How to Remove Sticker Residue from All Surfaces
August 25, 2016 |
Business Solutions, StickerYou Knowhow, Stickers
Guest post by Georgiana Mihaila
I love stickers! They are great for so many applications and uses. However, when it comes to taking them off, they turn into a bit of a drag. That's why I love StickerYou's approach -- they use a quality adhesive that will remove cleanly without leaving that annoying gunk behind.
Luckily, sticker and label residue can be quite easy to remove if you know what to use. More often than not, readily available household items do the trick.
Most Useful Household Items to Remove Sticker and Label Goo
Depending on the surface you plan on cleaning (keep reading for a breakdown by surface), there are many household items that can help you MacGyver your way to becoming sticky free.
They range from plain old pencil erasers to vinegar, baby oil, an iron, and rubbing alcohol -- or even vodka (this whole sticker gunk cleaning thing just got a bit more fun, hasn’t it?)
Removing Sticker Residue from Walls
DIY masters have quite a few handy tricks to get rid of sticker and tape adhesives; the one with the best results involve using a clothes iron to steam the sticky surface, making it easy to wipe off.
Here’s how: Plug in your iron and get it hot and steamy. Take the anvil and place it close to the wall (carefully, as not to actually touch the wall), then hold it there for about five minutes. Once you’ve steamed the adhesive, take a paper towel and wipe off the wall with gentle, circular moves. This should do the trick!
A great alternative for cleaning walls is baby oil. Take a sponge, pour some baby oil on it, then gently rub it on the wall residue. Let it sit for about 20 minutes, then use paper towels to scrub the adhesive right off.
Removing Sticker and Label Residue from Windows
First off, never try to scratch off stickers from windows! That will partly do the trick and get the stickers off, but you'll be replacing them with some way less appealing window scratches.
Instead use this simple recipe: Fill ¾ of a spray bottle with water, then fill out the rest with apple cider vinegar; add ⅛ of a spoon of baking soda, and shake well. Spray the concoction over the residue surface, rub it in (you can use your fingers), then use a scraper the wipe it off neatly. And that’s it!
Removing Stickers and Label Residue from Glass
Getting old labels off bottles or jars can be a pain. But with this trick those labels paper labels will scrub off clean.How to do it: First soak the label in hot water to loosen the top layer of the paper label, and peel it away. Then spread peanut butter or olive oil over the label using a knife or sponge. Let sit for a minute and then wipe away with some paper towel and clean with soap.
Image credit: OnlineLabels.com
Removing Residue from Clothes
Now here’s a sticky situation: what do you do when the labels come off, but the sticky part stays put? Our first advice is to proceed with caution, as clothes are much more easy to ruin than harder surfaces like walls or glass.
The solution: Pour a bit of acetone-based nail polish remover on the sticky area, then turn it face down and place it on a towel or washcloth. Add another drop of nail polish on the other side, and use another towel to rub the spot on both sides. It may take a couple of tries, but it will rub the sticker residue right out. 
Removing Stickers from Plastic or Metal
Here’s where that pencil eraser comes into play. Erasers are great for removing those annoying small parts left behind by stickers and labels -- and can just as easily be used on glass. Even if you don’t have kids in school or your whole life went the digital way, you're bound to have a pencil in a drawer somewhere.
For bigger surfaces, you can use cooking oil to soak up the whole sticker: rub any type of cooking oil on it, let it soak overnight, then the sticker should be ready to come right off. If that fails, apply the oil again, and use a razor blade to gently scrape the adhesive off.
Other household items that work great on plastic: lacquer thinners, degreasers, nail polish, that handy vodka we mentioned earlier, and even disinfectant wet wipes.
Author bio: Georgiana Mihaila is a writer on a quest to make home living easier, one useful tip at a time. She’s also the word juggler behind Fancy Pants Homes.
Get other great ideas,
For even more business