate their products by the load they hold in a lab, and industry practice treats about a quarter of an anchor's tested ultimate load as a reasonably safe working load,^[5] measured with the item held close to the wall; anything that pulls an item away from the wall greatly increases the effective load.^[5] A person grabbing a bar during a slip does exactly that.

Grab bars are installed differently. Moen's grab bar instructions require both ends of the bar to be positioned over a wood stud, unless its own secure mount anchors are used.^[4] If someone in the house needs something to hold on to by the tub or toilet, put in a grab bar made for it rather than a stronger towel bar.

Stop and call a pro if

• The drywall behind the old bar is soft, crumbly, stained or wet. Mold can hide on the back side of drywall,^[7] and water-damaged areas should be dried within 24 to 48 hours to prevent mold growth.^[7] Find the leak before you hang anything.
• You hit metal, see water or find wiring when you drill. Stop and leave the hole alone until someone has checked what is behind it.
• The bar goes on ceramic or stone tile and you have never drilled tile. A cracked tile turns a small job into a tile repair.
• The house was built before 1978 and the old paint is flaking where you will be scraping and sanding. The EPA warns that repair work in a pre-1978 home can easily create dangerous lead dust.^[6]
• The bar is really a grab bar, for someone who needs support, and you cannot hit studs.

Getting help

A towel bar is a common item on a handyman list, often grouped with a toilet paper holder, robe hooks and a mirror in one visit. See what a handyman charges to replace bathroom fixtures in Virginia, browse fixture replacement, find handyman businesses around Blacksburg, or read more handyman answers. When you are ready, describe the job on Loclis and local businesses quote it.