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I tried hammering the screw a bit to loosen it. Any suggestion? I'm thinking of getting something to saw off the holder and hammer the screw into the wall.

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    Please tell us what it is doing that you've determined you cannot get it out. Use a phillips screwdriver, and pull on the bracket as you do it. Basically "ripping the screw out of the wall"... What I'm really suggesting is that the hole the screw is in or the threads of the screw are damaged, so if you can get the threads engaged, it would back out. Also, please tel us if this screw is inserted into a wall anchor? If it is, you might need to use needle nose pliers or a flat screwdriver to hold the anchor from spinning
    – noybman
    Commented Sep 24, 2017 at 2:36
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    That looks like a plastered concrete wall. You will not want to try "hammering the screw into the wall". In the best case nothing will happen and in the worst case you will end up with a big mess with either a larger hole or a broken portion of the wall. The correct process is to either remove it like others have suggested or to cut it off below the plaster surface with a Dremel type tool with a cutoff grinder disk.
    – Michael Karas ♦
    Commented Sep 24, 2017 at 5:53
  • The screw is on a plastered concrete wall. The hole is bigger now and I can see it is stuck on the brick wall. I tried to saw it off with a metal/wood sewer. I guess it's too weak. Will look for the suggested tools to cut it off. Thanks everyone.
    – Rebecca
    Commented Oct 4, 2017 at 20:01
  • that may be a tapcon screw threaded right into the concrete. In any case from the picture you haven put real torque on it yet. Turn hard enough you will strip the head if it doesn't move or snap off.
    – agentp
    Commented Jan 24, 2018 at 0:47
  • You may not be able to get enough torque on the Phillips head, if it's not too buggered from hammering, try to get a socket on it and put some real force to it
    – poorplanning
    Commented Jan 24, 2018 at 1:17

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If you have a small socket set with a Philips bit, you can use that in the 1/4" socket. This would allow you to put pressure on the screw while removing it.

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The problem is most likely that the hollow-wall anchor the screw is threaded into has let go of the surrounding material. It's spinning freely. You want to either hold it while you turn the screw, or simply grind off the screw head.

Try reaching behind the bracket with a needle-nose pliers. Grasp the anchor and hold it securely while you turn the screw. Since the wall is already fairly damaged, don't be afraid to dig the pliers into the surface to get a better bite.

Otherwise, use a rotary tool or angle grinder to remove the screw head. Once it's off and the bracket is removed, simply drive the screw shank below the surface of the wall and make your repairs.

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