You do have to worry about it where I live. Two of my neighbors got dinged for nail holes that they’d patched. Management’s explanation was that the lease expressly forbids nail holes; it does not say if nail holes are filled, there will be no charge. To be fair, one of those tenants mounted a TV on her walls and left dime-sized holes. Even though she patched them (not sure how well), they stood out. Some landlords don’t want tenants to patch holes lest they do so incorrectly.
But I’ll amend my comment: the OP should check the lease AND talk with management about nail holes and whether patching them is sufficient to avoid charges.
I lived in apartments for many years and always hung pictures. Use a finger to apply a dab of latex spackling compound to the hole. Don’t use a lot. Just enough to fill the tiny nail hole and leave nothing on the wall.
It’ll be almost invisible on a typical white wall.
I would have more concern about wall anchors. They require a pencil size hole. You can patch them the same way. But it’ll be more noticeable.
Having been an apartment maintenance back in the 1990’s. Too many idiots tried to get around the nail holes with toothpaste. We dinged them for each and every one. Using blue or red toothpaste made it very easy. (Insert rolleyes here.)
Where I live in Europe, residences are constructed of very hard concrete block with a thin layer of something like finishing plaster for painting. It’s impossible to drive nails, obviously. Homeowners here commonly own domestic hammer drills and hang art using screws.
When we first moved here, it was a rental place, and our landlord happened to be upset at the prior tenant for drilling a bunch of holes which she had to repair. We asked what she would like us to do, and after a little conversation she agreed to install a museum-style hanging system, with a rail along the top edge of the wall from which nylon cords (or thin metal cables for heavy items) could be suspended. It was a couple thousand euros out of her pocket, but it meant the walls would remain permanently unmolested.
It could be worth a conversation with the property management people to see if this is an option.
Every apartment I’ve lived in has had concrete/cinderblock walls. You just have to use steel nails - you know, the dark gray, stubby kind that don’t bend. I’ve used them to hang pictures on load-bearing concrete.
The walls in my place are brick skimmed with cement.
I use “hardened concrete nails” to for hanging pictures.
The concrete nails come in all lengths and thickness, and I use the thinnest 1" nail I can find. I find 1" is just about the right length to half into the wall with enough left to hang any picture.
The trick with driving nails into concrete is to be pretty aggressive with the hammer. Don’t be timid, a couple of hard blows will do the trick.
A trick I use is to hold the nail against the wall with pliers. This will keep the nail straight and give you more confidence not to hit your fingers when you bash it.
I picked up a set of Ook professional brand hangers per the advice above. They’re rated for 40 pounds, I think. Each hanger uses two nails.
I have now returned from my mission and there’s good news and bad news. The walls appear to be concrete covered in drywall. Most hangers, especially the larger ones, are intended to penetrate drywall and potentially get anchored in studs. So these, even the good sharp Ook Pro, start to go in nicely and then stall and start to bend when almost in. Most of the hangers I installed do seem nice and solid, though, despite that. No wobble in the nails. I trust they will hold.
I suppose the other good news is that solid concrete walls are pretty good noise insulators. The apartment is nice and quiet.
In Israel or the US? Every house I’ve lived in, period, in Israel (single family homes) had concrete walls; I’ve only lived in two apartments in the US but they both had studs and drywall. (Plus a dorm building which was indeed cindeblock).
The situation is probably different in states other than California though…
Yeah, I forgot about my two years in New York (I lived in the States for 5 years as a small child and 2 as an adult). The walls there were part brick and part wood, I think.
In my old house, I hung a spice cabinet on the wall between the kitchen and garage. I discovered it was concrete (or maybe cinder block). Following someone’s advice I got a carbide drill and lead anchors. Worked like a charm. Still solid when I moved out 45 years later. Of course, that is overkill for pictures. Also as the owner, I didn’t need anyone’s permission.
I wouldn’t hang anything heavy with nails. You drill a whole into the wall, insert a rawl plug and hang your picture off a screw. Then when you move out, pull out the plug and put some white filler into the hole.
I remember when I first heard of using toothpaste to fill small holes in the 1970s; had always used Crest toothpaste that was light green and so was completely mystified about how this “technique” would render holes invisible.
Circa late 80s I lived in an apartment and when I moved out used white (generic?) toothpaste to fill nail holes and to rebuild some decorative trim around one doorway.
I got my full security deposit back, but the toothpaste trim probably crumbled the first time someone slammed a door.
Along the same lines as Ook, but slightly less deep into the wall, is the High & Mightly hangers. I use these in my house. I’ve got some large posters in frames with plastic fronts, and some large pictures with thick wooden frames and glass fronts, and they hang just fine.
Looks like the company has more products with the same design, like shelves, where the hangers only go as deep as drywall.
