How to remove 12 inch mirror squares from a wall?

Question

My bedroom has a wall of 12 inch squares that have been there for about 40 years. They are very secure where they are but I would like to remove them & do something else with that wall. Not sure if removal would damage the wall. Any ideas?

SLS Construction & Building Solutions LLC · Answer

You are probably looking at some damage due to the glue used - best method is to tape an X to each mirror, move everything out of the room, covering the floor with plastic & grabbing a few putt knives. Hopefully you won't break any mirrors but if you do the X should help hold them together. 
Starting at a top corner where you have access to two sides, insert the putty knives & gently start pulling from the walls, pushing in a little further & pulling out again - rinse & repeat a few times & you should hopefully come away with one mirror piece intact. Based on how that goes and how they attached them you should have a better idea or method for the next one. Give the new method a shot & adjust as necessary as you go down the wall.
If you have glue still stuck to the wall - no big deal either by using the putty knife or a scraper work around it till you get it off. Any missing paper, etc.. just do a skim coat of drywall mud, sand & redo if necessary.

Kat1705371 · Answer

try a piece of wire and start at corner and pull wire down behind mirror may be enough to cut through glue.

Sherry Fram · Answer

If you're afraid of wall damage sew or buy some pretty drapes to hang in front of the mirrors.Hang them from ceiling to the floor.

Patricia Gearing · Answer

If put up with the sticky tabs pull of and use white spirit to clean of gummed part, also useful for labels on jars.

Patricia HATLEY · Answer

I had thought about curtains but I really would rather have the mirrors down. And that would be a safety issue as well. The other two ideas are good. May try them in combination. Thank you.

A · Answer

try taping one mirror, perhaps a bottom one, put tarp down under It and tap the mirror with hammer. Breaking away the mirror will give you an idea of how much adhesive is probably behind each mirror. Go from there and see which way you want to take them down

Shirley · Answer

Here is another idea, but it wont get the mirror down. You or someone paint a mural or a post card photo on it with water colors. My cousin used to paint a Christmas Post Card scene on our hall entry mirror every year and it was beautiful. Just a thought; otherwise, I would try the wire and taping idea. Good Luck

CK · Answer

I too might be afraid of breaking them upon removal and/or wall damage. Though I too like the idea of hanging drapes over them, I think painting them might be a fun option. The 'grid work' created by the mirrors themselves would lend a fun 'texture' to the wall. Personally I'd paint them all one color or maybe even two colors (very close together on the paint strip) in alternating pattern. It would give more depth without making it look like a 'quilt'.

Have you thought about framing out the entire mirror? That would give the sort of 80's wall mirror look an updated look. You could also faux paint frames around each individual mirror (or maybe even around 4 tiles square) for a really unique look. This picture from Ballard Designs is what I'm referring to. It's pretty posh looking, I think :-)

MundeeB · Answer

I had same problem, but with my living room fireplace area. I taped the tiles with tape in X and used a warm iron to warm up the glue. Still wore heavy gloves and safety glasses, and they came off. We sanded what glue wouldn't come off and repainted area. Wish I had pictures to show it, but we moved shortly afterwards.

Melanie · Answer

I have 70s or 80s style mirrored glass on one whole wall in my dining room. It's adhered to the wall by long strips of adhesive. I learned if you heat the adhesive a bit with a blow dryer and use a putty knife, you can wiggle the putty knife all around and release the tile from the wall without damaging the wall. Some of the adhesive may stick, but reheating the strip helps to release it from the wall. Also, wear gloves in case the tiles break. I did not and ended up with some minor cuts on my hands.

How to remove 12 inch mirror squares from a wall?

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