Core-Drilling Through Exterior Brick Wall into Garage

[Burgerkong]

I want to install a ventilation fan into my attached garage and was just wondering what was recommended, either:

1) Rent a 6" core bit/rotary hammer (most places make you rent the hammer as well); or

2) Chip away at the mortar lines and take out the bricks whole until I have an opening big enough for the vent pipe, then patch it back up

Also read about drilling a bunch of small holes and then filling in the gaps with expanding foam, but option 1 is $46 at Home Depot. Is it recommended, provided I avoid drilling through structural members?

 

[The Cobbler]

hole saw will do a cleaner job for sure.

 

[dogdog]

......on brick and concrete ?
Easier if you rent that core bit they have two versions.... one is for sds max rotary hammer version and the other is for their core drills. But make sure the hole you want is 6" and not 6"3/8 or something most of those flexible exhaust ducts are ID of 6" and OD of 6" and change. Either case you can always fill the gap with those foams.


SDS Max / Spline / rotary hammer version I have this one still takes me about 2 hours to drill through 18" or 20"" concrete and bricks. wear hearing protection and eye safety.

http://www.zoro.com/milwaukee-hammer-drill-core-bit-sds-max-6x22-in-48-20-5440/i/G7470005/

The core drill version NOT for hammer drills. I could be wrong.

http://www.diamondbladestogo.com/st...feed=Froogle&gclid=COmM7o7cqcYCFYU6aQodC44OLA

The other option if you have the sds max or plus drills and a long enough drill bit is to drill through your walls.... take a template of a 6" circle drill a center hole all the way through... drill a series of smaller starter holes for your larger drill bits on the outer edges and drill through with the larger bit.... then chip away.... takes longer but cheaper.

I do a hybrid of both..., start with the core bit for me to get a outline... then drill through center hole with the longer smaller diameter bit as the guide bit to get the center from the the other side so I can see where it lands.... then drill through all outer rim impression of the core bit drill with a series of holes with a long sds max bit.... then chuck at it with the sds hammer core bit.

Get a spray bottle water to cool your bits or a garden hose

 

[Burgerkong]

Nope, just brick. Should be sheathing and foam underneath and then plywood and drywall. All of the core bits I've seen are used with the drilling only mode on a rotary hammer, so I presume hammering wrecks the teeth.

 

[rustyjames]

A core bit will go through brick like butter.

 

[homebuilt burner]

If it is just brick, the drive to rent the drill will take longer than drilling. If you do get into a deeper wall than the hole saw you will have to stop and knock the plug out so you can finish your hole. It is best if when almost through you stop and drill back through from the other side so you don't "blow out" your wall when the drill breaks through.

Running a large cement dril with a 6" hole saw feels great have your wife watch it looks impressive. Think Tim the Tool man grunt

 

[Burgerkong]

See, I didn't know if it was kosher or not, I've been googling some and people recommend chipping away the brick or drilling small holes. Will be avoiding any studs/structural members by using a stud detector then drilling a small hole from the inside all the way through to the exterior as my guide.

 

[brewchief]

How tight of a tolerance for the hole size do you have? Any trim going around it?

I can open a hole like that up in 10-15 minutes with a brick chisel and hammer if a possible chipped brick or an extra piece coming out is not a problem.

Mark it out and then go around it with the hammer and chisel to lightly score the outline, punch a hole through in the center and enlarge it out to your score line. Results may vary slightly depending on how hard the brick is.

Repair mortar can be purchased in small buckets at home depot and just needs water added if you have any large gaps to fill.

Core bit will work just fine but may not end up with a much cleaner hole, they can chip and crack brick in some cases.

 

[Burgerkong]

Just realized it all depends on the fan I was putting in - I have a single car garage, so nothing too exotic or powerful is needed. Came up with two choices, a conventional axial fan, which requires a 8-10" hole depending on model (minimum), or a centrifugal fan which gives me the required CFMs (around 200-300CFM depending on frequency of air changes, 7 in this case) with just a 6" duct hole.

Decisions, decisions.

 

[75gmck25]

I have brick walls that are double-width right above the plate level, so I had to go through both layers of brick to put in a vent fan and dryer vent in my basement.
- First time (dryer vent) I used multiple holes with a hammer drill and a chisel to break out in between. It was cheap, but time consuming. I also managed to hit my hand more than once because my chisel was not really long enough to easily reach the inner layer of brick. It was a tedious job sitting on the ground outside chipping away brick.
-2nd time (vent fan) I rented a drill and 4 1/4" core bit. I also rented a 2" bit to drill a hole for my sump pump line. Drill time through brick for both holes was about 10 minutes. My son held the drill (heavy) and I made sure it stayed lined up and that it drilled in at the right angle. It took some additional time with a standard hole saw to go through the wood layers inside, but that also went quickly.

The only downside is that it was a lot more expensive to rent than I expected. I live outside DC and a rental place in Arlington charged me almost $150 to rent the drill and two core bits for up to 4 hours.

Bruce

 

[engineer2]

Coring a 6" dia hole in a brick wall presents the challenge of holding the drill rig in place, plus dealing with the water to cool the drill. The drill can't move around or the core drill will bind. The rig rented out by HD is really meant to drill holes in floors. IMHO, you are better oout chiseling out the brick as needed. A wooden panel can easily be built to fill the gap between the round duct and the square hole.

 

[rustyjames]

You can core through brick dry, no problem other than the dust created.

 

[1MtnGoat]

Use a piece of 3/4 plywood with a hole in it the size of your core drill. Using TapCons or similar fasteners secure it to the wall where to hole needs to be drilled. Place core drill in hole and begin hole. No need to struggle. The plywood keeps the core drill from "walking" and will hold the core drill in place until it has "bit into" the wall. The HD setup will work fine. I've put many a hole in this way.