Diamond crown for socket outlets: convenient installation of sockets in concrete

Most modern buildings have hidden electrical wiring. On the surface there are only covers for sockets and switches. The pads of the devices to which the wires are connected are recessed into the walls and are most often located in special boxes - socket boxes. If it becomes necessary to add additional power points, a tool is required that allows you to make recesses in the walls - a diamond core bit for socket outlets.

Fixing sockets to the wall

Already in the middle of the twentieth century, the method of fastening electrical outlets and switches for hidden wiring was different from the modern one. A recess in the wall was covered with a metal plate. The socket block was pressed against the plate with small paws while tightening the mounting screws. This method had a number of disadvantages: the plate could fall off the wall, thin sheet often bent when replacing electrical devices or carelessly turning on and off the plugs of electrical appliances.

To avoid these problems, it was decided to abandon the plates and fix the sockets directly to the wall. To do this, it was necessary to lengthen the legs on the socket blocks. The new design was unclenched when the screws were tightened, the legs rested against the walls of the recess and fixed the block due to the friction force. At the same time, new difficulties arose: during operation, concrete or brick crumbled, the metal of the clamps was worn out. The socket first began to dangle, and then it could even fly out of its place. At home, this problem was temporarily solved by placing elastic materials under the feet, for example, scraps of linoleum.

In order to finally eliminate all the inconveniences in the installation and operation of sockets, special mounts for these devices in the wall were invented - socket boxes. They are usually in the shape of a glass with a circular cross-section. Such a glass is mounted in a cylindrical recess in the wall. The inner surface is flexible enough to ensure a secure fit of the last.

Several types of socket boxes are produced:

• For concrete, this is the most common option. Suitable for fixing in concrete and brick walls. Usually made of plastic. They do not have special fixing elements, they are installed on a plaster mortar.
• For drywall - models equipped with additional clamping elements designed to fix the glass body on the back of the sheet. Made of plastic.
• For wood, this is the least common type. They are rare, since open wiring is usually used in wooden structures. Made of metal to meet fire safety requirements.

Instrument and its varieties

It is quite simple to fix the socket in the wall, it is more difficult to make the blind hole itself. It is practically impossible to make a large-diameter hole with a conventional drill at a shallow drilling depth. The diameter of a conventional drill is limited by the maximum seat diameter of the chuck. There are drills with a working part diameter slightly larger than the shank diameter. However, this difference cannot be large due to the increasing stress on the shank with increasing drilling diameter.

Special drills called crowns come to the rescue. They are a hollow cylindrical tool with a cutting edge at the end. Many designs incorporate a traditional carbide-tipped drill bit aligned with the core cylinder. This drill protrudes beyond the cutting edge, cuts first into the wall, thereby providing ease of installation of the tool in the desired position and performs centering functions in the process drilling.

The classification of crowns is possible according to several main features:

• constructive dimensions;
• processed material;
• cutting edge designs.

Before purchasing a crown, it is imperative to clarify what kind of work it is intended for. Two options are possible here:

• For work on hard materials - concrete, brick.
• For work on soft materials - wood, plastic, drywall.

In principle, diamond drill bits for concrete for socket boxes also successfully cope with drywall.

Dimensional characteristics

The most important parameters when choosing a crown are its overall dimensions: diameter and depth of drilling. The packaging of the instrument may indicate that it is suitable for socket boxes. But if there is no direct indication, you will have to select the desired model based on the known dimensions.

On sale there are often crowns with a working diameter of 30 to 150 mm. Crowns for concrete rosettes are usually 68 and 70 mm in diameter. However, discrepancies are not uncommon. Therefore, it is recommended that you first purchase the socket boxes themselves, so as not to be mistaken with the selection of the drill diameter. The larger diameter should always be chosen. For a crown, a difference of a couple of millimeters upwards is insignificant, you can always put an excess amount of solution and securely fix a glass in a larger diameter. Well, if suddenly the diameter turns out to be smaller, there will be no opportunity to install a socket box.

The second important parameter is the drilling depth. For a wide variety of tasks, crowns with a working length of up to 600 mm are produced. The height of the flush-mounted glass may vary. Therefore, the working part of the drill should be longer than this size, which usually ranges from 40 to 80 mm, but in the overwhelming majority of cases is in the range of 60-65 mm.

Don't forget about the type and size of the shank. Buying a suitable bit with a shank for which the right tool is not available can be a lot of hassle. There are the following types of shanks:

• Cylindrical - can only work with a three-jaw chuck.
• Hexagonal - used both with special holders for unified bits, and with conventional three-jaw chucks.
• For hammer drills - used only in conjunction with special cartridges. They have two characteristic longitudinal slots for fixing. It is important to remember that there are different seats for different shank diameters. Before purchasing a crown, it is imperative to check the type of the corresponding shank on the tool holder.

Cutting edge

The cutting edge device is responsible for the efficiency of the working process and the speed of work. The durability of the crown also depends on it. There are three types of work surface:

• diamond;
• carbide;
• with tungsten carbide chips.

They differ in operating conditions, reliability and cost.

Diamond spraying

The diamond core bit is the most versatile type. The steel base is coated with diamond dust. It is the hardness of the technical diamond that allows the tool to cope with the most difficult work materials.

Diamond core bits provide the highest drilling precision and accuracy of the hole. They are suitable for working with the hardest concrete structures, they are not afraid of reinforced concrete, inside which there is a frame made of reinforcing mesh. However, frequent cutting of steel bars will shorten the life of the product, and too thin reinforcement can get into the slots for the removal of particles of the processed material and damage the bit. Despite this, diamond core bits are valued by professionals above other varieties.

There are some more features of their operation. When used in conjunction with a hammer drill, the impact and vibration modes should be turned off; it is allowed to use only in the drilling mode in order to avoid damage to the diamond coating.

High performance is reflected in the price of the product, diamond-coated bits continue to be the most expensive on the market, they are significantly more expensive than other varieties. However, if the product is supposed to be used more than once or will have to work in difficult conditions, the money spent is quite justified.

Carbide inserts

A carbide bit is a budget option that can cost half the price of a diamond bit. In the slots of the cylindrical body there are solders made of hard alloys. The principle of operation is the same as a standard solid carbide drill for concrete.

It is somewhat more difficult to work with such a crown for a rosette in concrete, however, with a low hardness of the material being processed, it can show a high speed of making a hole. On reinforced concrete structures, work should be done with all precautions to prevent the carbide plate from getting on the reinforcement. Otherwise, the insert will simply break off and the crown will not be repairable.

There are some restrictions on drilling modes: after making a hole, you must first wait for the crown to cool. If it is not carefully removed from the hole, there is a risk of tearing the carbide insert as the solder strength decreases at high temperatures.

Tungsten carbide chips

Models with tungsten carbide chips are the most affordable and cheapest analogue of a diamond-coated bit. It does not differ in high accuracy of the dimensions of the resulting hole due to coarse particles in the abrasive layer. It copes fairly well with brick and concrete.

For reinforced concrete walls, the application is limited, since it is impossible to cut the reinforcement with such a crown. However, with a deep reinforcement mesh, there are no contraindications to use.

If you plan to use a crown once for making several dozen holes, then it is quite enough to purchase a similar model and not spend money on expensive diamond tools.

DIY installation process

Installation of socket boxes always begins with marking. The height of the location is calculated from the floor level to the center of the future nest. According to a previously prepared diagram, the height and distance from the nearest wall are marked. It is advisable to attach the open side of the socket to the wall and outline its contour, so it will be easier to control the correctness of drilling.

If the crown has a pilot drill, you can pre-mark a centering hole for it. This can be done with a conventional concrete drill. For these purposes, a diameter of 6 mm is suitable. The depth of the hole can be chosen arbitrarily, usually it is drilled 60-70 mm.

You can do without it, but with this method, the risk of deviation from perpendicularity to the wall surface is minimized. A crown is installed relative to the resulting guide axis and drilled to the required depth. It is advisable to make a recess slightly larger than the height of the socket, so that you do not have to finish the hole later.

After removing the crown, a layer of concrete remains in the wall between the pilot hole and the cylindrical cut. It can be removed with a hammer drill or with a hammer and chisel.

It is advisable to chamfer the edges of the resulting hole. To do this, you can try using a coarse file. This will make it possible to completely drown the socket in the wall. This method allows you to achieve a perfect fit of the decorative frame of the socket to the wall. If you neglect this manipulation, there may be a gap of one to two millimeters between the frame and the wall.

It is advisable to deepen the section of the groove near the hole. This will facilitate the subsequent routing of the cable through the hole in the socket. Before installation, clean concrete dust from the groove and recess in order to improve the setting of the mortar. It is advisable to prime the surfaces, but you can get by with a simple wetting with water.

Next, you need to make a solution of alabaster according to the instructions on the package. Do not knead a large volume, as the solution sets very quickly. It is better to prepare it for each outlet separately. The mixture should be applied in a thin layer over the entire surface of the recess. The volume of the solution should be sufficient to fill the entire space between the wall and the glass.

The socket is inserted into the prepared hole and aligned with the building level or any flat bar. This will exclude the possibility of its sinking or protruding beyond the surface. Alabaster hardens quickly, so it won't take long to hold the socket in the desired position.

Socket crowns make it easy to install sockets and switches in walls made of any material. The most reliable and versatile tool is a concrete diamond core bit for rosettes. Its use makes it possible to make holes even in reinforced concrete, without worrying about the reinforcement getting into the drilling zone. The high cost is fully justified by the excellent performance characteristics.