Bosch Hammer Drill Not Hammering? (Possible Causes & Fixes)

A hammer drill is often viewed as a specialty tool outside the realm of a standard, traditional drill. A hammer drill not only provides rotational movement to drill through materials successfully, but it also provides a directional, pulsing, or hammering motion, which can help give your drill additional power. Unfortunately, sometimes a hammer drill does not create the hammering motion either while drilling through a material or running idle.

If a Bosch hammer drill is not hammering, the problem most likely is internal. The most likely causes for a Bosch hammer drill that is not hammering are a broken piston, a collapsed roller bearing, or an internal cylinder collapse. Bosch sells replacement parts, as well as service kits, that allow a savvy homeowner to disassemble their Bosch hammer drill and troubleshoot the drill.

Usually, with just thirty minutes of work, getting a hammer drill hammering once again is possible. Often, the thin o-ring that helps create a vacuum on the internal piston loses lubrication or degrades. When the piston cannot create a vacuum, it quickly loses power, which can prevent your hammer drill from hammering.

Simply work to maintain and replace your Bosch hammer drill’s internal parts to get your tool back into working condition once more.

A hammer drill is a specialty tool that can add more power to the drill’s rotating head. This additional power is often measured in Joules and can help you drill through rigid materials. The more Joules your hammer drill has, the more powerful the tool.

Compared to a traditional drill, a hammer drill is much more powerful and is often used to drill through concrete, brick, and some tile. The hammer drill has a knocking or pulsating motion that can apply downward pressure to the head of the drill, as the rotational power works for drilling through tough materials.

Luckily, Bosch regularly sells parts that allow you to repair and troubleshoot your Bosch hammer drill. Taking your drill apart will allow you to troubleshoot and identify the possible problem with your drill’s internal workings. To dissemble and diagnose the problem, assume that you will need about thirty minutes to complete the work. You will only need basic tools, such as a screwdriver, to take the Bosch hammer drill apart. To troubleshoot and fix your hammer drill, follow the below steps.

Using a hammer drill has many benefits and, although this may be a specialty tool far removed from most DIY homeowners, it is a valuable and practical tool to have in your arsenal. A hammer drill adds more power to your drilling application by giving the drill’s rotational head pulsating energy. This extra power can help you drill through tough and rugged materials, including concrete, brick, and tile.

Further, additional attachments outside of the traditional drill bits can be added to a hammer drill, furthering its useful applications. It is not uncommon to attach a chisel to a hammer drill to make a concrete or brick slab easy to breakthrough. Many plumbers will keep a hammer drill in their tool collection to help with simple projects and plumbing applications.

Related Questions

What Can I Use Instead of a Hammer Drill?

A hammer drill is a specialty tool that is often used to drill through masonry, tile, and brick. It is a powerful drill that sends additional pulsating power to the drill head to allow you to drill through thick and tough material. If you do not own a hammer drill,  it is possible to use a masonry drill bit on a common impact drill or standard drill. The masonry bit will allow you to drill holes into the concrete using a standard drill.Keep in mind that using a masonry drill bit on a standard drill will be slow work, and it may take multiple masonry bits to get through the concrete or the brick. The thicker the concrete or the larger the project, the more time it will take you to drill through the material with a conventional drill.If you ever use a standard or regular wood drill bit, you will not have much luck, and the difficult and tough concrete will likely ruin the drill bit.

Is a Hammer Drill the Same as an Impact Drill?

Although the two types of drills may sound similar, the truth is that a hammer drill and impact drill are very different and used for different applications. However, it may seem simple to remember, a hammer drill hammers, while an impact drill applies added force through impact.The hammer drill will add extra power to the drill head through a knocking or hammering motion. Comparatively, an impact drill will pulse and apply extra impact to the drill head as it rotates.Generally speaking, a hammer drill will have much more power than an impact drill. Due to the added power a hammer drill has, it is often the drill of choice for specific applications. While both a hammer drill and an impact drill can drill through wood and metal, only a hammer drill can drill through concrete, tiles, and brick.Often, the power of a hammer drill will be expressed in a unit of measurement called a Joule. The more joules a drill has, the more powerful the hammering motion will be.