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Suggestions Painted Cinder Block Wall

Wesley Powell

Account Rep
Hey everyone!

We recently got a job to wrap a painted cinder block wall in the weight room of a college stadium. We plan on using 3M's LX480mC as the material but have also seen where people use IJ8624 as their material of choice. Does anyone have suggestions or experience with the two different material? Also, the design has 8" and 10" 1/4" acylic letters to be mounted on the top of the vinyl. Has anyone used VHB tape to mount the letters on top of the vinyl or would you steer away from that and use stud mount? Any input would be greatly appreciated.
 

unclebun

Active Member
I wouldn't use the IJ8624 unless the graphic is temporary and will need to be changed in the near future.

I think 1/4" acrylic is getting to the limits of using tape mounting, especially with a textured surface, which cuts your adhesive area.
 

Wesley Powell

Account Rep
I wouldn't use the IJ8624 unless the graphic is temporary and will need to be changed in the near future.

I think 1/4" acrylic is getting to the limits of using tape mounting, especially with a textured surface, which cuts your adhesive area.

Yeah thats what were thinking as well too unfortunately, it would have just been a lot quicker and easier to slap it on there with the tape versus drilling the stud holes. I appreciate the feedback!
 

ddarlak

Go Bills!
1/4" acrylic taped to vinyl isn't going anywhere. I would tape it all day. lots of little pieces of tape will do the trick.
 

Gino

Premium Subscriber
How high off the floor will the 1/4" letters be placed ??

Double sided tape will hold 1/2" acrylic alright, but not to the vinyl all that well. That's a lotta extra weight to hold. Also, if these letters are too close to where people can reach them, they will be removed. You could always cut out where the letters will be going and tape directly to the wall or even silicon a little bit. I do believe your letters will outlast your wall wrap, so whatever you do, be prepared to tell them, it will leave a mess when finally removed.
 

visual800

Active Member
Why not stretch a digitally printed banner over that wall , do you have that option?

and yes the acrylic letters would be fine with vhb there is no sense in stud mounting
 

Wesley Powell

Account Rep
How high off the floor will the 1/4" letters be placed ??

Double sided tape will hold 1/2" acrylic alright, but not to the vinyl all that well. That's a lotta extra weight to hold. Also, if these letters are too close to where people can reach them, they will be removed. You could always cut out where the letters will be going and tape directly to the wall or even silicon a little bit. I do believe your letters will outlast your wall wrap, so whatever you do, be prepared to tell them, it will leave a mess when finally removed.
The letters will be mounted behind a weight rack approximately 7' - 8' foot off the ground. We talked about cutting out places in the vinyl to put strips of tape directly to the wall for better adhesion but wasn't sure if it would help much with the wall being painted. Another factor that we are trying to take into consideration is we've been told it tends to get pretty humid at times in the room. How long would you expect the vinyl to last?
 

jwilde

New Member
VHB is fine, you can get a thicker mil to fully seat into the depths of the block (probably minimal after coats of paint and vinyl & laminate) and will have no adhesion issues on the vinyl. I think the wet out on the fhb is 48hrs.
If you're concerned about it use a bit VHB and an adhesive like Lords Signlok Epoxy too.
 

kcollinsdesign

Old member
The paint used on the wall is a big consideration. Many institutions will use epoxy paint, which is durable and easy to clean, but will easily flake off the wall. In most cases, even masking tape will pull the paint off. I would have a discussion with the building engineer or custodial staff before I started taping or glueing anything.
 

JTBoh

I sell signage and signage accessories.
They're gonna want a painted on look. Be prepared to heat and Rollepro the entire wall, and make sure you put in a TON of labor.
 

Wesley Powell

Account Rep
They're gonna want a painted on look. Be prepared to heat and Rollepro the entire wall, and make sure you put in a TON of labor.
Yeah we were sure add in more than enough labor time into our quote. Also we will be using the 3M TSA-4 for applying the vinyl to help with steady heat and pressure.
 

DerbyCitySignGuy

New Member
This sounds like it's going to be a permanent installation, so why risk your letters falling off or being pulled off the wall? Just stud mount them and call it a day. The extra time and labor isn't really that much and you'll save yourself trips out there to replace stolen letters, because that's exactly what will happen.
 
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