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How to mount picture frame lights?

Hi all,

I am trying to mount picture wall lights on top of frames in the hallway. Each light has two hooks. I was a bit skeptical in drilling a hole or use any anchors so I have tried using Gorilla mounting tape (black), 3M mounting tape and adhesive hooks which have been unsuccessful and only worked for few days until the light falls off. Thè weights of these lights is 1.8kg each but I think the way the weight is divided with most of the weight exerted down from the narrow light barrel as it has the batteries, seems to be the reason they fall off.

Would appreciate some suggestions which causes minimum wear to the wall.

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Dave-1

Good afternoon @foxhound

Yeah dont think any kind of tape would stand up to that type of lever over hanging the wall. Minumn disruption to the wall is your want. I really cant think of any glue/tape base products I would be confidant of using. 1.8Kgs of light even mounted to say the picture frame would add a lot of forward tension to the picture.

A couple of questions of course.

What type of wall are you hanging from? (Concrete/plaster)

Could you show a picture of what you are trying to do?

What do you mean by two hooks on each light?

If the wall is plaster the most minimal screw/wall anchor I can think of are these. plaster board wall anchor Wallmate do make a bunch of nice products. This one you could unscrew when finished nad then putty the hole fairly easily. I am not sure of what weight this one holds (Im sure bunnings will help out there 🙂 )

I have overhanging lights on my bookshelves and was lucky that I could screw into the top of the shelf. Could you mount a timber rail to the wall? so that way you could hang the lights of the rail? (Like an old picture rail) That way minimal holes would be needed into your wall.

Dave

EricL

Hello @foxhound

It's great that you've received excellent advice from @Dave-1. It's important that we find out what kind of wall you you have before we can make a comprehensive recommendation. There are many types of hooks and nails that you can use to hang your lights, but each of them can only work certain materials.

Just to give you an idea of how heavy 1.8kg is imagine hanging a 2-litre bottle of soda with just tape on two spots. It will hold it there for some time, but eventually the bottles weight will drag it down and the tape will fail.

I'm aware that you are a bit wary drilling into your wall, but we can assist you with that. As soon as you tell us what kind of wall you have, we'll be able to make recommendations on how to proceed.

Because your lamps have weight in them, I'm afraid you'll need to consider drilling into your wall or use hook imbedding devices to keep your light in place. I've made a short list of items you can use on your wall.

I also recommend having a look at this guide - How to hang just about anything by @Adam_W.

Hooks and devices:

3M Claw™ Picture Hanger - 1 Pack (no drilling needed simply push into plasterboard wall)
Ramset Nylon WallMate Plasterboard Anchor - 10 Pack (pilot hole must be made before screwing this into plasterboard)
Ramset 6 x 38mm Universal Anchor - 6 Pack (pilot hole must be made, will work on concrete, Bessa block or masonry)

If you have any other questions we can help you with, please let us know.

Eric

foxhound

Thank you Eric and Dave,

My apologies for not providing enough information in the first post.

Again, I want as minimal damage to the wall as possible.

What type of wall are you hanging from? Plaster

Could you show a picture of what you are trying to do?

Screenshot 2023-06-22 224756.jpg

What do you mean by two hooks on each light?

Screenshot 2023-06-22 224937.png

Dave-1

@foxhound

Thanks for the photos.

Bad news is I do not know of a way to mount those types of lights without having to drill into a wall to support them.

I keep coming back to a picture/light rail that is mounted along the wall like an old school picture hook rail. This would have minimal holes into the wall and allow you to hang heavier things off it.

The second option is that you could hang the lights off a bookcase with the picture inside (without the shelves)

Retrofit bookcases This is along the lines of what I mean. You would end up with a frame to mount your lights and also hang the picture without damaging teh walls. These were ex work/office bookcases that I retrofitted. I did at one point thinking of mounting a tv with one. I think it would blend nicely.

With the two hooks I think it referes to the wall fasteners. The weight will be resonable so it will need to be screwed in to something.

Dave

EricL

Hello @foxhound

Thank you so much for that added information. If you followed @Dave-1's link to the library, it is an impressive sight.

If you're really not keen in drilling into your wall, I recommend using heavy-duty double-sided tape such as Scotch-Mount Extreme Double-Sided Mounting Tape 2.5cm x 1.5m and Tarzan's Grip 1.5m Heavy Duty Mounting Tape. However, please be aware that these tapes when applied to plasterboard walls will damage the surface when taken off.

My number one tip is to use Diggers 125ml Isopropyl Cleaning Alcohol on the wall before mounting the tape. Please don't use methylated spirits as it leaves a film on the surface.

As an alternative, I also suggest having a look at the Ramset 8 x 50mm Universal Anchor - 20 Pack. These anchors are easy to install and require no special methods other than drilling a pilot hole for the plastic plug.

Let me call on our experienced members @JoeAzza and @TedBear for their recommendations.

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric

JoeAzza

@foxhound @Using wall mates will work, although you have to drill a small hole for each wall mate. If you ever have to remove then, just patch and paint where the wall mate was installed.

Another idea is look at installing Down lights with a humble that is pointed to each picture on the wall, now this would be expensive, which would require an electrician to install.

foxhound

Thank you Eric and Zoe

May I please ask what is the difference between Ramset Nylon WallMate Plasterboard Anchor and Ramset Universal Anchors . And which one of these two would be ideal in my case ?

JoeAzza

@foxhound the Ramsey ones expand as you tighten the the stew, the Wall mate ones are screwed into the plaster using a Philips head screwdriver, then you can use the supplied screw Tinto the the wall mate to mount the light fitting, the packaging will have instructions on how to mount it. I always use wall mates on plaster, not sure about the Ramsey ones.

youtube has many videos on how to mount wall mates

Youtube video

https://youtu.be/fdCTaDr6J-o

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