Is it safe to drill here to install a solar floodlight?

Question

Hi everyone!

Recently moved into my first home and while my crossover was being done (unable to park cars inside the garage), both my cars had their windows smashed and broken into. I've bought Luxzone solar floodlight to install on top of my garage door to try to fend off any future break-ins. I'd love to get a sparky's help in installing this, to be on the safe side, but being short on budget I plan on doing this myself.

Do you think it's safe to drill on the flat area about the garage door as highlighted by red rectangles in the attached pictures? The mounting bracket is located right behind the top-end of the floodlight's solar panel. I don't have any other outdoor lights or features. I've tried taking a picture of the inside of the roof to get some idea (third picture) but that's not helping much and I'm still confused. Can someone who's done a similar installation help please? I'm based in Perth.

Thanks so much!

Noyade · Answer

Just Sunday curiosity - but is there enough base to project the lights beyond the gutter width?

Cheers!

Sloth · Answer

Thanks so much JacobZ for the quick and detailed reply and putting my mind at ease. You da best!😊

My driveway is a bit inclined so I don't feel safe using a stepladder to check the rafters' location from above the gutter, but I do have a selfie stick handy which I'll use to record a video on my mobile. I'll try to keep you posted on how I go.

Cheers!

JacobZ · Answer

Hi @Sloth,

While it's not recommended to use a metal fascia as a mounting point for anything overly heavy or structural, you shouldn't really have any issues mounting a light to it.

They are usually, attached to the tails of your rafters via a mounting bracket and they are usually fairly close to the rafter, so if you can locate the rafter, drilling through the fascia into the rafter is ideal. If safe to do so, you can often see evidence of the rafters locations from above the gutter. If you can locate a rafter, I'd suggest you screw through the fascia into the rafter using a couple of 50mm timber screws.

If you can't locate a rafter, it's not ideal, but you should be fine to mount your light to the fascia using a couple of tek screws such as these

https://www.bunnings.com.au/buildex-10g-x-16mm-class-4-cladding-fencing-teks-screws-with-seal-20-pack_p0920356

.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob