Fixing Foamex lettering to polished granite shop front?

[Martin Manley]

Hi Myles,
nobody answered your question last week so I imagine you’ve already done the job.
I would have used VHB (red type) tape as scotch weld goes hard in the mixer nozzles very quickly and you end up getting through loads of nozzles + it drips – or more precisely, oozes, and when your up a ladder, it can get messy – same goes for liquid nails or any of those silicon type fixers.
VHB is simpler but with all these things; when they eventually cure they stick like s**t! and will be really hard to get off in a years time if the shop changes hands.
When using VHB you’ve only really got one go at it – get it positioned correctly first time mate!!
Good Luck
Martin 🙄

[Myles Brewer]

Thanks Martin,
I was beginning to think I’d done something wrong as no replies!! 😥
Job is not being done til beginning of next month, just trying to research in plenty of time.
You said the red type , would that be the d/sided foam tape (4611) or 9088FL don’t know if those numbers mean anything to you.
& also would you seal or key the backs of the letters?
Thanks Myles

[Neil Churchman]

Martin,

Is it possible to go to site and fix a test piece of foamex and then pull it off and see how well it bonds to the surface?

I’ve done quite a few fixes to polished granite and have generally found it a goods surface to fix to.

We’ve always used a good quality double sided foam fixing tape to fit metal letters to polished granite from Technibond or Hexis, and we clean both surfaces with meths before application. We usually put the foam tape on the letters a day or two before we fit to achieve a better bond.

I wouldn’t think keying up the foamex surface is a good idea, because you would want the surface as smooth as possible before apply foam tape, although I can’t say for VHB tape as I have never used it.

The other thing we’ve done when recently fixing metal letters to smooth sandstone, was to use foam tape with a few drops of ‘no nails glue’ so you have two fixing methods, and incidentally we didn’t have a problem getting off foam tape or dried ‘no nails’ glue from a smooth granite surface when we tested it once.

Best advice is to test it out before doing it. 🙂

[Myles Brewer]

Hi Martin,
Thanks very much for that,
I just spent the last hour looking through the Hexis website, very impressive & informative, their range is massive!! Then spoke to Technibond, they’re sending me a sample of their HTA foam tape to try out on the granite as they’re not sure of the porosity of the surface as obviously it can vary. Hopefully it should do the job. Thanks again for the info 😀

[Russell Spencer]

3M recommend most surfaces are abraded where possible before application of any VHB tape.
I would give it a light scuffing with wet and dry then clean it with iso.
My main advice is to watch the temperature when applying, if its not warm enough or a sharp dip in temp is forecast then don’t bother, you will only be back the next month to re-fix them on again. Also apply the tape in vertical strips, this ensures that any water that runs down the back does not collect on top of the tape.

[David Rogers]

quote signsurfer:

3M recommend most surfaces are abraded where possible before application of any VHB tape.
I would give it a light scuffing with wet and dry then clean it with iso.

Sanding polished granite – think the owners might say something!

quote :

My main advice is to watch the temperature when applying, if its not warm enough or a sharp dip in temp is forecast then don’t bother, you will only be back the next month to re-fix them on again. Also apply the tape in vertical strips, this ensures that any water that runs down the back does not collect on top of the tape.

Excellent advice.

If I were doing it – I’d be using a combination of small tabs of d/s tape for initial grab with the actual work done with ‘evo-stik – serious stuff’ – this will bond very well to both surfaces after about 8 hours (hence the d/s to just tag it in place).

[Myles Brewer]

Thanks signsurfer,
That’s an interesting point!, as when talking to Technibond, they were suggesting getting the tape as a sheet & cutting round the letters so you’d have a continuous bond over the whole letter, it may be more expensive , but peace of mind!! 🙂

[Myles Brewer]

Hi Dave,
Yes, the owner specified no damage to surface if at all possible, so that rules out keying up!!
How removable would the evo-stick be in a year or two if the business changes?

[David Rogers]

quote myles:

Hi Dave….How removable would the evo-stick be in a year or two if the business changes?

It isn’t! That’s the trouble with good adhesives 🙂 it certainly won’t damage the surface…just bond very well with it.. Being ‘rubbery’ it would be possible to ‘shave’ it off at a later date I’m sure.

…and this would be your problem how?!? 😉

[Neil Churchman]

We were recently fixing metal letters a sandstone fascia of a listed building,
and to demonstrate to the Council how well the ‘no nails’ / ‘serious stuff’ glue comes off, we took a house brick with some dried glue on the surface and as Dave said, we shaved it off with a minimal glue residue left behind which came off with a wire brush.

I would think on a polished granite surface, shaving off the glue would be complete. 🙂

[Russell Spencer]

quote David Rogers:

quote signsurfer:

3M recommend most surfaces are abraded where possible before application of any VHB tape.
I would give it a light scuffing with wet and dry then clean it with iso.

Sanding polished granite – think the owners might say something!

I was referring to Myles’ question about keying the foamex, not the granite, also the key point is ‘where possible’…

[Myles Brewer]

…and this would be your problem how?!? 😉

You never know how these things workout & if the business folds, I could be the poor sucker having to remove the lettering ready for the next client 😕
I like to think ahead 😮