Stupid questions about hanging paintings

JamesO

Need to hang a few paintings. The walls are block and plaster.

Lightweight, so I'd just hammer in a nail and call it a job done, but googling is telling me I need to drill and wall anchor... which I'd do for shelves and mirrors and the like, but a picture? 

Second, one of the paintings (acrylic on canvas) is supposed to be going over an inset log stove that's going to be lit over winter. 'Obviously' it could go somewhere else, but apparently over the fire is the best place for it. There's no mantle and the breast gets hot (but not uncomfortable to the touch). The stove is fairly good about smoke (no visible staining or discolouration on white breast after 3 years) so the worry is the heat.

The painting has sentimental value... so is there anything we can do to protect it or should we just take it down/replace it over winter (and risk it being damaged while in storage)? One idea is to get a vermiculite board and mount it behind the canvas.  

Asking because I need to buy either some nails or wall anchors and can't get to the shops until tomorrow. 

FreeBear

I have an inset stove and I monitor the wall temperature with some sensors embedded in the plaster - It gets darned hot, like 120°C or more.

I would strongly recommend you hang the painting on a cool wall well away from the fire and out of direct sunlight.

Belenus

JamesO said:

Need to hang a few paintings. The walls are block and plaster.

Lightweight, so I'd just hammer in a nail and call it a job done, but googling is telling me I need to drill and wall anchor... which I'd do for shelves and mirrors and the like, but a picture? 

So would I.

We have plasterboard on studs internal walls. All our light to medium weight pictures are hung on one or two nails gently hammered in at about 45 degrees angle.

Only heavy pictures and mirrors etc get a wall anchor.

ArbitraryRandom

I agree with the other posters, I'd also just use a nail for a light painting/picture (worst case scenario pick up a little tube of plaster to tidy up any missed hammer blows). 

I get why you would want something over the fire - they are often a natural focal point for the room and can look a little empty.

Do you have a second picture that maybe you don't care about so much (a print)? Then you could hang that somewhere else in the house and switch them out summer to winter rather than 'risk' the painting being damaged in storage. 

twopenny

Yes the painting will get damaged, discoloured by the heat and other stuff that comes with heat and flame.
If you do want to store it over winter use bubble wrap preferably with  a couple of dehydration sachets and somewhere cool but not cold.

Stud and plasterboard walls here. That was a learning curve.
I use tacks for small pictures, picture hooks for medium ones and two picture hooks for larger ones.
I have used picture hooks for small mirrors and a couple of tacks, small nails under it (invisible) to support.
If the frame is heavy or a mirror , small shelves I'll use one of those metal things you screw in the wall that takes a screw.

There are all sorts of ways. Depends on value, if you may want to move stuff.

Ps no question is stupid. If you don't know, you don't know. People like to help 

horsewithnoname

Have you looked at those picture hanging strips from command? I’ve used them fine on painted walls, if that is applicable. 

Bigphil1474

We use picture hooks - i think the design of the hook gives added strength whereas just a nail has downward force on it. Our plaster is dodgy in place, and the picture hooks tend to stay in better and don't rip the plaster.