Hanging pictures on wattle and daub walls

[Fat Whippet]

I'm new to this forum & apologise if this is a very stupid question.

I'm considering buying a 16th century timber framed house. Most of the walls seem to be wattle and daub. I have a lot ( and I mean a lot - over a hundred) of pictures that need to be hung, some of which are quite large & heavy. Would I have to hang the large heavy pictures on chains attached to hooks in beams ? and would the walls take nothing but the lightest pictures ?. Will the wall surface be strong enough to take any picture hooks at all ?

Sorry if this is a silly question, from what I've read old wattle and daub walls can be quite fragile & I don't want to damage them.

 

[philpjuk100]

I had a big square headed nail sticking out of the plaster on my landing,it looked to have been there for ever and been painted over many times.It seemed just the thing to hand a Vienna regulator clock from (it is a family heirloom).It looked great there until the wife dusted it,it fell to the floor breaking the case,the glass and the pendulum.The wall was lime plaster over reeds and the nail came out with a fair bit of plaster.The clock is now repaired and hung on a long flat iron strap from the oak beam above it!,take care!.

 

[Kearn]

I wouldn't put holes in my beautiful, ancient plasterwork - and having repaired enough of it, I also wouldn't trust it to hold anything! It all depends on where you are and the class of house, but likely inside the panels will be vertical wooden staves spanning the lower and upper frame members, with horizontal woven twigs/small branches to provide a surface, then coated in a mix of clay/mud/dung, before three layers of lime plaster, often with chalk aggregate and a very fine hair to provide strength and flex.
There's a reason timber frames are littered with iron nails/holes from previous insertions! Then again, 500+ year old oak can put up quite a fight if you try to reintroduce new foreign objects...

On a serious note - If you're thinking about buying a 16C house and presumably haven't owned/lived with one before, then there are probably more pressing things to get up to speed with to ensure it is adequately maintained and liveable and continues that way for 100s of years to come. This forum is filled with great advice and threads which are well worth reading through.

 

[livias]

>>>Would I have to hang the large heavy pictures on chains attached to hooks in beams ?

Yes. Always use stainless steel fixings because the tannin in the oak will rot plain steel fixings

>>>and would the walls take nothing but the lightest pictures ? Will the wall surface be strong enough to take any picture hooks at all ?

OK for lightweight stuff but depending on the condition of the plaster and daub you may find it crumbles as you try to get a fixing in. Look at previous fixings to get a clue to the condition.

 

[Abi Cott]

I've only used these on good plaster, so I can't testify to their suitability on older plaster yet. However they did a good job of hanging lighter weight pictures securely without any damage to the wall.

http://www.wilko.com/door-hooks-and-hangers/command-damage-free-picture-hanging-strips-medium-white-set-of-4/invt/0343539?nst=0&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIluzw5Lro1gIVQTobCh2-XgUIEAQYASABEgLHK_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Fat Whippet]

[

On a serious note - If you're thinking about buying a 16C house and presumably haven't owned/lived with one before, then there are probably more pressing things to get up to speed with to ensure it is adequately maintained and liveable and continues that way for 100s of years to come. This forum is filled with great advice and threads which are well worth reading through.

There are certainly more pressing problems with the house & I've learned a lot from this forum and from some books recommended here - but if one owns lots of pictures having a house where they can be safely hung is really quite important. :roll:

Thank you for the help & suggestions.

 

[88v8]

I've put up light pictures on X hooks in our C17 wattle n daub. There's one about 9" square a foot distant from me as I write.
Suck it and see, really. Depends on the daub and how well it's adhered.

I wouldn't use anything larger than an X hook, and if there is resistance to its insertion, beware that you may have hit a knot in the underlying wattle.

Consider putting up brass picture rails fastened to the studs or beams. You would perhaps have to fabricate brackets, but then with these hooks
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=brass+picture+hooks+for+picture+rail+-moulding&tbm=isch&source=iu&pf=m&ictx=1&fir=cPV8sOO-3A4y9M%253A%252CkPRkpsm-MW0NgM%252C_&usg=__oF77T1FkQiO8AnDG2vOYPtApv3Y%3D&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjEgPXTxOnWAhWGOsAKHfWdAioQ9QEInwEwAQ&biw=1260&bih=775#imgrc=mYr78tHjiOs6cM:&spf=1507758130591
you could hang whatever you wish on brass picture wire.

Ivor

 

[Kearn]

[

On a serious note - If you're thinking about buying a 16C house and presumably haven't owned/lived with one before, then there are probably more pressing things to get up to speed with to ensure it is adequately maintained and liveable and continues that way for 100s of years to come. This forum is filled with great advice and threads which are well worth reading through.

There are certainly more pressing problems with the house & I've learned a lot from this forum and from some books recommended here - but if one owns lots of pictures having a house where they can be safely hung is really quite important. :roll:

Thank you for the help & suggestions.

There are always are in these old things, the list never gets shorter no matter how many things you cross off!! :roll: Good luck!

In terms of pictures, we don't have quite such a collection on our walls, but when selected and placed well, pictures can look great framed within the natural borders created by the oak and panels. What I've found to work well are discrete hooks in the oak and clear fishing wire to hang, sometimes in multiple thicknesses as required - it's pretty capable stuff in heavy duty form and is largely invisible.