Repairing the monument marquee sign (when its title sign falls out)

LAST FRIDAY MORNING, I arrived at Mishkon (to meet the termite-treatment crew) and noticed a problem with our monument marquee sign. 

(No, I’m not talking about the missing lettering on the glass-covered board inside — which says ELCO TO IS ON instead of WELCOME TO MISHKON. That’s not the B&G Committee’s responsibility, is it?)

This post identifies the repair problem and describes how I managed to fix it myself.

Executive Summary

When the title sign falls out of our monument marquee sign, it can be repaired with a combination of adhesive mounting strips and weatherstripping.

Problem: The title sign fell out

The problem that I was referring to is that the title sign that runs across the top was missing — revealing a fluorescent-tube light fixture that’s behind where the title sign is normally seated. 

Presumably the title sign had fallen out onto the sidewalk. I spotted it up on the portico, leaning against a column. Some passerby had helpfully left it there.

Closer inspection revealed evidence that the title sign had previously been affixed in its place with adhesive mounting strips, whose adhesive had dried out. Actually, this was the second time that such adhesive had dried out. Also the aluminum inner frame had some caulk weatherstripping that had dried out and was peeling off.

So today I brought along some new mounting strips. Before affixing them, I used a razor-blade scraping tool to remove most residue from the old strips, and I cleaned off some grime with soap and water. Before pushing the title sign into place, I pressed in some rope caulk as new weatherstripping, along the back of the inner frame.

Here is the result.…

After the repair

Background about the Marquee Sign

Our monument marqee sign does not date from the original construction in 1948. Rather, it is a replacement unit that was purchased and installed about 20 years ago. Both its purchase invoice and the manufacturer’s sales catalog from which it was presumably ordered were then filed away. (The folder is the very first one in a file drawer labeled “Judy” and “Building & Grounds” in the middle of the large file cabinet that used to be in the big office — but is presently stashed in the basement. Here is a blurry photo, for reference.…)