Melty Bumpons

[Rick Granick]

Here's an odd one. We often use 3M Bumpons (the brown square ones) for bumpers. Recently, a customer brought in a picture we had done several years before. She said she noticed something dripping down her wall from behind the picture. Wouldn't you know, the Bumpons had MELTED! We actually had this happen to a picture hanging in our workshop once. Thought it was because of heating duct in the wall on which it hung, but that actually was only a cold-air return duct... I asked customer if her frame was hanging over a heat register. It turns out they have radiant (in-floor) heat, so it was unlikely that the wall was very warm- although it was an outside wall.
We replaced her Bumpons with white bumper tacks. Fortunately, she managed to get the gunk off the wall... I'm thinking of switching to another brand of bumpers.
Anyone else have this problem? Any suggestions? ---Rick

P.S. How's business right now?

 

[Mel]

Rick,

Never encountered the brown BB problem, but I am going to throw away the few I have. The spongy white ones migrate around the back, so I switched to the rounded, clear plastic ones. They're perfect. The stay put, and they stablize the sideways movement of the picture without marking the wall. Since I use black paper, I also put brown felt BBs on the top corners to avoid black marks on the wall during the hanging process.

Lots of ways to skin a cat, though.

 

[silent pic]

i use united mfrs black bumpons #3971.
they are alittle more $ than the rest but hold picture to wall and compliment my black dust cover.has sort of become a silent pictures trademark i use #3970 for metal frames.they are clear.
i have used these for about 2 decades without fail.

beth @silent pictures nv

 

[Bruce Hansen]

Just came across your note re: melty bumpons.
We used to use the black 1/2 round 3m bumpons, until last year, when a customer came in with the same complaint as you received, black rubber running down the walls from three pictures we had framed couple of years before. I contacted 3M and they said they had never heard of such a thing and tried to blame tne customer. Persistance by both the customer and ourselves was to no avail.

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Bruce Hansen

 

[gemsmom]

Always have used clear, round ones. Never a problem.