3M Scotch Foam Mounting Squares (MMM108)

There is nothing more aggravating that looking at a picture hung on the wall that ends up canting to one side like a drunken sailor. Try as I might, those little puppies seem to develop a life of their own while I'm sleeping. I often find several of them all cattywompus in the morning - I wonder if they are partying all night like the toys in The Nutcracker? My first cure, I thought, was to purchase some Aleen's Tacky Dots, to put on the bottom corners of the pictures to keep them lined up nicely. [By the way, it's not in the database, so I can't review it] That was successful on smaller, lightweight, hangings but the larger and more sturdy ones gave those Tacky Dots the Raspberry. My next recourse was Scotch Foam Mounting Squares, and those babies have done the trick.

Despite what they tout on their website and package, I really don't trust them to hold something hefty on their own. They say each piece, which measures 1" square, holds one pound of product. They even say you can use them to mount a paper towel holder. Now I know what punishment our paper towel holder gets, I can just see these things giving away after a while if I used them for that. Hang a mirror? It better be a smaller, lightweight, one. Ours are much heavier than 4 pounds.

They are easy as pie to use. Tacky on both sides, you peel one square off the backing and place it in the area where you want to stick something. Since I was working with pre-hung pictures, I simply removed the picture from the wall and put a square in each bottom corner of the back of the frame. After adhering the sticky foam pad to the surface, you peel off the adhesive covering and place your item in its intended destination.

Obviously, if you are working on a new project, it is important to lay it out in advance. Know before you attach it to the final surface where the ultimate resting place is going to be because, if installed properly, these things become pretty much one with the two surfaces you are trying to join.

They are not intended for major home repairs but if you have a wayward piece of baseboard that is too small for you to nail into place [we have some toe kicks that are smaller than the 1" square foam pad], you can apply this to the back of the baseboard and reattach it to your wall. Keep in mind, though, this is a foam piece and although it doesn't stick out obtrusively, it does stick out a bit, so you aren't going to get a flush contact of baseboard/wall.

Personally, I've found the best use is just stabilizing errant pictures that tend to dance during the night. However, I do have one, lightweight, sculpture that resides on an upper cabinet near the back door of our home. I've noticed that, over time, it tends to turn just from the draft of the door opening and closing. After countless trips up and down the step ladder to right it on its course, I finally slapped a foam square to the base of it and now it doesn't move a bit.

The surface you apply these squares to must be clean and dry. It also has to be smooth so it probably wouldn't work on those 'orange peel' walls that contractors seem to use to avoid having to do a proper finish on the drywall.

I'm sure there are a billion uses for these foam squares and, for the price, it is well worth it to avoid aggravation. As far as those Aleen's Tacky Dots, they would be helpful to arrange your picture frames on the wall before you start attacking it with hammer and nails. I didn't find them quite secure enough for me to trust them with any big project, but they sure come in handy holding those hangers in place on the back of pictures while you pound in those itty, bitty nails they supply with picture hanging kits.

Although they say they are US made, they do state materials are both US and outsourced.

thanks,
Susi 

Recommend this product? Yes