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I'm trying to mount a tv into my chimney walls. My TV is 65" and weighs in about 65"lbs or so. I drilled in 6 holes. 3 at the top 3 at the bottom with about 12" apart. I was going to use the strap toggle anchors since. I used a .5" drill bit thinking I wouldnt hit a stud. As I was drilling, I realized that I actually did hit a stud and probably drilled half an inch into the stud.

Now I have 1/2 inch hole which i would like to repair so I can screw directly into the stud. Do you think I can just take 1/2 inch dowel, sand it down a bit, dip it in wood glue, insert it in the hole, and patch the hole with spackle and then reuse the hole with maybe a 4" screw that way it ill pass the dowel and into some of the stud?

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If you only drilled a 1/2" into the stud, and you know the stud is deep enough, get a lag or screw that matches the others a extra 1/2" longer. No doweling needed. You can dowel it if you like, but a dowel, a 1/2" in diameter and a 1/2" in, really does not hold much, the screw will still need to be 1/2" longer. 2"-2 1/2" screws should be the norm, so a 3" screw will work, unless your screws that came with the mount are 3 1/2", then the 4" screw you suggest will be fine.

Enough is perfect, too long can be bad. An 1 1/2" into the framing is great, in your case it will then need 2" not including the wall finish. That is never considered part of the length that the screw goes into to hold items in place. If your wall material is 1/2" thick, and the metal is thin, you can use a 2 1/2" screw if your wall material is 1" thick, you need a 3" screw, and so on.

Edit 3/16/15

I added a sketch to show what I am referring to. I hope it helps explain. lag bolts

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  • Hi Jack, Thanks for a great answer. I looked into the lag bolt, however, the hold in the tv mount is probably 1/4" in diameter. I'm not exactly sure how I will get a 1/2" lag bolt through the wall mount. With the dowl, I was thinking a 1" by 1/2" diamaeter. That way, the dowel will sit in the hole and the remaining space of the dry wall, cover up with spackle. This way the screw will fit into the wall mount. Any other suggestions would be appreciative. Thanks in advance.
    – Hung Huynh
    Commented Mar 16, 2015 at 16:28
  • Not a 1/2" in diameter, a 1/2" longer. The lag will still be a 1/4" in diameter
    – Jack
    Commented Mar 16, 2015 at 19:25
  • oh, but how will the lag bolt be held? Do you recommend me filling the entire hole with putty? The hole i drilled is 1.5" in length and 1/2" in diamater. I understand that the lag bolt will go into the stud, but what about the 1.5" portion that is all space?
    – Hung Huynh
    Commented Mar 16, 2015 at 20:42
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    I would not worry about filling the hole with anything. I feel it would not add any strength. Since the hole in the stud is only a 1/2" deep, and presumably the stud something like a 2X4, although there is no way for me to know, there should be 3" of wood to screw the lag in still. Consider the hole you accidentally drilled is not even there, but since it is, you will need a lag bolt a 1/2" longer to get to the wood to screw into it the proper amount. It would be good if you could confirm how big the studs are
    – Jack
    Commented Mar 17, 2015 at 4:47
  • Hi jack, Unfortunately I don't know how to tell how big my studs are. I now understand what you're trying to tell me regarding the hole. My mount will be braced against the wall and all I need to worry is to get a screw to go deep enough into the stud. My brother came by and told me I should use a Dowel just in case. This way when the screw goes in, the Dowel will split providing more reinforcement. Thank you for the picture too. Sorry for all this back and forth. I'm not a real handy type guy. I'll give you an update once I mount my TV. Thanks for all your help! Much appreciative.
    – Hung Huynh
    Commented Mar 20, 2015 at 6:20

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