JF_Potter Posted May 30, 2021 Report Share Posted May 30, 2021 I’m making some decorative ceramic tiles that are about 16”x16” and 1/2” thick, and was wondering how people have hung similar types of work in the past into walls. One option I’m thinking of is attaching (glue?) border pieces of acrylic to the back outside and then drilling holes through that and attaching wire. Another option is to attach wire straight to the ceramic back using ceramic add on tab loop things, or put holes on the outside border of the back and attach wire through that. I am worried that there isn’t enough thickness to my pieces to support them though if I go this route. I could also skip wire entirely and just put in a recess where a hook can be hung onto the piece, but again worried about the structural integrity of the piece with how thin it is. Any other thoughts/options? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted May 30, 2021 Report Share Posted May 30, 2021 Interesting Idea I have seen is adding two small squares of clay two thirds up and placing a hole through each for a hanging wire. Adding a third in the center at the bottom levels things out then felt can be easily added to all three to prevent wall scratches. I your case, adding what turn out to be feet presents warping issues with firing because of the size. My go to is to. add standard Picture hanger D rings using a good grade epoxy and rubber bumper(s)to the bottom so it sits nicely against the wall and easily holds its center when positioned. I find hanging with a traditional wire allows for easy leveling and the use of simple picture wall anchors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted May 31, 2021 Report Share Posted May 31, 2021 I don't trust any sort of adhesive. A wire through the clay or some other mechanical system is the safest way to hang a piece. The difficult thing with tiles is that they may warp in the firing if you start adding things to the back side. Look into plate hangers that grip the piece from the edges. Only a tiny bit of the hanger is visible. It depends on the thickness and weight of the piece as to whether or not they'll work for your tiles, though. For your long tiles you could use a pair of them. You can also spray paint them black or white or whatever color to match the tile so they don't show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karenkstudio Posted May 31, 2021 Report Share Posted May 31, 2021 the photo illustrates how I hang my larger Raku wall tiles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted May 31, 2021 Report Share Posted May 31, 2021 On my flat fish wall art -I use JB weld epoxy to cement two ceramic pieces that have a small hole thru them and are flat on one side and rough for glue to grip. After drying I string them with stainless wire which will not rust. I do know that if hung in direct sun (gets very hot) some epoxies can loosen so testing is in order. I like the weather proof no rot or freeze to this solution. No wood to sour up. For indoors wood is fine.My fish go in and outside so I need to cover those bases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JF_Potter Posted May 31, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2021 Appreciate all the suggestions. Good to know that epoxy with ceramic/wood add-ons work well. Seems to be a good and simple solution! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted June 1, 2021 Report Share Posted June 1, 2021 4 hours ago, JF_Potter said: Appreciate all the suggestions. Good to know that epoxy with ceramic/wood add-ons work well. Seems to be a good and simple solution! Just a comment or two about epoxy. (these will all be approximate reasonable or conservative numbers) Typical service temperature is approximately -60 - 250f. With the ability to withstand momentary exposures to 500f. Common strength characteristics usually are developed strength to 4000 psi range. They all (general epoxy) pretty much lose their strength at Tg or glass transition temperature where their strength decreases and are removable with about 260 psi applied to them. What does that all mean, if you used the wood application above and use a single 6” long piece of wood (6 square inches) and we derate the epoxy to 2000 psi (half its rated strength) then you need about 12000 pounds of force to remove it as long as it is operating within its service temperature. (-60- 250f) In other words, you will likely remove the glaze or ceramic base material first trying to get this off. So the point is the wood method, because of the amount of surface area makes this very very strong for this use. If one were to heat it to near Tg, (say 300- 500f) then you could remove it with about 1200 pounds of force, probably by prying and getting it to separate slowly. In other words, in general, even prosumer sourced epoxy is pretty strong for most uses, and the more square inches glued down, the better. Mechanical connections are always best, but real epoxy has been used for many many years in industry. It’s generally pretty strong for such tasks. Having said that, epoxy is generally not good to adhere flexible items together, leather, etc.... Hopefully that takes a bit of mystery out of epoxy for some folks and provides some perspective what the numbers mean in a general way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted June 1, 2021 Report Share Posted June 1, 2021 JB weld has broken off still holding the glaze it was glued to and the ceramic area broke in 1/2. That stuff is way strong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_H Posted June 1, 2021 Report Share Posted June 1, 2021 JB weld. There's also a knife-grade polyester that I used to laminate granite/stone for bullnosing, but it's spendy and unless you have a lot to do, probably not worth it: https://www.bbindustriesllc.com/akemi-platinum-4-knife-grade-epoxy-acrylate.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted June 1, 2021 Report Share Posted June 1, 2021 1 hour ago, Mark_H said: There's also a knife-grade polyester that I used to laminate granite/stone Probably great for that use and speed of cure but the service temperature limits are fairly low for that product Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_H Posted June 1, 2021 Report Share Posted June 1, 2021 4 hours ago, Bill Kielb said: Probably great for that use and speed of cure but the service temperature limits are fairly low for that product It does set up fast Bill, but how hot is it really going to get on a wall though? "very good adhesion on natural stones also at higher temperatures (70-80°C; in case of low exposure to strain: 100-110°C)" Per their data sheet. We've used it next to cooktops and grills (outdoor couters) and no sign of delaminating. I'll concede to engineering, but those temps seem like they'd work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted June 1, 2021 Report Share Posted June 1, 2021 11 minutes ago, Mark_H said: We've used it next to cooktops and grills (outdoor couters) and no sign of delaminating. I'll concede to engineering, but those temps seem like they'd work. Seems like a good product for its use but the prosumer stuff is cheap and rated a bit higher in temperature. Probably not near as workable though. Clear, easily tinted, and thixotropic seem to be important qualities for that application. Not sure what it’s bond strength is not likely an issue though as the granite likely fails before it does so no need for crazy high strength. I, couldn’t locate any literature on the site but I am sure it’s popular for a reason. Also the ability to reasonably remove could be important without overheating your counter to death. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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