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In an attempt to increase sales, companies have developed communications made for the masses. As a result, every piece of “junk mail” looks like the next. Today businesses are once again looking for ways personalize the communications experience using targeted messages, and many are turning to customized envelopes.
We are professional printers, so we think about labels and stickers a lot. Our team has spent a lot of time being sure that our labels are sticky and strong. However, there are times when labels need to come off, and we’ve had some of our customers ask us about the best way to go about removing label glue when removing stickers.
We’ve been scouring the web for some solutions, and we’ve found a lot! When it comes time to take a label off, there are a lot of different methods you can try and several different solutions that could be effective. Depending on the surface you are trying to get the adhesive off of, one method may work better than another. The following are options we found that look particularly promising when it comes to getting rid of sticker gunk.
Hand sanitiser gets rid of the stick.
Lots of folks recommend using rubbing alcohol, but less and less households seem to have this around. Instead, hand sanitizer can be used. It has a lot of alcohol and smells a bit better. Hand sanitizer can be spread on the sticky surface and left to sit for 20 to 30 minutes. Then rub the surface firmly; the glue should come off in clumps without taking the colour off of the surface. (From https://www.thriftyfun.com/tf96246410.tip.html)
Stickers can off with a steam iron.
There are a lot of messy ideas tossed around when it comes to removing labels and stickers, but this one is neater and cleaner than most. To remove stickers and all glue residues, you can use your steam iron. Fill it with water, and then turn the steam and heat to high. When the iron is hot, hold it upright or otherwise over the label or sticker, but not directly on it, and press the steam button over and over as quickly as you can. The label is supposed to completely lift off. (From https://www.thriftyfun.com/tf35401771.tip.html)
A microfibre cloth can do the trick.
For removing label glue, get a microfibre cloth and dampen it. Wrap the cloth tightly over a finger or two, and push it across the glue. Use a bit of elbow grease and keep going; once you get a bit of the glue off, it should start to grab the rest. If you are trying to get rid of glue from a larger label, you might have to use a clean part of the cloth to get all of the gunk to go.
Maybe try mayo?
We don’t know anyone who’s tried this one, but we wanted to include it because it’s one of the messiest ways of removing label glue we found! The idea is that mayonnaise or vegetable oil can be used to get rid of a label. To get rid of the sticker gunk, liberally coat the label with mayo or vegetable oil and let it sit for a few minutes. Then you are supposed to scrape away the sticker and the sticky stuff with a clean rag coupled with rubbing alcohol or window cleaner to get rid of both the adhesive and the grease from the oil or the mayonnaise.
Clean off your car.
Lots of folks want to get stickers and decals off of their vehicle, and the following idea is designed to do just that. To get rid of the sticker, saturate it with white vinegar, lighter fluid, or WD40, and let it sit for a few minutes. Ideally, the sticker will just peel away, glue and all. It seems that this might end up removing some of your vehicle’s paint, so it’s recommended that you test your vehicle to be sure that the colour of your car won’t go away with the glue. (From http://tipnut.com/25-helpful-items-to-remove-sticky-adhesive-goo/)
Do you have a favorite tip for getting glue gone? Share it with us!
