On Monday I posted this simple idea to upcycle pop tabs to hang your artwork. Although many thought it was a ridiculous idea, others wanted to see it put to the test before believing. After trying it myself, I can firmly attest to the fact that this method is…
…solid. Solid as a rock. Although there are more commercial options available to you and more professional ways to attack the job, really, who's going to see how it's hung once it's on the wall? Although many were worried about how strong this method is, check out the photo below:
Since the screw basically becomes one with the wood and the little tab, the stress created from the weight of the piece is almost void. If for any reason it did break, nothing would happen. The piece would still hang from the bottom of the soda pop tab itself and stay put. Make sense?
It probably won't become your new method of hanging all your artwork, but we've all been in that situation where you don't want to run to the hardware store and are searching for one more piece to hang something with — now a pop tab will get the job done!
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Image: Sarah Rae Trover, Artwork from Too-Hectic
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Works like a charm....did this a few years back during one late night picture hanging spree. I had no desire to hunt down an all night store so the pop tab was the first thing I saw. In face I am pretty sure all those picture are still hanging using those same tabs!
This is AMAZING.
ooh, been doing that for years. works pretty well if you bend it back a little, makes for easier hanging. For light stuff, you can hot glue them on too.
I like the awesome monkey in a fez.
I didn't comment on the soda tab post, but I did read the feedback given by other posters. I think it's great that you tested out this method and followed up on the initial subject. There will likely still be some skeptics, but they'll just have to try it (or not) for themselves!
Should hold the weight just fine since the tab is made from the same amount of aluminum as the whole can.
hey, I want that monkey in my house! Anyone know where it's from?
Samanto - The monkey painting is from Too-Hectic.
Simple solutions are often the best. Thanks for the marvelous idea, AT!
3 cheers for proving it tried and true! I don't care how cheap those little saw tooth thingies are. No penny is too small to be saved!
Simple and effective, i've done it for years....
Good to know ! I don't drink from cans but I may have a dive into my building recycling bin.
that...is not a test. sigh.
don't get me wrong, I'm sure it works. But I'm a mechanical engineer, and I know perfectly well that of course there is stress on the tab. Even if the screw and tab and wood "become one" (which they don't) the tab is *still* holding all that weight off the ground! So the stress would be spread out across the tab, concentrating some on the top and the inside bottom curve, though the curves are designed to spread out the stress so the concentration wouldn't be all that noticeable. This is all perfectly normal.
So they tried it once, with one piece of art. And of course it worked - pop tabs are reasonably sturdy. What I would have liked to see (if you're going to test it at all) is them testing it with increasingly heavy items until it breaks or deforms, so we know what the limit is.
To answer your question - No. It does not make sense. I think this sounds like a great idea for light to mid-weight pieces, so I'm not arguing that. I'm sure it works great. But your explanation of WHY it works makes no sense. When you say "If for any reason it did break, nothing would happen. The piece would still hang from the bottom of the soda pop tab itself and stay put".... what do you mean? If the tab were to break anywhere (either at the top where it's resting on the nail in the wall, or at the bottom where it's screwed into the artwork) the piece is still going to fall. LADYPHLOGISTON has it right - the tab is still bearing the entire weight of the piece, so of course there's stress on it.