Glass and Mirrors - removing mirror

I want to remove a 10 year old mirror in bathroom. Bottom edge is discolored - due to moisture?? It's about 3 by 3 feet and only visible attachment seems to be a metal rim at bottom so I'm guessing it's glued to wall. I'd like to save the wall, if possible. Is it best to break the mirror to remove it? I'd cover it with tape first if I did this. thanks for any advice.

If it is glued to the wall, a piece of braided wire such as is used to hang pictures can be used to saw away the adhesive between the mirror and the wall. Naturally, precautions should be taken to avoid allowing the mirror to fall.

May be a little late on this, but this is coming from a glass guy. We don't remove mirrors everyday, but when we do.. this is how we do it.

Please note, your wall will be destroyed no matter which process you use. The glue is normally stronger than the plaster, so you end up breaking the plaster and sheet rock rather than the glue.

Put a blanket or something thick over the vanity or floor or whatever is under the mirror. (We don't do this part, but I recommend it: put on a sweatshirt, gloves, long pants, and boots.)

You'll need a hammer, some shingles, and if you have access to one, a suction cup used to carry glass or other things.. I'm sure you've seen them, you stick em to whatever and pump it up.

Climb above the mirror and bang the shingles in behind it. The key to this is patience. The mirror will bend, but not a lot. So bang several shingles in every like 8 inches. Bang them all in evenly. Eventually, you can work your way to banging some in the sides. Slowly but surely, the mirror will break away from the wall.

Have someone else standing by to help you take it down.

Please be careful.

Being retired from the glass business, Mmerlina is telling you exactly how we removed mirrors. I want to know from mmerlina if he ever succeeded in removing mirrors using piano wire or something similar as chfite recommended. I've tried it a few times in my 40 years and never was able to cut through the mastic.

I've never used piano wire because there's lots of limits on using it. If the mirror is in the corner, you can't get the wire and vice grips or whatever you need to hold onto the wire over there.

Also, old mastic, like the black stuff that used to come in a can, is as hard as a rock. By the time you cut through that with a wire, I could have the old mirror off, cut a new mirror, and have it installed. :)

The only real benefit a professional has as opposed to someone else is ready the access to the suction cup, and the knowledge of how far a mirror will bend before it cracks. Other than that.. like I said, patience is key.

What I always think of while I'm doing something with glass during the day.. is the safer way may sometimes take longer, but it takes a lot longer for the wounds to heal caused by shortcuts.

Hey glass guys...just for clarification....

Shingles? I know you don't mean asphalt.....cedar right?
Would shims work as well?

Just for those who may read this later....

Wood shingles used for shimming. I use to make wedges of various thicknesses to fit the conditions. By hammering the wedge at an edge of the mirror it would break the bond of the mastic and then pulling with a suction cup would do the rest.

Gotcha...thanks...I figured thats what you guys meant.

Hehe.. I'll never forget one lady hired us to get the mirror off her master bathroom wall. She was a nervous wreck to begin with.

So we're standing there in the bathroom and she goes "so how do you get this off the wall, you don't have to break it do you?!" I just held up the hammer I had in my hand and smiled, I've never seen someone run so fast.