How To Fix a Splashback to a Wall

How do you fix a splashback to a wall?

Bonding a splashback directly to the wall is a good-looking upgrade and gives you an easy-to-clean surface behind the cooktop or sink. It is also unforgiving, because a glass or mirrored panel is heavy, expensive, and not repositionable once the adhesive grabs.

The product is Selleys Liquid Nails Mirror, Metal and Glass — not a general construction adhesive, which is specifically excluded from use on mirrors. And the two figures to plan around are: the panel must stay supported for around 72 hours, and the edges must not be sealed for at least a week.

What you need

• Selleys Sugar Soap Wipes
• Selleys Liquid Nails Mirror, Metal and Glass
• Paint primer
• Paint
• Roller
• Mounting tape
• Selleys No More Gaps Bathroom and Kitchen for the edges

Steps

1. Prime bare surfaces. If you are bonding the splashback to bare timber, plaster, concrete or brick walls, all of these should be primed with paint before bonding, so as not to cause damage to the back of the mirror or splashback.
2. Let fresh paint cure. If the surfaces have been freshly painted, allow at least three weeks before applying adhesive, to be sure there are no solvents or other products left that may react with it.
3. Clean the surfaces. Clean both surfaces to be bonded with Sugar Soap Wipes to remove grease, dirt or grime. Give the surface plenty of time to dry before sticking anything to the wall.
4. Apply the adhesive. Apply Selleys Liquid Nails Mirror, Metal and Glass, leaving an edge of at least 5cm all the way around. Apply 5mm diameter parallel beads of adhesive at 8cm intervals. Apply three or four strips of mounting tape between the adhesive to hold the splashback in place while the glue dries.
5. Position the panel. Firmly push the splashback onto the wall so the mounting tape bonds and holds it in place. Sometimes a slightly padded mounting tape is needed.
6. Allow it to cure. Allow at least 72 hours for the glue to cure before removing support.
7. Seal the edges — but not yet. Selleys' technical data for this adhesive states that the edges of a mirror should not be sealed for at least a week, because the adhesive needs air circulation to cure properly. Once that week is up, seal around the edges.

Why the bead pattern matters

The instructions about bead size, spacing and edge margin are not cosmetic. They are the difference between a panel that cures properly and one that does not.

Bead diameter	5mm
Bead spacing	8cm apart, parallel
Edge margin	At least 5cm from the edge
Skin time	10–15 minutes, weather dependent
Tack-free time	45 minutes
Cure rate	2mm per day
Support required	Normally 72 hours with clips or tape
Do not seal edges for	At least a week

Indicative data only, not intended for the preparation of specifications.

Do not apply the adhesive as blobs or dollops. This can affect product performance or cause discolouration. Parallel beads are what allow air to move between them.

The beads must not spread into or touch one another when you press the panel on. A gap has to remain between them. This is the same reason as the edge margin and the week before sealing: the adhesive cures on air, so a fully enclosed bond does not cure — it stays soft indefinitely behind a panel you cannot get to.

The 2mm per day cure rate tells you how long that takes. A 5mm bead compressed to perhaps 3mm needs the best part of two days on its own terms, which is why 72 hours of support is the figure rather than overnight.

The 10 to 15 minute skin time is your working window. Immediately after applying the adhesive, place the panel against the wall before the adhesive skins over — within five minutes of application. If you are working alone on a large panel, get the mounting tape and the positioning worked out before you open the cartridge.

Sealing the edges

The original guide nominates Selleys No More Gaps Bathroom and Kitchen for sealing around the edges. It is worth knowing that product's own scope: it is intended for filling and sealing cracks near windows, cabinets, skirting boards and walls in damp rooms, and it is not recommended for use around bathtubs, showers and sinks, where a waterproof silicone seal is needed instead.

So: for the edges of a splashback above a benchtop, No More Gaps Bathroom and Kitchen is appropriate and paintable. For the joint where the splashback meets a sink or where water regularly runs down the panel, a wet area silicone — Selleys Wet Area Silicone — is the better choice, because that joint has to be waterproof rather than simply filled.

If the splashback meets a stone or engineered stone benchtop, use a neutral cure silicone.

Limitations — where this method should NOT be used

• Never bond directly to bare timber, plaster, concrete or brick. Paint these first, or the wall material can damage the back of the mirror or splashback.
• Do not apply adhesive over a mirror's vinyl backing. For vinyl-backed mirrors, apply the adhesive inside the vinyl cut-outs only, avoiding contact with the vinyl.
• Not for permanent water immersion, and not for repairing broken glass.
• Not paintable once cured.
• Not for totally enclosed bonds — the adhesive needs air circulation to cure.
• Not repositionable once applied, and not to be used as the sole bonding agent for structural bonding.
• Three weeks after painting. Freshly painted surfaces still contain solvents that can react with the adhesive.

Clean up

Uncured adhesive may be removed with mineral turps. Cured adhesive can be removed with Selleys Sealant Remover or by mechanical means — which is a strong argument for masking and working carefully rather than cleaning up afterwards.

Safety: the bonding is mild, the cleanup product is not, and it happens at the cooktop

The adhesive this page specifies, Liquid Nails Mirror, Metal and Glass, is a Warning-level product: H317 (may cause an allergic skin reaction) and H319 (causes serious eye irritation), and it is not Dangerous Goods. Nitrile gloves and safety glasses cover it. H317 is worth a moment even so — skin sensitisation is permanent once acquired and is built by casual repeated contact, which is what running beads bare-handed over several jobs amounts to.

The classified product here is the last-resort one in the clean-up section. Selleys Sealant Remover is signal word Danger, Poison Schedule S5, with H304 (may be fatal if swallowed and enters airways), H226 (flammable liquid and vapour), H336 (may cause drowsiness or dizziness) and H315 (causes skin irritation). Dangerous Goods Class 3, UN 1133, Packing Group II.

Where you would use it is the problem. Cured adhesive on a splashback is in the strip between benchtop and overhead cupboards — a shelf-like space with a wall behind, a bench below and cabinetry above, with almost no air movement, and you work there at face height for as long as the scraping takes. Directly to one side is a cooktop. H226 vapour is heavier than air and runs along the benchtop and the floor, so isolate the cooktop and any pilot before you open the tub, run the rangehood and open a window. Do not use a heat gun to soften anything in the same space.

The avoidable version of this job is the uncured one. This page is explicit that adhesive removed while wet comes off with mineral turps. Mask before you bead, wipe squeeze-out as it happens, and the Danger-classified product never comes out of the cupboard. Mechanical removal is the page's other stated option and carries no classification at all.

H304 means the remover stays in its own labelled tub, never decanted, out of reach of children; if any is swallowed its first aid is to rinse the mouth, give water and not induce vomiting. H315 means nitrile gloves for the scraping, and eye protection matters because a glass panel and a scraper at face height is not a forgiving combination.

Poisons Information Centre — 131 126 in Australia, 0800 764 766 in New Zealand.

Common questions about fixing a splashback to a wall

Which adhesive should I use?

Selleys Liquid Nails Mirror, Metal and Glass. The general construction adhesives specifically state they are not for use on mirrors.

How do I apply the adhesive?

5mm diameter parallel beads at 8cm intervals, keeping at least 5cm clear of the edge all the way around. Not blobs or dollops — that can affect performance or cause discolouration.

How long does it need to be supported?

At least 72 hours. Use three or four strips of mounting tape between the adhesive beads to hold the panel while the glue cures, and a slightly padded mounting tape if the panel needs it.

When can I seal the edges?

Not for at least a week. The adhesive requires air circulation to cure, and sealing the edges early cuts that off.

Can I bond a splashback to a bare plaster or brick wall?

Not directly. Prime those surfaces with paint first, so the wall material does not damage the back of the panel.

I just painted the wall — can I go ahead?

Wait at least three weeks. Fresh paint can still be releasing solvents that react with the adhesive.

How do I clean the wall before bonding?

Sugar Soap Wipes to remove grease, dirt and grime, then allow plenty of drying time before you bond anything to it.

My mirror has a vinyl backing — is that a problem?

Yes. Do not apply adhesive over vinyl backing. Apply it inside the vinyl cut-outs only, avoiding contact with the vinyl.

Can I reposition the panel after pressing it on?

No. The adhesive is not repositionable, and it skins in 10 to 15 minutes. Place the panel within five minutes of applying the adhesive.

Can I paint over the adhesive?

No. Liquid Nails Mirror, Metal and Glass cannot be painted over once cured.

What should I seal the edges with?

No More Gaps Bathroom and Kitchen for edges above a benchtop. Where the joint has to be genuinely waterproof — at a sink, or where water runs down the panel — use a wet area silicone instead. See how to seal a kitchen splashback.

How do I remove adhesive that has squeezed out?

Mineral turps while it is uncured. Once cured, it needs Selleys Sealant Remover or mechanical removal.