How To Find A Stud Behind Your Tile Every Time

When installing a towel rack or grab bars in the shower to make your home more accessible, it may be necessary to locate the studs behind the tile on your shower wall. If the tile stops before the ceiling, you can use a stud finder on the drywall above the tile to determine the placement of studs. When the tile covers the wall from floor to ceiling, you'll have to use different methods. 

Finding studs behind tile is more difficult than locating them behind drywall for a few reasons. Ceramic and porcelain tiles are thicker and denser than drywall. Plus, the materials used behind the tile, including cement board and layers of thin set, add more thickness. In most cases, you will be able to find the studs but will likely need to use more sensitive equipment.

One way to is to use a deep sensor stud finder or Ultra Wide Band (UWB) scanners. Another method is drilling exploratory pilot holes using a small bit. For difficult projects, you might have to combine these methods to ensure that you have found the studs before drilling into the tile. 

While it is easy to learn how to use a stud finder on drywall, locating studs in a tile wall is more challenging. Stud finders used on drywall may not accurately detect studs behind tile. You can buy a deep sensor stud finder to locate the studs. Deep sensor stud finders can locate studs behind denser materials found on tile walls.If that fails, try a UWB scanner, which can find studs using radar technology, rather than locating metal fasteners on studs. These tools are much more accurate, but they're quite expensive. If you only need the tool to find studs for one job, it's not worth spending $700 or more. Try renting or borrowing one instead.

Drilling pilot holes through the grout between tiles can help you find and verify stud locations. Studs are typically installed every 16 inches on center, meaning 16 inches between the center of one stud to the center of the next. Start by measuring 16 inches from the corner of a room, then drill a small pilot hole into the grout in that location. Push a finish nail through the hole to see if there's a stud. If you find one, mark the area with tape and plant to mount your bar there. 

Using studs to install grab bars or towel racks in a tile wall is the safest and most ideal method, but if all else fails it's possible to install shower grab bars without studs. If you can't locate studs, you can try mounting a grab bar using toggle bolt anchors instead.