When you buy any piece of furniture, book, new dishes, or even install new windows, you will find that they have manufacturer or store stickers on them. You immediately want to peel them off, but more often than not, the result will be an unpleasant glue mark. Attempts to wash it off with water will do nothing. Let’s analyze how to wipe off the glue from the sticker from different surfaces.

Special means for cleaning

After repairs, moving and buying new furniture, you have to spend a lot of time cleaning surfaces from traces of glue after stickers, price tags and tape. For these purposes, we recommend that you buy a professional tape residue remover in advance. Examples:

  • HG sticker remover is an effective product to remove not only glue residues, but also oil stains. Suitable for all surfaces. Ready to use. Follow the instructions: apply to the problem area, wait 2-3 minutes, repeat the application – perform the treatment 3-4 times until the stain softens. Take a cloth napkin, apply some cleaning fluid on it and wipe the glue spot.
  • Copes with glue, ink, grease, grease stains, tar and soot. Cannot be used on synthetic materials such as plexiglass. For lacquered surfaces, Glutoclean is diluted 1 to 1 with dishwashing liquid. Soak the rag in the cleaning solution, apply to the contaminated area to soak the adhesive layer. After 4-5 minutes, wipe off and rinse with water.
  • Scotch & Marker. It is a strong solvent, so it is suitable for surfaces made of stainless steel, aluminum and solvent-resistant plastic. Important: cannot be used on ABS plastic and surfaces with water-based paint or protective coating. Before use, be sure to check the effect on an inconspicuous area of ​​the object. The tool is applied to a napkin, and traces of glue are already wiped off with it.

How to wipe off the glue from the sticker

The use of professional tools will greatly facilitate the process and shorten the collection time.

Mechanical cleaning

In the case of minor traces of tape, you can also do away with mechanical cleaning using both your own hands and auxiliary tools:

  • This is easiest if the sticker or tape was torn off recently – in this case, you can wipe off the glue with your hands. Simply rub the mark with your finger or a dry tissue, rolling it into a ball until the main adhesive layer is removed. But that’s not all, the surface will still be sticky after such a procedure, but it’s easier to clean it – just wash it with soap with the hard side of a washcloth.
  • Dry and wet wipes will help if you’re on the go. First, carefully rub the glue spot with a damp cloth, then go dry, erasing traces of tape. Repeat the procedure until the stain disappears.
  • An eraser is a more effective method. The glue remaining from the sticker should first be cleaned of dirt. Wet with a sponge, rub, wipe with a coarse cloth. Wipe off the remains of the adhesive layer with an eraser.
  • Melamine sponges are considered a secret weapon of housewives, as they can wipe off any dirt, including traces of stickers and tape. Dip a washcloth in cool water and walk over dirty surfaces.
  • Painter’s tape. Remains of the sticky layer can be removed with a similar tool. Stick painter’s tape on top of the contamination, press firmly, the remaining glue on the surface will stick to the tape. Sharply tear off the tape, tearing off the sticker fragments at the same time. A dubious method, as it will have to be repeated several times for complete cleaning.

Heat treatment

If it is necessary to wipe old traces of glue from a sticker from surfaces that cannot be wetted or treated with solvents, then a hair dryer will come to the rescue. When heated, the adhesive layer softens and is much easier to remove. You can use an ordinary hairdryer for drying hair and a construction one.

  1. Bring the hair dryer turned on to the label or the trail of glue left behind. Warm up well, but do not overdo it so as not to damage the object. We need the glue to become soft.
  2. Pick up the corner of the sticker and carefully remove it. If it is necessary to clean the glue, then remove it from the surface mechanically – with a plastic card, the blunt side of a knife or another suitable object.
  3. Remove the remaining glue with a cotton pad dipped in acetone, nail polish remover, or vegetable oil (depending on the durability of the surface to be cleaned).
  4. Wash off the remnants of the cleaning agent and the adhesive layer with a soapy solution or wipe with a dry sponge if the object cannot be wetted.

Importantly! When using a construction hair dryer, be careful with varnished, painted and plastic bases, as they may deform and swell during heat treatment.

Steam treatment

Hot steam perfectly removes glue and stickers from any moisture-resistant surfaces. If you need to clean pieces of furniture, walk over them with a steamer or use a steam generator. If you do not have such devices in your home, use another suitable cleaning method described in the article.

If the object to be cleaned is small, it is enough to hold it over boiling water:

  1. Put the kettle on the fire and heat to boiling. Let the steam escape through the spout.
  2. Bring the object to the steamer in the area that needs to be cleaned of glue.
  3. Hold for 2-3 minutes.
  4. The glue will soften, the sticker will be easy to wipe off with a knife or even a nail.
  5. Wash the remaining glue with soapy water or acetone.

how to remove glue from stickers

Tools at hand

Buying professional tools is not always rational. The contamination may be small, and not every store can find a means for removing stickers. Mechanical cleaning or heat treatment, in turn, are not suitable for all surfaces, and it is much easier to find a tool that will clean the stain in a couple of movements than to stand over it with a hair dryer or rub it with an eraser for a long time. Let’s consider what improvised means can be used to wipe the glue from the sticker.

  • Vegetable oil . Suitable for surfaces that do not absorb oil, for example, for plastic, glass, ceramics. Apply a layer of oil over the sticker. Wait for 5 minutes. Remove the sticker together with the glue using a dessert knife, spoon, plastic card, etc. Wash off the remains of the product with a washcloth and dishwashing liquid.
  • Essential oils, oil-based products, butter, fat . Any oily substances can be used similarly to vegetable oil.
  • Alcohol, alcohol . Any alcoholic products are suitable, including antiseptics or perfumes. Wet a cotton pad or cloth napkin in alcohol, rub the glue mark, rinse with water.

Importantly! Some surfaces react with alcohol and can deform or change color. Test the effect of the product on an inconspicuous area.

  • Vinegar . Acetic acid, like other acids, corrodes glue. Any surfaces can be cleaned with them. Dip a cotton pad in vinegar and place it on the sticky spot. Wait a few minutes, repeat the procedure. The sticker and glue soften and are easily washed off with a damp washcloth.
  • Lemon, citric acid . It works like vinegar – it dissolves adhesive formations well. Rub the adhesive layer with a slice of lemon, after a couple of minutes wash off with the hard side of the sponge. You can use citric acid by dissolving it in water to a pulp and applying it to the stain with a napkin.
  • Solvents, gasoline, kerosene, white spirit . It perfectly cleans any dirt, but at the same time it can damage the surface of the object being cleaned. Safe for glass. In other cases, check the stability of the material on an inconspicuous area. Do not apply the solvent directly to the stain. First wet a napkin, soak the sticker with it, after 2-3 minutes wipe the sticker together with the glue.
  • Dishwashing detergent . Low-effective agent against adhesive pollution. It is difficult to wipe off the sticker with gel, you will have to repeat the procedure several times. Dilute the product in water, wet a sponge and treat the contaminated object. Repeat.

When peeling off the sticker, do not forget about the remaining glue. The adhesive layer may not be visible, but over time, dust will settle and stick to it, and it will be more difficult to remove the stain without damaging the contaminated surface.

How to wipe off glue from stickers made of plastic, glass, wood