Choose the best drill for your needs

A DIY enthusiast with a new project on mind? Or perhaps you want a trusty drill for your home use. Here's a list of drill types to choose from based on your needs.

• Hanging pictures/mirrors: Drill driver
• Putting up TV wall brackets: Hammer drill
• Putting up curtain poles: Corded impact drill
• Putting up shelves: Hammer drill or corded impact drill
• Putting together furniture: Electric screwdriver, Drill driver, SDS drill

When drilling through, it's essential to pick the right power tool that matches the material you are working with. Too hard or thick and your drill won't power through, too delicate and the drill can end up damaging the material.

• Metal/wood/tile/glass/plastic: Drill driver, Hammer drill or corded impact drill
• Brick: Hammer drill, Corded impact drill, SDS drill
• Concrete: SDS drill
• Tile: Drill driver, hammer drill, corded impact drill, SDS drill (tile only)

Best suited for: Both, DIY enthusiasts and professionals for quick repairs at home, furniture assembly and light to medium power tasks.

• A combi drill is a versatile choice, as it can function as a drill driver and a hammer drill.
• They are suitable for a wide range of everyday DIY tasks and essentially give you two tools in one.
• You can add more functions with various drill bits and the hammer action can tackle tougher materials like masonry.

Best suited for: Light home DIY projects such as hanging picture frames, furniture assembly, and more.

• Drill drivers have two main functions: loosening and tightening screws and drilling holes.
• They're the go-to drill for everyday jobs, like putting together furniture and putting up shelving.
• Add the correct drill and screwdriver bits to make your drill driver compatible for working on materials such as wood, metal and masonry.

Best suited for: For professionals with heavy-duty tasks such as large renovations, cable channels, concrete and brick related projects etc.

• Hammer drills are a more powerful option than drill drivers, as they are capable of drilling through brick.
• They use a powerful hammering action to make light work of drilling holes and driving fasteners.
• You can get them corded as well as cordless, due to the extra power.

Best suited for: For projects involving bolts, screws, and fasteners for tough materials such as metal and hard wood.

• Corded impact drills are a powerful option for working on dense materials around your home.
• They can handle a range of surfaces, as well as standard DIY jobs such as putting up shelving or drilling into brick.
• Although they offer extra power, you are limited on where you can work due to the cable.

Best suited for: For light DIY projects and furniture assembly tasks which involve a lot of screws and bolts.

• A screwdriver is the perfect tool for basic jobs such as putting together flat pack furniture.
• They are generally cordless, allowing you to work wherever you need to around the house.
• Forward and reverse settings make it easy to both assemble and disassemble what you are working on.

Best suited for: For professionals working on heavy-duty construction projects that involve drilling stones, concrete, bricks etc.

• SDS (self direct system) drills, or rotary hammer drills, are a powerful option, geared towards drilling through masonry.
• A powerful rotation motion makes them suited to dense drilling, chiselling and chipping tiles.
• They are generally corded and can be heavier than standard drills, due to their increased power.

Drill bits are attachments that fit into the keyless chuck of your drill. Sets of drill bits include various attachments that can make your drill suitable for a range of different functions. From SDS drill bits to metal, explore our range.

While most drills use small metal brushes to get the shaft spinning, brushless drills use an electronic circuit board and a sensor instead. This makes them more responsive, energy efficient, lighter and much longer lasting.

Replacement batteries are used with cordless drills. For big DIY projects, having multiple batteries is key - keep one in action while the other charges for uninterrupted workflow.

Torque is the force that causes rotation and more torque means faster rotation. For tough materials, like brick work, a high torque setting is best, while for more delicate materials like wood a lower torque setting reduces the amount of damage.

Drill speed is measured in RPM (revolutions per minute). Less speed is needed for driving screws or drilling into delicate materials such as glass and stainless steel. A higher speed might be needed for drilling into harder materials such as brick and hardwood. Quick tip, be careful about heat damage when drilling on high speeds.

The chuck is the part of the drill that holds the drill bits in. In general, a keyless chuck will take bits with diameters between 0.5mm and 10mm or 13mm for drills with larger chucks.

Drilling capacity is not the depth of the hole that can be drilled, but the maximum diameter of drill bit that can be used. It's always worth checking that drill bits are compatible with the drill you are using.

Drills with a reverse function can change the direction of drill and bits. This comes handy when using impact drivers and electric screwdrivers for loosening bolts and screws.

Drills with more than one gear lets you select different speed ranges. You can control the speed of single gear drills with the speed control trigger. This comes handy when you are working different types of material requiring different speeds and control to prevent damage. 

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