Plastic Adhesive

It’s not unusual for most of us to come across glue or residual adhesive that gets stuck on glass, plastic or cloth. You can’t get rid of it by any amount of washing. If craft be your hobby, you would have surely encountered this problem while handling paints and glues, which invariably spoil clothing. Even otherwise, residual glue from labels and stickers gets stuck on the surface of different items and in due course of time accumulates a lot of dust which spoils the looks of the item by blemishing its surface. Fortunately, there are many ways to handle this problem and the best thing is some of the items required for getting rid of such stains are normally available at home.

Removing Adhesive From Different Types Of Surfaces

Plastic: Removing old adhesive residue or removing adhesive from plastic is not at all difficult and the same process can be used for either case. In a small bucket add some detergent. Dip a piece of cloth in this solution and keep it over the surface of glue. Let it remain there for a couple of hours to soften the glue. To prevent the cloth from getting dried, wrap it and the object with help of a plastic wrap.

After three to four hours, remove the plastic wrap and take off the moist cloth. Now, using a clean cloth remove the adhesive which has already softened. You would need to repeat this process till the entire glue comes off. The advantage of this method is that it doesn’t spoil the surface of plastic at all. However, if you are looking for a method that does the job quickly, you may try rubbing alcohol. Dip a cotton ball in alcohol and apply it on the glue. That will soften the glue which you can wipe off using another clean cloth. Having done that dip the cloth in fresh water and wash the surface clean.

Glass: Adhesive can be removed from the glass by following the above method. Since glass is not easily affected by many chemicals you can follow an easier method. An easy way is to saturate glue with baby oil, and let it alone for sometime. Almost certainly it will soften the glue which can be scraped off using a knife. Finally, you wash the surface with soap and water. Another option would be dab a bit of lighter fluid like WD-40 on the adhesive, wait for a few minutes before wiping it off. Repeat the steps till the surface becomes clean.

Cloth: You can remove adhesive from clothing in a number of ways. The simplest one is to hold an ice cube against the adhesive for about twenty seconds and then remove the glue with help of another piece of cloth. Vinegar that is available in any household can be used for removing most forms of glue. The affected part of the clothing may be soaked in vinegar for about fifteen minutes and then rinse it out. Another convenient way of removing the spot at home is to keep an absorbent paper on both the sides of the glued spot. Then, you keep a clean cloth over absorbent paper and iron it out using a hot iron. You may have to repeat this exercise a couple of times till you get rid of all the glue which melts due heat and gets absorbed by the paper.

For bonding of glass, plastics, metals and a number of other materials a variety of plastic adhesives like resins, acrylics, epoxy, silicones and hot-melt adhesive are frequently used. These are used not only for making or assembly of crafts but also for the purpose of maintenance and repairs and find many engineering applications. Some of the characteristics that encourage their use are their good insulating properties, coupled with great bonding strength and their excellent resistance to heat, impact and many chemicals. These plastic adhesive products are available in ready to use containers, packs, glue gun cartridges and syringes. Certain adhesives may be water based but many contain harmful chemicals and need to be handled very carefully.

Epoxy adhesives are possibly the strongest of all adhesives, and find wide application in building planes, vehicles and sports equipment. This waterproof, solvent-less adhesive apart from offering a very strong bond, has the added advantage of being resistant to heat and chemicals. Application of heat cures it without causing any appreciable shrinkage. There are two parts to an epoxy, the resin and the hardener and the two have to be mixed before use.

Hot-melt adhesives are solid adhesive prepared by using thermoplastic resins. These are available in a solid or semi-solid form and do not need to be mixed with an organic solvent. Heating melts it, and then a coat of molten material is applied to the desired surface. As it gets cool, it adheres to the surface and gets hardened. Hot-melt adhesive finds applications in joining of automotive parts, electrical parts, and packing cartons.

Popularly known as super glue, Cyanoacrylate is a water-resistant plastic adhesive. It makes a good bonding with many materials, including metals but does not give satisfactory bonding with smooth glass. Super glue may be employed for joining together of many items like electronic components, corals, model crafts, and ballerina’s shoes. It has been realized to effectively repair skin and bone and closing of wounds in humans and animals too.

Though plastic adhesive products are very useful, they could have some health-related issues. They tend to release strong fumes that may cause irritation to eye and skin. That’s why it’s imperative to wear long clothing to keep the skin covered and to use plastic adhesives in a well-ventilated area.