How to Hang Things on Cement Walls

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Cement is a relatively unyeilding surface, particularly to brads and tacks.

Cement walls can give your home a modern feel you may find attractive, but cement walls can make it difficult to hang a picture or a wall decoration. Don't let concrete walls stop you from hanging your wall decor, though. You do not have to live with bare walls just to enjoy the feel of authentic cement walls in your home. With special materials, it is possible to hang items on cement walls.

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Items Under 10 Pounds

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Step 1

Purchase hook-and-loop tape. Hook-and-loop tape uses special technology (commonly referred to by the popular trademarked name, Velcro) to hang your wall decorations without drilling holes. Look over the packaging to ensure you purchase a hook-and-loop-tape product whose weight limit exceeds the weight of the item you intend to hang.

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Step 2

Wash the cement wall with soap and water. This will remove any grime that could interfere with the sticking process. Leave the wall to dry before you attempt to hang your wall decor.

Step 3

Pull the protective backing off the flexible side of the hook-and-loop tape. Attach the strip of hook-and-loop tape to a smooth part of the back of item you wish to hang (generally speaking, you would affix the tape toward the upper portion of the item). Smooth the strip out carefully.

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Step 4

Attach the stiff part of the hook-and-loop-tape combo to the side you already attached to the item you will hang on the wall--the "hooks" portion affixing to the "loops" portion. Peel the exposed protective backing off the stiff portion of the hook-and-loop tape.

Step 5

Stick the item onto the cement wall and hold it there for a straight minute. This gives the adhesive backing on the hook-and-loop tape time to adhere to the wall.

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Step 6

Move your hands away from the item slowly. Ready yourself to catch the item if the hook and loop tape fails and the item wants to slide down. If it looks like it may fall, remove it from the wall and add more hook-and-loop tape sections.

Items Over 10 Pounds

Step 1

Purchase an expansion hook rated for the weight of the item you wish to hang.

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Step 2

Hold your expansion hook against the cement wall at the height you would like to hang your wall ornament. Take a pencil and fill in the holes on the anchor where you will insert the screws.

Step 3

Pull your expansion anchor away from the wall. Drill starter holes into your cement walls using a cement drill.

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Step 4

Place your expansion hook over the starter holes you created. Line the anchor up over the starter holes you created. Drill the screws included with the expansion anchor directly into the starter holes.

Step 5

Dust the wall off after you install the anchor.

Step 6

Hang your wall ornament onto the expansion anchor. Tilt it to the right or the left until the wall ornament hangs straight.

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