# Removing Labels



## B M W (Feb 4, 2006)

I have been saving wine bottles and asked my friends to save bottles also. Does anyone have any tips or tricks for removing the old labelsquickly?


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## Angell Wine (Feb 4, 2006)

Razor blade and goo gone works best. soak the bottles in warm water then scrape the labels with the razor blade. anything left use goo gone. elbow grease &amp; more elbow grease. good luck. 


I've got cousinburied in Big Fork, I been wanting to get up in that country but never have. Maybe some day. Beautiful from the pictures he sent me. Wish I was there.


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## Waldo (Feb 5, 2006)

Bottle cleaning is a rather labor intensive chore but the drudgery can be minimized by listening to some good music of your choice while performing the task. My wife took this picture of mecleaning bottles last weekend. Note the short sleeve shirt and thegrass already turning green..Even in Arkansas, this is highly unusual for this time of year. Anyway, I have found Brillo pads to be quite effective in removing some of the stubborn glues. Have not tried the razor blade scraper but I like the idea and will give it a try to Angell.....Thats what I love about thsi forum......so much yet to learn and so many people who have .."Been There and Done That" to learn from.


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## masta (Feb 5, 2006)

Check out this article I wrote for the newsletter as it covers my approach to cleaning bottles:


 [url]http://www.finevinewines.com/Good-Techniques-for-Bottling-Yo ur-Wine.htm[/url]


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## Dean (Feb 5, 2006)

I soak my bottles in a solution of TSP (found in the paint section of your local hardware store). Wear rubber gloves as this stuff is caustic! But it takes the labels off with very little effort. It is an industrial strengh degreaser/cleaner that is super effective.


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## pkcook (Feb 5, 2006)

I use Soft Scruband a plastic scrubby after soaking and scraping off the paper. It brings off the glue. Waldo's point of having some good tunes helps any of these laborious tasks



.


Caution:Make sure you read the labels on what ever you use. Goo Gone can be fatal if swallowed.


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## B M W (Feb 5, 2006)

Thanks everyone for the great tips. I will have to get some goo gone.


Waldo, thanks for the picture. It will be several months before we see green grass here in Montana. Here is a picture of Mount Haggin that I took from my deck. We have more snow than what isin the picture.


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## NorthernWinos (Feb 5, 2006)

WOW!!! What a veiw....just lovely!!! Enjoy your space.


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## jobe05 (Feb 5, 2006)

B M W said:


>




Ah Man........ If you let me come to visit you....... give me a nice bottle of wine, a comfortable chair and that million dollar view and I will never leave! That is an awesome view. Your very lucky BMW!


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## NorthernWinos (Feb 5, 2006)

Be careful with all those chemicals in your wash water. I once used some household ammonia on beer bottles, it worked great...but I let a batch soak overnight and the chemical etched the glass, had to throw out some of the bottles, they were rough to the touch.
Now I just use really hot plain water in the laundry tub, let them soak awhile, then run a serrated knife over the label to score it, let them soak a bit longer then come in with one of those curly stainless steel spot scratchers and rough the label up even more, by then they are almost all off, then use a pot scrub pad on the glue..if the water is very hot, it seems to aid in the removal, Then a good bottle brush takes care of the inside and of course the jet washer on the faucet to finish the inside.
Some companies have really tough labels to remove, seems maybe the better wines have tougher labels.


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## ms.spain (Feb 6, 2006)

I fill my sink with water-as hot as I can get it.I then add *Dishwasher Detergent*-powdered, liquid, or a tablet.(all varieties seem to work well)


This seems to soften the glue real fast, and if you let it set for about an hour, the labels slip right off in the water.


For really stubborn glue-I use WD-40 and a razor blade scraper.WD-40 will remove the toughest glue.(a trick I learned working in a hardware store)


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## summersolstice (Feb 6, 2006)

I get my empty bottles, used, by the case from a local restaurant.I also use hot water with dish soap and allow the bottles to soak for 30 minutes or so.I then use a paring knife to cut off the plastic (or foil) on the neck and scrape most of the label offbefore giving the bottle a quick once over with a stainless steel scouring pad. They come out clean as a whistle and it only takes about 3 minutes per bottle. As soon as I begin to peel the label with the paring knife I can tell right away if the label is of a sort that will take a great deal of work to remove. I always discard those bottles as I have enough good ones from which to choose and I would never consider using harsh chemical cleansers and risk contamination.


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## Waldo (Feb 6, 2006)

Will have to try that WD-40 trick


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## NorthernWinos (Feb 6, 2006)

WD-40 is a great product....
Will remove goo off of anything.
If you ever have paint on your hands, just spray them with WD-40....
If you ever have grime and grease on your hands, just spray with WD-40....
WD stands for Water Displacement, it works great in car door locks to get rid of ice....
As well as all the listed uses...
Smells pretty good too.


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## PolishWineP (Feb 6, 2006)

Y'all be careful with those chemicals on your bottles. I'd hate to think about that getting into you bottles and into your wines.



Chateau d'WD40 just isn't tasting good this year!


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## MedPretzel (Feb 6, 2006)

Yes, a good week-or-two-soaking in the Sterilite's 18 gallon green bin of water and sanitizing solution down in my basement took even the toughest (Sutter Home) labels off without extra chemicals. All I needed was a paring knife and a waste-paper-basket, and I was golden.


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## pkcook (Feb 7, 2006)

Try soaking in anoxygen-based cleanser (like One Step). Most labels fall off and glues will melt away. I did encountera french wine (gift) bottle label that was very stubborn and had to be scrapped off.


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## NorthernWinos (Feb 7, 2006)

Straight-A mentions label removal on the label, I picked up a bag of it but haven't tried it yet....We have more clean bottles than wine


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## masta (Feb 7, 2006)

NW...I have plenty of bottles to clean if you need the practice!


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## NorthernWinos (Feb 7, 2006)

masta said:


> NW...I have plenty of bottles to clean if you need the practice!


Bring them over....winters are long and fishing season is almost over.....


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## pkcook (Feb 7, 2006)

Cleaned two dozen bottles today that I had soaking in a One Step solution. Most labels were floating on top of the container. A few required the old paring knife and the scouring pad. Even with these it was easy work after the soak.


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## OldWino1 (Feb 11, 2006)

Well I do listen to music as i clean 2 cases given to me. And for those stubborn labels. No smoking allowed I have used 93 octane. Yes gas. but i always clean the bottle real good have having to resort to this label remover. ps i got some real label remover still cant smoke or use near open flame and I think the gas smells better.


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