Must Get Label Glue Off Preprimed Lumber

Question: I request that someone please identify a product and/or process that will help to quickly remove an incredibly sticky and resistant label “glue” from the surface of pre-primed dimension lumber.
Product: Pre-primed pine branded CMPC Maderas S.A. of Santiago, Chile, sold in Maryland by Home Depot.
Problem: A 3″ x 4″ plastic label is attached to the good side of each piece of lumber with an amazingly sticky glue. (The UPC is glued to the not-as-good side.) We’ve been able to remove the plastic labels intact. However, the glue is left on the surface. We’ve tried a virtual chemistry lab trying to find an efficient way to removed these labels.
These didn’t work:
(1) Isopropyl alcohol; (2) Denatured alcohol (ethanol & methanol; (3) Spray Nine; (4) Orange Glo; (5) 409; (6) Goo Gone; and (7) Bug and Tar Remover.
One product so far shows a little promise:
A product called De-Solv-It Contractors Solvent. But it’s very slow going and the results aren’t ideal.
We’ve Also:
(1) Talked with the lumber guy at Home Depot, where we bought the lumber. He recommended a product sold by… Home Depot, of course — it didn’t work. In all fairness, he was very earnest and I’m sure he meant to help.
(2) Called CMPC in Santiago, Chile. I left a message with an employee and a gentleman returned my call the next day. Turned out he was not in the right division. He promised to find someone in the lumber department. Our mutual language barriers didn’t help, but that’s certainly not his fault. Information from the mill is still pending.
So… perhaps some of you ladies and gentlemen have purchased this particular pre-primed lumber product that seems to have labels welded to the surface. If you’ve solved the glue removal problem, we’d be very grateful if you would share the “secret.”
Thanks so much!
Replies
If I am not mistaken Bug and Tar remover is in range of mineral spirits.
You need a hotter solvent.
MEK or lacquer thinner.
I suspect that waterless hand cleaner migth work, but it would be slow.
You might also try WD-40, but I that is probably similar to the B&T.
We keep a quart of Naphtha on hand for this sort of thing - lighterfluid same thing more or less.
And if that won't get it, you can always try napalm!
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3M Adhesive Remover. Found at automotive parts stores or automotive paint supply houses. Have not seen an adhesive yet that it can't dissolve.
While some oily products such as spray lubricants may get it off, let's all remember this piece is primed and presumably the poster wants to paint it :)
DG/Builder
Try a hair drier or a heat gun.
Can you still get carbon tetrachloride in the US ?
Other good stuff:
- instant glue disolver
- electronic contact cleaner
- "rust eraser"
- easy-off over cleaner
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
OK, no laughing, no eye-rolling.
Peanut butter.
Slap it on like a you're making lunch, go eat your real lunch, then scrape it off.
I picked this up from a little old blue haired lady years ago who owned a gift shop and used it to take off labels off plastic items.
T
I have used peanut butter before.Of course peanut butter works because it has peanut oil, a vegetable oil. Just about any oil can be made to work but, for some reason, vegetable oil seems to work better.Peanut butter will work well. Anything that contains a lot of vegetable oil, like brake fluid, will also work well. All a matter of what you have on hand. Good to keep filed away that in a pinch a dab from the PBJ in the lunch box or a few drops from the bottle of spare brake fluid can save the day.Of course after your done smearing on the oil you need to remove the oil. Mineral oils are easiest to remove with mineral spirits or other solvent. They will work on vegetable oils but soap and water is more effective. A shot of 409 or Simple Green and a wipe with a damp cloth should get it. Be careful with vegetable oils. They can damage a lot of paints.
Carburetor cleaner or brake parts cleaner might work. MEK should work, as well as acetone and lacquer thinner.
try Xnoyl (sp?)
The secret of Zen in two words is, "Not always so"!
When we meet, we say, Namaste'..it means..I honor the place in you where the entire universe resides, I honor the place in you of love, of light, of truth, of peace. I honor the place within you where if you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me, there is only one of us.
"try Xnoyl"Isn't that a sleeping pill ;)
"try Xnoyl"Isn't that a sleeping pill ;) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>Probably...it came to me in a dreamThe secret of Zen in two words is, "Not always so"!
When we meet, we say, Namaste'..it means..I honor the place in you where the entire universe resides, I honor the place in you of love, of light, of truth, of peace. I honor the place within you where if you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me, there is only one of us.
I've had good luck using WD-40 to remove adhesive stuff.
You have to saturate the surface well, and it has to soak quite a while before it works.
Have you been letting the stuff you tried soak for a while? That may be part of the problem.
I'm thinkin' if he tries all these chemicals he'll end up with toxic sewage...Why not just use a torch than 36 grit it...lolThe secret of Zen in two words is, "Not always so"!
When we meet, we say, Namaste'..it means..I honor the place in you where the entire universe resides, I honor the place in you of love, of light, of truth, of peace. I honor the place within you where if you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me, there is only one of us.
laquer thinner works great, smells good too!
maybe just sand it off and reprime?
DCS Inc.
"Whaddya mean I hurt your feelings, I didn't know you had any feelings." Dave Mustaine
Fredrick,
After all that, it might be cheaper to cut it out and splice the pieces.
SamT
I'd be inclined to try ether, i.e. starting fluid in an aerosol, or perhaps acetone.
Greg
I've had the same problem with HD's hardwoods and have given up on trying to remove the adhesive. Now, I just buy boards long enough to allow me to cut off the end with the label and toss it in the scrap barrel.
I believe that the lumber comes from the distributor with those labels already in place so I guess this one isn't HD's fault - lol.
Ahhh..you got bit too.
Mayonaisse. You need an elmulsifier ( oil and water) egg is water, oil is oil+= mayo.
You need both to combat the combatant glue.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Buck sent me a can of Bumper Sticker Remover to take off the Republican Right Wing Conservative Blah Blah Blah propaganda that he and the goobernatorial candidate pasted on my van.
Little did he know the leftist radical cadre had already peeled it off. Glue don't dry in five minutes.A great place for Information, Comraderie, and a sucker punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
Quittin' Time
acetoneMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
sounds like premature a-peel-ation to me, LOL
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Nah, more like two young guys trying to pull the wool over one old guy's eyes.
Wasn't done then due to their right wing, none open-minded, politically correct thinking I would guess.A great place for Information, Comraderie, and a sucker punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
Quittin' Time
I was around when a friend wanted to take the company labels off their utility truck in preparation to sell it. He ran down to the HD and grabbed some sort of Jasco adhesive remover. Didn't do anything on the truck, but those labels had been on the truck for 10 years...Maybe it would work on the glue from stickers. Products I personally have found helpful are Goof-Off and Goo Gone.
Young, poor, and eager to learn
Assuming the tag is on the end of the piece, cut it off and return it to depot. They sell it by the foot so give a foot back to them, explain what the problem is. Enough of those returns, and maybe they'll finally take the complaint back to Chile.
I really dont feel it rude to point out inaneness.
If the tag is in the middle, return it all and go to lowes or a lumber yard.
a german woman once gave me excellent advice- all glue is either water based or oil based, and simple oils can remove oil-based glues. whenever i have the too-sticky problem, i pour on some baby oil and let it sit for an hour, or overnight if needed. similar to the peanut butter solution i suppose, but it does work without the toxicity and fumes of Hot solvents.
ion this case, you are right - oil type solvent worksbut not true about all glue water or oil based. Most are probably reactive curing. Polyurethene is probably the most common example in construction
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
i know you are right- the whole conversation i didn't quote was about the basic types of glue originally, pre-"new" wonder chemistry. for the most part, many glue olabels you encounter today ae still either easily removed by soaking in water, or applying oil.
i like starting with baby oil or vegetable oil from the kitchen pantry, because 9 times out of 10 it does the job easily and safely with no strong odors, and so often when i use strong solvents, they either damage the surface below or they just create a softer gummy mess without actually removing the glue.
This may sound odd, but vinegar will work on the glue if you can remove the label first, keep the area wet with the vinegar, wait a while. The glue will come right off, no nasty solvents. We bought an antique cabinet that had that plastic contact paper all over the inside. I went through all the solvents I could think of, with little or no effect. Vingar has an amazing number of uses, besides salad dressing. Oh, use white vinegar. Wine vinegar may stain the finish. Ha. Good luck, Bruce
As a painter, I have had good luck removing adhesives with lighter fluid. It shouldn't hurt the primer like lacquer thinner or other thinners.
Anybody mention Toluene? Its brutal strong.
Goo-Be-Gone works OK
CRC Brake Cleaner (from an auto parts store) works better
3M adhesive remover (from an auto paint store) is also pretty good.
Eric S.
Acetone will get the liquid nail off your fingers so you don't have to walk around with scuzzy looking hands for several days so it should work on the labels.
Just don't try to buy it if you have long hair or they'll profile you as a meth manufacturer.
be no matches buyer either
'Nemo me impune lacesset'
No one will provoke me with impunity
When final cleaning a new home, wave found that Acetone works well on many items, glue included.