Removing a Dry Erase Board Mounted with Construction Adhesive

Submitted by MightyMississippi t3_1230a85 in DIY

This works on anything mounted to a wall with construction adhesive.

I was told my job could not be done without leaving holes in the drywall. I knew there had to be another way, but no one would help me.

I called one of the nation's largest suppliers of dry erase boards. They didn't know how to do it, either.

But it seemed to me a wire saw would fit behind in the gap between the back of the board and the wall, and could be used to cut through the adhesive. If you ask the good folks at PPG, makers of Liquid Nails, they'll tell you to use a wire saw!

I went to every retailer, looking for a wire saw. Not one employee in any store knew what they were without looking it up, and not even that helped a few of them! Only one retailer had one, but it was only a few inches long—not enough for my needs.

I ended up ordering a spool of OB saw wire and two OB saw wire handles online. It's most often used on the farm, to remove horns. From animals, not people.

It worked exactly as I expected—almost. It's heat that does most of the cutting, so the adhesive will melt, and can solidify back together, if not kept apart while cooling. We had two people, but a third would have been great. Three or more would be necessary to remove a large board.

With one person on each side, we worked the wire saw back and forth, cutting through multiple small sports of adhesive. We had to do this three times, from top to bottom, because the melted glue would rejoin to itself, but we got it, eventually. I imagine a large board would have to be cut vertically, from above and below, moving along the length of the entire board.

We used pliers to gently peel residue from the wall. What we could not grasp with pliers, we sanded. The wall remained pristine. No holes.

It burns me up when someone says, "It can't be done." There's always a way.

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Comments

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TheSchizoidBear t1_jdsmi4d wrote

I was going to say, you don't need a DIY store, you need a camping/outdoors store and to get a survival wire saw. With those things you can fell a small to medium tree, and have it cut up in next to no time with one of them. They come in long enough for either one person or double length for two people but the OB saw wire is the same idea.

Like you probably found out, speed is your enemy with those saws. You need to keep them moving slow and steady so they don't get too hot, otherwise they stick- whether it be the sap of a tree or the glue on the wall!

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Blear t1_jdsnpwl wrote

That's pretty neat. In terms of time and effort required, how does it compare to hanging up the board by making holes in the wall and then patching the holes later, aka the usual method?

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tonkats t1_jdsrpfo wrote

AKA Gigli wire. Neat trick.

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MentallyMusing t1_jdt5xre wrote

What a Great suggestion!..... Snowmobile safety supply places (some sporting goods stores) also sell wire saw coiled up in a length that would probably work too and they have loops/circle ⭕ that your finger goes into meant to cut small branches or saplings I guess, lol

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Hagenaar t1_jdtn35k wrote

For softer adhesives, like silicone (frequently used for installing mirrors) or two sided tape, a fishing line will work.
For automotive glass adhesive (like when you're salvaging a windshield at the junkyard) you can use a thin cable (like a hood release one) and wrap it around a screwdriver or block of wood at each end as handles.

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bingwhip t1_jdto3fc wrote

Not to be used on human horn, got it

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