Wall art has a way of personalizing just about any room. From a framed certificate to photographs of family and friends, framed pictures come in many different shapes and sizes. Of course, to hang these pictures up you’ll need to put a hole into the wall. When you own the house that isn’t an issue, but if you’re renting an apartment, it turns into more of a problem. You don’t want to cause additional damage to the apartment walls, which you might be charged for upon moving out. That is why you need to make sure and hang pictures in your apartment the right way. Here are the steps you need to take to do just that.
How Many Hangers Are Needed
Before you hang anything, you’ll need to know how many hangers or hooks are needed. Some will only require a single hook. Others might require two. If you only need one you won’t need to do much additional work. However, if you have two you’ll need to perform some additional measuring.
Measure the distance between the two points on the frame requiring a hook. Measure from the center each hanging points.
Marking Off the Location
You don’t need to hang pictures from wall studs. In act, it’s probably best you avoid these areas. It will require additional drilling and really isn’t necessary. As long as you hang it correctly into the drywall you won’t have a problem placing your pictures (even heavy ones) into the wall.
If you’re hanging a single hook picture, you can easily draw a point on the wall using a pencil. If you’re hanging a heavier picture that uses a wire instead of a hook, make sure to account for slack the wire will pull down. With a wire, you’ll want to mark several inches higher than you would for photographs using stationary hooks.
If you’re measuring out a location in the wall for a two-hook frame, mark out the first one on the wall. Now, take a level and measure out the distance. Make sure it is level before marking out the second dot. You may find a laser level works great for this as well. Laser levels extend the line out further, which is helpful when you have a longer picture frame.
Hanging the Picture
If you’re hanging your picture into drywall, all you’ll need is a hammer and the hanging nail. If you’re hanging into concrete or brick, you’ll need a drill and a concrete anchor.
For drywall, take your hanging nail (you can use a regular nail or there are specialty picture frame nails available in packets at your local home improvement store). With the hanging kits, there are circular braces that fit around the nails, this helps reduce some of the strain placed on the drywall. Slide the nail through the circular brace, then gently hammer it into the wall.
If you need to drill into concrete you’ll need a concrete drill bit. Start with a smaller size drill bit and work your way up. This way, you don’t remove too much of the concrete. Once you have the space drilled, insert a concrete wall anchor. This anchor slides in and then will expand outward to fill the hole and prevent slipping. From here, screw in the concrete hook and you’re ready to go.
Heavy Photographs
Some photographs are too heavy for hanging into walls with a regular screw. There are specialty hooks for this. These specialty hooks have a long, “J” shape (or a fishing line shape). These push into the wall and will curve up and press on the back of the drywall, adding superior support. You can then hang the picture from these hooks.
Hanging pictures in your apartment is straightforward. By following these tips and instructions you’ll have no problem hanging the pictures while avoiding potential damage to the property. Additionally, pictures and other hanging objects help absorb and collect sound, which both cuts down on the amount of sound you hear from your neighbors and the amount of noise your neighbors here from you. Wherever you live and wherever you might live, it’s important to follow these steps and properly hang pictures inside the apartment.
