Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My section of the building (built in 1964 and basically never renovated, this is a Catholic high school I might add) still had chalk boards. Over the summer, they decided to convert them into white boards.
Attempt #1: Some kind of roll-on whiteboard plasticy stuff. It required that a glue be spread over the entire surface of the board. It didn't work and the stuff came off (probably because they didn't even put a frame around it!)
Attempt #2: They did not remove the glue, and painted the boards with whiteboard paint. The surface, as a result, was no longer smooth on some boards. Certain teachers cannot easily erase the boards, and you can still see the writing after you press VERY HARD with the eraser. My room, luckily, was the last one done and there was extra paint. The guy who did it (a teacher who was working over the summer) put several extra coats on just to use it up. Mine work pretty well - there is a smear after writing for a while, but it does erase. 6 of these rooms are used for math. Our dept. is pretty fired up about it since it is very difficult to erase anything.
Attempt #3: This weekend our dept. chair's room is being repainted with extra coats of the paint. If it works well for her, they will do the rest of them.
Also: they refuse to purchase Expo brand markers. The secretary went to Big Lots and bought whatever crap they had on sale, $4 for a pack of 8 colors. Half of them were dried up and the ones that did write, did NOT erase at all. I had to scrub with a towel and cleaner to get it off.
If there's one school supply you don't cheap out on, IMO, it's whiteboard markers.
As I said, I'm pretty pleased with mine. I'm just so happy to be rid of 50+ years of chalk dust. I have been cleaning the room and still find dust in random places -- particularly bad was the AC filter which was causing it to freeze up and leak all over the window sill. I fixed that myself.
Ah, the joys of the first 2 weeks of school. And the joys of budget-constrained Catholic schools!
I go to Walmart each fall and buy the two pack of black Expo markers for $2. They last about six months each. I won't use the crappy markers the office manager buys us.
Good luck with your board! I had one like that in another office. It lasted about a year with heavy usage and then would no longer erase cleanly. I saw a large one at a garage sale and bought it -- it had a little crack in a corner, which I fixed with craft Epoxy. As far as I know, it's still hanging on the wall of that office.
I go to Walmart each fall and buy the two pack of black Expo markers for $2.
Walgreens has the 8 pack for $5 and the 4 pack for $2 often.
I agree about the whiteboards...you have to do the right thing. And clean it properly! I have always cleaned my own, picked that up from my student teaching days. Personally, I use the clear, vinegar based Windex. Our custodians use Quat (sp?) on everything, and it just doesn't erase well with that residue on there.
Walgreens has the 8 pack for $5 and the 4 pack for $2 often.
I agree about the whiteboards...you have to do the right thing. And clean it properly! I have always cleaned my own, picked that up from my student teaching days. Personally, I use the clear, vinegar based Windex. Our custodians use Quat (sp?) on everything, and it just doesn't erase well with that residue on there.
That's good to know. The only thing my custodian does is empty the garbage.
They bought us some no-name brand white board cleaner. I'm thinking I'll have to get something else.
Try cleaning your boards with actual white board cleaner, then cover them with Turtle-Wax (for cars). Rub it in and buff it off just like you would on a car. I did this to my boards last year and it helped. You will have to do it about once a month.
Try cleaning your boards with actual white board cleaner, then cover them with Turtle-Wax (for cars). Rub it in and buff it off just like you would on a car. I did this to my boards last year and it helped. You will have to do it about once a month.
You can write over the top of that?
I just bought some 91% rubbing alcohol and a spray bottle this weekend, gonna try it out tomorrow morning.
Staples has had 12 packs of Expo colored markers for $10 all summer. I stocked up. I've also had good luck with dollar store markers. I can get 2, 3 or 4 for a dollar. They don't last as long but the price is good.
Post and let us know how the alcohol works. White board cleaner is expensive.
Well, it works okay, gets the "cloud" off - but silly me wasn't thinking and I sprayed the entire board at once. By the time I got to middle the alcohol had evaporated and I felt really stupid :-P
Something seems "up" with either the painted board, or perhaps the original cleaner they bought us - which is no-name brand. I have had 3 markers dry up overnight. And other teachers said the same thing.
This just keeps getting worse!
The re-coating over the weekend did nothing to my dept. chair's board. I have a feeling they will end up buying us new boards if they can't find a solution...
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
