Install longevity of Textured Wall Material???

[LoGl]

I want to print on 3M IJ8624 textured wall film and use the recommended lam.

Our customer needs (5) 50"x99" panels applied on an exterior concrete (painted) building.
We live in New England and will obviously be subjected to all kinds of weather. The building will be in the direct sunlight most of the day.

Does anyone have any experience in how long this may last? I know and have read a few posts on this subject, but none seem to be recent. And/or they are in warmer climates. 3M gives it 6 months, which is not a very long time, and I'm not sure will entice our customer to do the project. Of course we would disclose this point, but am hoping to hear of better results. Or, find out if it really does begin to fail when subjected to rough weather/ condensation/ sunlight, etc.

Also...has everyone's experience with wall wraps been that it really does take a long time to install. I think I may be under-estimating.

Thanks for your input...always appreciated.

 

[boxerbay]

longevity is relative to the surface texture and how well you install it so it varies. We have a 14' giraffe on our stucco concrete wall and its been there about 3 years. Watch the 3M install videos for that product. The install rate using the 3M heat gun is about 2" per second so do some math.

 

[FatCat]

For the past 2 years we put up a mural on the side of a brick building with very deep mortar joints and brick with an "aged look" to it and had lots of cracks and crevices using the 3M material. At no point did it ever peel or fail anywhere on the mural during the time it was up. Unfortunately, the mural was for a summer promotion and as such I think it was up there no longer than 4-5 months and was always warm and dry for the most part. However, I feel it could have stayed up longer, but my fear is that with winter coming your issue would be will the material stand up to dampness/wetness/frost that may get behind the material and add to the fact the material adhesive will become less elastic in cold. If your walls are more smooth like traditional block or painted block I would wager it would stay up for at least a year or so...maybe longer. But as you said, you will need to discuss that fact with your customer and tell them if they wish to be a guinea pig maybe you could offer them a discounted price?

 

[LoGl]

my fear is that with winter coming your issue would be will the material stand up to dampness/wetness/frost that may get behind the material and add to the fact the material adhesive will become less elastic in cold.

Thanks! Yes..that is my fear too. It is a painted surface with not so deep mortar joints, so it should adhere pretty well. My thought is that since this business is just opening, if they can look at it like a marketing "tool", or marketing expense...that if it gives great impact, and gets people in the door in the first 6 months, it did its job. If we get more out of it....fantastic. Discounting would be tough, considering the amount of time it takes to install. But I am in the process of considering all avenues. This will be a fun and hopefully successful project if it goes forward.

Thank you for your input!

 

[BigfishDM]

Well that is going to be helluva an expensive sign for a "new business", what the heck do they sell? How is having that wall graphic vs. some other form of signage going to help bring them in biz? (It totally might, don't get me wrong, I am just asking) If I was a new business I would want to make my marketing dollars go as far as possible and if I could skimp out on a high end wall mural so I could also do some direct mailers or spend more on a website then I might go that route instead. But again, I don't know what your client does but just giving you another perspective to look at.

 

[LoGl]

Well that is going to be helluva an expensive sign for a "new business", what the heck do they sell? How is having that wall graphic vs. some other form of signage going to help bring them in biz? (It totally might, don't get me wrong, I am just asking) If I was a new business I would want to make my marketing dollars go as far as possible and if I could skimp out on a high end wall mural so I could also do some direct mailers or spend more on a website then I might go that route instead. But again, I don't know what your client does but just giving you another perspective to look at.

I completely understand your viewpoint. However....there are a few factors that play into this:

1) where this building is located is within eyeshot to a mainroad and busy restaurant, so anything visual will help him. Also, the building is located in an otherwise shoddy looking area, so this will stand out. AND, the main entry is around the corner, so short of having big arrows pointing to "around corner", this will be a great visual.

2) the city is very difficult on permitting. we are hoping that they may not consider this "signage" but more an "art project" and therefore having attractive graphics will again be eye catching and serve the purpose.

3) they do dog daycare/grooming/training and the goal would be to get a regular clientele base going right away. They have another facility and are at capacity, so if they achieve this in a 6 month timeframe, then the marketing dollars spent will be all worth it and the graphics will have served their purpose in the alotted lifespan of the material. Most customers will go there because it is conveniently located, therefore, the building itself serves a marketing purpose.

Could other marketing be more effective. Sure. He has realized the value of a van wrap for sure. Likely will be doing another one. Direct mail....ok....

My biggest concern is failure of the graphics. I would love to know if anyone has had more than the 6 months waranteed from 3M. And when the film fails.....is it the edges that curl up and off....or does the whole thing begin to let go from the wall, bubbling in many places??

Thanks again for all input.

 

[BigfishDM]

I completely understand your viewpoint. However....there are a few factors that play into this:

1) where this building is located is within eyeshot to a mainroad and busy restaurant, so anything visual will help him. Also, the building is located in an otherwise shoddy looking area, so this will stand out. AND, the main entry is around the corner, so short of having big arrows pointing to "around corner", this will be a great visual.

2) the city is very difficult on permitting. we are hoping that they may not consider this "signage" but more an "art project" and therefore having attractive graphics will again be eye catching and serve the purpose.

3) they do dog daycare/grooming/training and the goal would be to get a regular clientele base going right away. They have another facility and are at capacity, so if they achieve this in a 6 month timeframe, then the marketing dollars spent will be all worth it and the graphics will have served their purpose in the alotted lifespan of the material. Most customers will go there because it is conveniently located, therefore, the building itself serves a marketing purpose.

Could other marketing be more effective. Sure. He has realized the value of a van wrap for sure. Likely will be doing another one. Direct mail....ok....

My biggest concern is failure of the graphics. I would love to know if anyone has had more than the 6 months waranteed from 3M. And when the film fails.....is it the edges that curl up and off....or does the whole thing begin to let go from the wall, bubbling in many places??

Thanks again for all input.

I think the 3M material will give you the longest durability but no one will warranty it for a long period of time. If I was a betting man I would say it will last longer than a year no problem.

 

[Jester1167]

There are a lot of factors that will come into play for durability and I am sure that's why 3M has a limited warrantee - what kind and how good of a paint job is on the building (can the paint handle the hi temps during install), how clean the surface is, amount of texture, quality of installation, temperature extremes and exposure...

My understanding is that the laminate is the key. It is like a thermo form plastic and when heated and rolled it forms to the texture and the shape gets locked in as it cools. Your biggest failure point is the top edge. Once water gets behind it your days are numbered.

You could save you and your customer some heartache and money by putting up diabond panels with graphics. From the street it should look the same, if the location doesn't work out your customer can take them down and use them someplace else. If the city complains they can buy and old box truck and screw them to it and now they have a moveable billboard.

Another option is Avery MPI 6121 Street Wrap. We used it on the asphalt entrance to the install bay at the last shop I worked at. I installed it with a push broom and the graphic cracks into little pieces to conform to the texture. It looks like an old time weathered painted mural. We drove over that graphic for years and it was still legible. Your supposed to be able to remove it with a power washer.

 

[Jester1167]

I think the 3M material will give you the longest durability but no one will warranty it for a long period of time. If I was a betting man I would say it will last longer than a year no problem.

I agree.

 

[DirtyD]

A competing sign company had done a wall mural on painted stucco concrete wall with Mactac rough rap.. So far it's been up for just over a year.. It has peeled before not alot but they reheated and stuck it back down. I think it was just a shotty install. We are in Northern Indiana and have very cold windy frigid winters and very hot and humid summers