Can anyone recommend a plasterboard fixing which has a very low profile inside the wall? I want to hang a picture hook in a spot behind which a sliding door, er, slides. I don't know the exact clearance but it's in the region of one centimetre.
(a) you can hang a picture (all of mine are) using just a pin in the plasterboard. It's strong *enough*. Just.
(b) If you want to hang something more substantial you need to add a layer in front of or behind, the plasterboard skin. If you are going to make the picture permanent you could e,g superglue a sheet of thin plywood to the wall.
(c) a third possibility is to e.g. drill/cut a well oversize hole in the wall and fill the hole with e.g. MDF. Glue this recessed in a little, skim over with plaster and repaint.
(d) replace the whole section of plasterboard with MDF, and repaint.
Thanks for all the suggestions. I've decided on a large diameter dowel plug, just over the depth of the plasterboard, with a thin faceplate and a hook screwed into it. Since all the load is downwards I reckon that will be more than strong enough.
Brian, the wall isn't particularly thin. What I'm fixing into is the plasterboard skin over a sliding door assembly: that's why the clearance is so small.
It's likely that the dowel will rotate as you tighten your hook. Look at the link I posted - if it's too long you could cut a little off. Alternatively, fix and glue a wooden plate (shape, colour and thickness to taste) then screw your hook into this. Further thought: if you can get to the back (in the door pocket) glue a piece of metal or wood to the back of the plasterboard and screw into that.
Sorry, I didn't make myself clear: I fashioned the whole thing before I put it into the wall: the dowel, faceplate, and hook were already a solid (screwed and glued) assembly and only had to be inserted and glued into a close-fitting hole in the plasterboard.
Makes more sense to glue something to the outer face of the plasterboard and attach the picture to that. Obvious problem is if the new picture is smaller than the one it replaces later.
I know you have an answer now but I have seval pictures on wooden boards fixed to walls in my hall using velcro strips. They don't move unless I want to move them and they always hang square.
That's not a problem in this case, the sliding door can be in the closed position when adding the picture hook. The problem is that most of them are still much too far behind the plasterboard even when fully installed.
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