Preventive Measures in Earthquake Country

[commandax]

I thought that since so many of us live in earthquake-prone areas, it would be a good idea to gather information about the best way to display art in anticipation of The Big One. I was in Los Angeles for the '94 Northridge quake, but I believe I was in the phase of "art collecting" where you attach your art to the wall with push pins, so it wasn't really a problem. Anyone have any first-hand experiences with seismic activity that we can learn from? Any links to great tips on earthquake-proof display techniques?

Personally, I have all my art objects secured to their display surfaces with either Quake Hold Museum Putty or Crystalline Clear Museum Wax. (I have found that these are good for keeping things from being dislodged by crazy cats, too.) I have all my paintings hung from horizontal wire with picture hooks, but I think a few of them, especially the heavier ones, could use more reinforcement.

Here are a few things I found:

Western Assn. for Art Preservation: Seismic Disaster Planning (see especially #12-14)
palimpsest.stanford.edu/waac/wn/wn13/wn13-3/wn13-306.html

FEMA: Mount Framed Pictures and Mirrors Securely
www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/howto/how2015.shtm

Dare to Prepare: Secure Your Stuff: Wall Hangings
www.daretoprepare.org/stuff/wallhangings.html

Western Assn. for Art Preservation: The Little Big One: The San Francisco Earthquake (effects on SF museum collections)
palimpsest.stanford.edu/waac/wn/wn12/wn12-1/wn12-104.html

Earthquake Catalog has several different picture-hanging devices:
earthquakecatalog.com/index.cfm

[sleepboy]

Damn, you are getting me worried now... I just use big ass hooks from Lowe's with wire...

[masao626]

i try very hard not to think about this. just counting the days til i get the hell outta the hot zone.

[marcusslo]

all i use are these maze hangers ... www.daretoprepare.org/core/public/showcontext.php/2518/12620

maybe i should get insurance

[mute]

I hope I didn't cause a scare in everybody, it's just the New Madrid fault is starting to act up. We've been having a lot of small tremors after the 5.2. They say this area is long over do for a big quake, here's hoping the 5.2 was it. I like the look of those maze hangers. I'm going to have to get some of those for the paintings I have hanging high up on my walls. I've taking them down in the meantime because if they fall they're going to hit hard.

[benvan]

Does anybody know where to get the Maze Hangers? - I looked briefly online and couldn't find any. I scares me a bit, but I also tend not to really worry about things till they happen. I was looking around my home after reading this thread yesterday and realized that pretty much everything I have of any worth is either hanging on the wall or on a shelf loose.

[marcusslo]

seen them at home depot, bed bath and beyond, aarons bros.. think aarons bros charges the most

looks liek this quakehold.com/hanging.html