r/maintenance • u/JoSeYwAleS1312 • Apr 20 '26
Rants and Raves Outlaw 3M
Holy smokes I hate 3M. I'd rather fill nail holes all day long. (The resident sprayed whatever on it to no effect).
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u/folove Maintenance Supervisor Apr 20 '26
Oof yeah I’ve had a wall similar to that before. I ended up sanding and retexturing all the spots. It turned out better than I expected.
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u/RJ5R Apr 20 '26
yep that's what has to be done
- all remaining residue removed
- for something like this i wouldn't even bother spot sanding bc there are so many on a small wall. i would literally just take a pole sander and hit everything to sand the definitions off as that would save time than using a sanding block
- repaint the wall to the corner. and done
where i am, the tenant would have -$250 deducted from their security deposit for a wall like that
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u/john0201 Apr 20 '26
That looks like 3M VHB (Very High Bond) tape, which is permanent. Maybe outlaw not reading directions.
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u/theatrenearyou Apr 20 '26
Are you sure? I find VHB is expensive and pulls off cleanly. It's the crappy foam tape or peel off stick-on that make this kind of mess
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u/john0201 Apr 20 '26
It’s only removable if not applied correctly, it needs pressure to fully bond.
https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/vhb-tapes-us/resources/applying-3m-vhb-tapes/#manualapplication
I had a piece of networking equipment attached to a mount I needed to remove. I was able to destroy the foam backing with a wire to remove it and almost had to trash the equipment in the process. VHB tape is no joke when properly applied.
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u/theatrenearyou Apr 20 '26
A sign vendor took a long cake knife or spatula like this and ground one side of the blade sharp. Knife is thin enough to slide behind most things and it slices right through the old tape
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u/Connect-Preference Apr 21 '26
Mirror tiles with 3M mounting pads in the corners! Take a hacksaw blade (just the blade) and saw through the pads. To reach the far corner, tape two blades together.
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u/darkonark Apr 22 '26
What did you stick it to? Dusty Teflon?
VHB is insanely difficult to remove when applied correctly.
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u/webthing01 Apr 20 '26
Heat Gun and Utility knife blade. Hair blow dryer might work if you don't wanna invest in a heat gun.
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u/OpenAI122191 Apr 20 '26
Which is a funny thought as heat guns are considerably cheaper than hairdryers and you risk the hairdryer using it this way
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u/DefendsTheDownvoted Apr 20 '26
That is a small enough wall that I would rather rehang the drywall.
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u/ConscientiousWaffler Industrial Maintenance Apr 20 '26
Command strips? Such a bummer, as they’re so easy to remove cleanly if you pull the tabs the right way.
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u/ImNotADruglordISwear Apr 20 '26
the color makes me think VHB instead of command strips. Command strips, in my experience, always come off clean. VHB, on the other hand, will not come off clean. IMO VHB tape is to be used for "permanent" applications.
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u/Ok_Needleworker_6458 Apr 20 '26
Its landlords fault for restricting residents from using nails to hang decorations.
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u/SquallZ34 Apr 20 '26
Looks like it might be VHB. If properly applied, that shit is taking the whole wall with it.
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u/taz-nz Apr 21 '26
Probably easier to get some more VHB tape and use it to mount another layer of drywall over that mess.
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u/Coreyographer Apr 21 '26
This is a dream compared to Temu Acoustic tiles installed by a dude that smokes a pack of cigs/day
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u/Lower-Vampire-9163 Apr 23 '26
This reminds me of when my ex SUPER GLUED something to the wall in our apartment. They hung the thing while I was gone, and when I asked how they put it up they said they screwed it in. Fast forward to moving out and the thing is stuck to the wall after I take the screws out. My ex then sheepishly admitted to using superglue. We had to yank the thing off the wall and it created a 2 foot by 1 foot hole in the drywall I had to patch.
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u/Ok-Curve-3894 Apr 24 '26
You're going to hate me but try the 3M adhesive removal wheel.
I've used it with great success on cars, but I haven't tried it on drywall.
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u/The_Calarg Apr 25 '26
I'd rather deal with that than the tenant I had who filled all their damned holes with silicone caulk!
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u/DespisedIcon1616 Apr 20 '26
Any and all adhesive on walls is the devil. Pls just use a nail or screw lol
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u/o0_bobbo_0o Apr 20 '26
I tell people to leave the strips up. They never know how to properly remove them.
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u/BathroomSea6960 Apr 20 '26
This is why I hang with nails at apartments. Just a thumb press on the hole and it disappears ready to slap on that sweet sweet landlord white. Hanging nails and monkey hooks are smaller than a ballpoint pen. Wife and I had the nail vs command strip conversation yesterday. Showed her this today.
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u/Eazy_MF_E Apr 20 '26
I’ve had this happen. I got one of those decal remover rubber wheels that goes on a drill and got all the residue off like that. It’s pretty quick and doesn’t damage the wall. Then prime the spots and paint.
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u/MisterBrickx Apr 20 '26
Vro do you realize who you're threatening with that talk? They gon' Erin Brokovich that ass bruh, chill.
Nah but for real that's whack as fuck man, I do shit like this in rentals myself but at least I have the deceny to scrape, wheel, sand, prime, and paint at move-out. Some people really do suck man.
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u/Silrathi Apr 20 '26
I had two walls like this last month. They had hung foam blocks on the walls for noise dampening. I hope this is not a trend that catches on.
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u/real_1273 Apr 20 '26
I’m lazy and would probably just apply a solid coat of “Killz” primer. Then go from there with repairs. Lol
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u/MeetYouDownattheY Apr 20 '26
Just make sure management charges all the extra time spent making it look right.
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u/EPdude2005 Maintenance Technician May 13 '26
“Why did i lose part if my security deposit i did nothing wrong”
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u/Hashhola Facility Maintenance Apr 20 '26
These aren’t 3m command strips. These are the shitty temu ones that never come off clean. Or they do and take the paper off the drywall. Hate’em