How To Install Floating House Numbers on Brick

Pick the best spot

Start by selecting a good place to mount the numbers

• Stand out in the street for a good view of your property.
  • Walk around and look at your property from various angles.
• Choose a spot that’s near the front door, visible from the street and illuminated by a light source.
  • Numbers should be mounted at approximately eye level.

Lay out center line and height

• Mark a center line.
  • If the numbers will be mounted between two objects, measure the distance between them and make a pencil mark at the halfway point.

• Draw a vertical line on your mark using the level. This will be the midpoint of your house numbers.
  • Pencil marks will wash off brick, but you can put painter’s tape on the wall and make marks on that if desired.

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• Decide the height for your numbers.
  • Avoid mounting hardware in the mortar joints or on the edge of the bricks.
  • Hold up the numbers in a few spots to determine the best height to avoid mortar.
• Mark the height.
  • Hold the level horizontally and draw a line to mark the top of your numbers.

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Lay out the house number boundaries

• Determine the outside boundaries for your numbers.
  • If you want them to fit within an 18-inch space, measure nine inches from your center line on both sides and make marks.
• Determine the spacing based on how many numbers you have.
  • Don’t try to cram five numbers in a one-foot space or you risk destroying the brick with all the holes.
• Draw vertical lines at your boundary marks with the level. You now have a three-sided “box” and will fit your numbers within this space.

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Mark your numbers

• Poke holes as indicated on the templates that come with the numbers.
• If you don’t have a template, make your own with a blank piece of paper: 
  
  • Place paper over the back of the number and poke through at the mounting holes.
  • Hold the paper level when marking holes on the wall.
• Cut off the top of the templates so you can hold the top of the number flush with the horizontal line on your wall.
• Hold the first template level on the brick wall and mark holes with a pencil.
  • For an odd number of house numbers, hold the middle number template centered on your center mark.
  • For an even number, align the first and last numbers at the corners of the box you drew on the wall.
• Evenly space out the rest of the numbers and mark holes with a pencil.

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Drill the holes and install anchors

Safety note: Always wear eye and hearing protection when operating power tools.

• Drill holes at your marks with a drill or impact driver and carbide bit, or a hammer dill and SDS bit.
  • Verify the size of the drill bit needed in the instructions that came with the house numbers.
  • Make a mark on your drill bit with tape or a Sharpie the same depth as your anchor, so you know how deep to make the hole.
  • Do not use a regular wood or metal drill bit in brick or concrete. It will dull quickly.

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• Drill slowly at first to start the hole. If the drill bit “walks” or moves away from your mark, stop drilling and realign.
  • Use firm pressure and be careful to stay on your marks. If you don’t, the anchors won’t line up with your house numbers.
• Blow the dust out of the hole and push in the anchor.
  • If the anchor is not flush, pull it out with needle-nose pliers and drill a little deeper.

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Install the numbers

• Screw in the threaded rod hardware into the back of the numbers and tighten with pliers.
• Slide the spacers onto the threaded rod and push the numbers into the anchors on the wall.
  • Verify the instructions on your house numbers. Some brands use caulk instead of concrete anchors.
  • The process for laying out and drilling the holes is the same for either method.
• Hold a towel over the numbers and hit with your pliers or another solid object if the numbers don’t slide easily into the holes.
  • The towel will prevent scratching the finish when you bang the numbers into place.

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