Sometimes I seriously wonder if the peeps who slap stickers onto things ever stop to think what a pain it is to get them off.
The good news is that you really can usually remove those stubborn little stickers from about any surface, so long as you know the tricks of the trade…and in some cases, you don’t mind a little bit of a time commitment and/or elbow grease.
Here’s a quick guide for getting the stickers off common surfaces and getting on with life:
Glassware, plastic containers, etc. – There are a couple of ways to tackle stickers on plastic and/or glass items. First, the least invasive is to run the sink with SUPER hot water. Place the item in there and allow it to soak.
DO NOT touch the sticker. Just allow it to sit in the water for several hours. A lot of times, if you resist the urge to pick at the sticker to early, the hot water will loosen it completely from the surface. When you come back hours later, it practically falls right off.
If you don’t get that lucky, though, the next step is cooking spray. Peel what portion of the sticker that you can off and then coat the residue in cooking spray. {Test an area when using cooking spray because it can stain some surfaces.} Allow the cooking spray to sit for a minute and then, using a clean towel, the side of a credit card, or even a plastic knife, scrape away the remaining residue.
You can always use the more commercial stick removers, like Goo Gone, etc., but I try to avoid those on items I will be using for food consumption. Vinegar, rubbing alcohol and vodka are some other more natural choices, but they will take a little more patience and elbow grease.
Wood – Start by heating the sticker with a blow dryer. GENTLY lift the edges of the sticker with the side of a credit card, as it starts to loosen. Do not to place the blow dryer directly onto the wood–about an 1″-2″ away should do the trick. When the sticker has been removed, coat a paper towel in distilled white vinegar and place it onto the residue.
Allow it to soak into the residue for several minutes. Rub the spot to remove any loosened residue. Repeat until the process has removed all of the residue. Again, Goo Gone and WD-40 will work, but you definitely want to test an inconspicuous part of the wood first, because they could potentially harm the finish.
Tile, vinyl flooring or porcelain – If for some reason your kids decide to coat your floors or shower in stickers, or you are neck deep in a renovation and have had to remove sticky stripping from your tub, etc. you can easily get them off by applying rubbing alcohol to the surface.
Buff the sticker/stickiness away using a clean rag. When most of the stickiness is gone, you can wet a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser and easily remove the remaining goop.
Do you have tried and true ways to get stickers off? Make sure to share them in the comments below.
~Mavis
Linda says
We have several kerosene lamps to use when our power goes out. In years past, it happened several times each winter, not so much anymore. We always have kerosene on hand to fill the lamps with. When I can’t remove a label, I soak the jar in hot water until I can remove the label and then rub kerosene over the glue. It dissolves it in an instant.
Erin says
Lemons remove sticker gunk, too! Rub a lemon slice on it, & it’ll dissolve off. Still requires a bit more elbow grease than the chemicals, but it still works great.
Kim says
Just a quick note on how to ADD a label to something without causing headaches later. My husband brews his own beer and one year we wanted to give some bottles out as gifts. We made custom labels and if you print them on regular computer paper, you can apply to the bottle with milk. It works like a dream (and then later it comes off easily when you soak the bottle as Mavis described).
Charleen says
My daughter showed me that mixing coconut oil with some baking soda works to remove sticky residue. You just apply to the sticky area and let it sit for about 15 minutes and then rinse away. She was using this to remove sticky stuff from dolls she was refinishing. I have used it on jars that had industrial sticky stuff on them.
Debbie says
Hi I have used a hairdryer to gently heat stickers & labels, its a quick way to remove them.
Pauline in Upstate NY says
Here we use “Pure Citrus” brand’s Orange Air Freshener. No, NOT as air freshener! (Dread invention, IMHO) But the ingredient list says, “100% natural, delightfully fragrant oils found in fresh oranges.” And that’s how it smells — intensely like orange zest. Spray some on to the sticky label or residue (from very close and do it over the sink), then let it sit for a few minutes and the label comes right off. It does leave an oily residue that needs to be washed off, so I wouldn’t use it on anything wood.) Available at Home Depot and likely similar stores. (A family member who worked for Home Depot told us about this, said it’s what they used in the store to get labels off.)
Gerri G says
I have ound that spraying Windex on the sticker, letting it sit for a couple o minutes, it usually comes of easily.
Barbara Webster says
Mayonnaise will remove decals stuck on wood cabinetry.
Trish says
Hi,
Love it!
Also plastic
Trish says
Oops! I got excited!
I meant to say glass.
Laure says
If soaking in hot water doesn’t work for glass/plastic, my next go-to is straight blue Dawn. Apply liberally and rub. Also, I found that soaking in hot soapy water (with blue Dawn) for the initial try worked slightly better than plain hot water.
JC says
If you peel the label early and there’s gunk left behind, scrubbing with warm water and a small amount of baking soda does wonders – takes glue right off of glass.
Randi says
soaking in warm water and washing soda also helps disintegrate pesky labels on glass, plastic, metal
Ginger says
I use orange essential oil to remove sticker residue. Works like a dream and smells nice, too.
Jeni says
I second orange oil—works like magic. Lemon also works.
Margery says
Still have nightmares when I helped open a brand new school kitchen and everything had a sticker to take off. We did the hot water, and scrape. Also rubbing alcohol, and on the real stubborn ones goo be gone. Hundreds of stickers to remove.
Stephanie H. says
Lemon oil or 3M Adhesive Remover. We buy ours at an auto parts store in an aerosol can. Works great on most surfaces.
Cindy Miller says
WD-40 works great even on scratches on slate. But vodka? huh, who knew. 😀
HollyG says
I worked in a high school for years and we would use mayonnaise to remove sticker and old masking tape. We were pretty limited in the chemicals we could use and mayo worked great – I’d just smear it on and leave it over night.
DotRot says
I won’t use cooking spray for this process for two reasons: first, there’s things added to the oil that are not necessary for tis, and second, the price of the spray as compared to other choices. Practically any oil will do. We’ve used vegetable oil, corn oil, baby oil, etc. and have had equally successful results with all of them.
Linda Practical Parsimony says
Goo Gone, WD40, heat, hot water, vinegar…not at once.
Angela C. says
I have nothing to add, but I wonder if anyone has suggestions for removing sticker residue from clothing. Every once in a while, name tag stickers leave residue on clothing that won’t wash out. Generally I hate to put a name tag on my clothing just in case it is one of those that destroys clothing.