# Removing Glue from the outside of bottles!



## BTReese

I bought some 70% Isoproply alcohol to try and cut the glue off the outside of some wine bottles I had de-labeled for my use at home. The glue laughed at me over that one. What I ended up using, and this may cause some to cringe, was some WD-40 on a old wash cloth. This stuff is amazing!! Totally removed the glue from the outside with hardly any effort. Just thought I would share with others in order to make life easier,and maybe provide a cheaper route to clean that pesky glue. I did go back and clean the outside with the alcohol to get any left over WD-40 and will totally reclean these bottles with oxyclean stuff and bottle brush, followed by san star prior to filling with wine. Hope this help someone with a tiresome chore!


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## moosher

I have been soaking my bottles overnight and then scrape off with a straight edge (very time consuming).I look forward to trying WD-40.Do you soak the bottle or attack as is? Thank you for te info.


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## Larryh86GT

I peeled the label off a bottle last night and it left all the glue behind on the bottle. And I can tell the glue isn't the friendly type. I'll have to give the WD40 a try and see.

Larry


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## cpfan

BTReese said:


> this may cause some to cringe, was some WD-40 on a old wash cloth.


****CRINGE****
Rub peanut butter into the glue and leave for a while (perhaps overnight). Remove with a small brush.

Works GREAT for me.

Steve


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## BTReese

moosher said:


> I have been soaking my bottles overnight and then scrape off with a straight edge (very time consuming).I look forward to trying WD-40.Do you soak the bottle or attack as is? Thank you for te info.



Well I used the Oxyclean stuff that said double strengh makes lable removal easy! LIES! LOL! The paper lable was gone already and had tried the razor blade scrapping couple weeks earlier. Had to quit for the day and got started back today working on the glue that was left. The glue was in the shape of the label so I am sure the Oxy stuff didn't remove anything but the paper. The WD-40 made this easy as I just wiped it off, anything stubborn i used my finger nail to scrap off. Hope that helps.


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## KSmith3011

Goo-gone with orange scent is good as well. I remove the labels with a two hour soak, do goo gone then wash in the dishwasher


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## Wade E

I scrape the labels off dry with a windshield razor scraper and use the little can of Goobegone and then sanitize them when ready to bottle.


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## Loren

I use paint thinner. Loren


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## Mcamnl

WD-40 works for me. I wash the outside of the bottle with dish soap when I'm done. Clean and sanitize before bottling.


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## jtstar

I use charcoal fluid then dish soap and sanitizer before bottleing


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## PPBart

I don't even try removing difficult labels. I'll soak bottles overnight in water with a bit of bleach, then if the label (and glue) does not scape off easily, into the recyle bin it goes.


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## winemaker_3352

I soak in warm water - peel off the labels with a window scraper - and then hit with goo-be-gone, then wash and sanitize.


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## BobF

Wade E said:


> I scrape the labels off dry with a windshield razor scraper and use the little can of Goobegone and then sanitize them when ready to bottle.


 
The only bottles I have with stubborn glue are these cool 375's I have ~30 cases of. They're new, but labeled. I paid $1/case for them.

Over a few months time I tried everything imaginable to make the process easy. This glue never gets hard - it is sticky and nothing would break it down.

Finally, the extreme goo-gone Wade mentioned did the trick. I scrape dry with a razor scraper then hit the residue with the extreme goo-gone.

It works for me!!


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## JohnT

Try putting the bottles in the freezer. This will harden the glue and make it easier to scrape off.


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## mavrik13

If the label and glue doesn't come off after a soak and quick windshield ice-scraper treatment, the bottle clearly doesn't want to partake in my wine making badly enough, so I condemn them to the recycling bin.

To me, its not worth the frustration, stress, and time to spend more than 2-3 minutes per bottle! I can buy a case of 12 for $8 new, so I ask myself 'is this worth $0.75?' - if not, in the recycling it goes!


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## BobF

mavrik13 said:


> If the label and glue doesn't come off after a soak and quick windshield ice-scraper treatment, the bottle clearly doesn't want to partake in my wine making badly enough, so I condemn them to the recycling bin.
> 
> To me, its not worth the frustration, stress, and time to spend more than 2-3 minutes per bottle! I can buy a case of 12 for $8 new, so I ask myself 'is this worth $0.75?' - if not, in the recycling it goes!


 
I bought 36 cases of new 750s this year for $4.80 a case b/c I was tired of dealing with scrounging and scrubbing bottles. The 375s I'm dealing with are just really damn cool bottles, otherwise I wouldn't bother with them either.

The winery I bought the 750s from said they have more, so I may pick up another 20 cases or so before long - like you said, it's not really worth the time to collect and clean when you can get inexpensive new ones.

I don't think everybody is lucky enough to be able to get new bottles for less than $12+shipping though ...


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## BobF

JohnT said:


> Try putting the bottles in the freezer. This will harden the glue and make it easier to scrape off.


 
These actually scrape off pretty easily w/o freezing. It's the residue that's the problem. 

WAS the problem - goo-gone eXtreme wipes it right off!!


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## Wade E

Never thought of the freezer but good lord would my wife kill me if she started finding bottles in the freezer that werent filled with a precious alc!!!!!!!!!!!


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## NSwiner

Plain and simple Mr.Clean magic eraser the heavy duty one . If that doesn't work I use a small dab of Goo - Gone but you have to be very careful not to get it in the bottles because it's oil based and hard to get off the glass .


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## Craig

A nylon or mesh scrubber really makes short work of the glue and clingy bits. Run a small stream of hot water over the glued area and scrub. Most of the glues come off this way, but there are a couple that don't work and have to resort to things like GOO-GONE.


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## JordanPond

I use a combination of many above. Start by soaking overnight or while at work. Scrap with some sort of sharp edge, Magic Eraser, and then goo-gone if necessary.

I read in another form where someone backed the bottles for a few minutes to soften stuburn glue. I have not tried that.


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## JordanPond

I felt like I won the lottery one day when a label and glue just fell off the bottle while soaking. It only happend once.


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## mfalenski

I use a combo of ammonia and dishwashing soap. Sometime I'll add dif too if its paper labels. Most labels come right off in about 15 minutes, some need a bit more persuasion with a straight edge.


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## Boyd

[
To me, its not worth the frustration, stress, and time to spend more than 2-3 minutes per bottle! I can buy a case of 12 for $8 new, so I ask myself 'is this worth $0.75?' - if not, in the recycling it goes![/QUOTE]

You may be different from me. I need to make approx. $1.00 to have $.75 left after Federal and State taxes and that doesn't include sales or property taxs.


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## e-wine

I found some bottles use oriented PP for the label. If you don't soak them, you can pull the label off and the glue come with it. Soaking only makes a mess. I also found that some labels are too difficult to deal with but I don't throw them into the recycling. I use the bottle as is and write on the label. It's what's on the inside that counts.

e-wine


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## Brian

Boyd said:


> [
> To me, its not worth the frustration, stress, and time to spend more than 2-3 minutes per bottle! I can buy a case of 12 for $8 new, so I ask myself 'is this worth $0.75?' - if not, in the recycling it goes!



I wish I could find new bottles at $8. a case.. I wouldn't scrape either. We pay around $18 per case here..


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## BobF

Brian said:


> I wish I could find new bottles at $8. a case.. I wouldn't scrape either. We pay around $18 per case here..


 
I just got back with 20 more cases of new glass to go with the 36 cases I bought a while back.

Cost? $4.80/case

I'll NEVER scrape a label again!


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## Brian

BobF said:


> I just got back with 20 more cases of new glass to go with the 36 cases I bought a while back.
> 
> Cost? $4.80/case
> 
> I'll NEVER scrape a label again!





SURE RUB IT IN.......


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## BobF

Brian said:


> SURE RUB IT IN.......


 
Hey, if you live anywhere along I-44 in MO, they still have another 80 cases left! ;-)


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## Brian

Nope.. I live in PA but I did live in MO for about 3 years whenI was stationed there at Ft Leonard Wood lets see 1989-1992 yep that was about 3 years... I liked MO will be back to visit someday.


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## Chris1

cool, I have used magic erasers and they work really nice but wd40 is probably cheaper by far.


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## BobF

Brian said:


> Nope.. I live in PA but I did live in MO for about 3 years whenI was stationed there at Ft Leonard Wood lets see 1989-1992 yep that was about 3 years... I liked MO will be back to visit someday.


 
If you were at fort wood, then you're prolly familair with St james. That's where the bottles are.

I live further south, about 45 minutes from ft wood.


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## Duster

Personally I haven't had much experience at this (still a newbie) but what I have found, for what it's worth, is that soaking the bottles for about an hour in hot watter, peel the label off and then using an SOS pad to remove the glue works great.


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## BobF

Some bottles are easy. Some are a bi^H^HPITA!!!


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## sly22guy

i use a razor blade scraper dry, then if i still have residue i get a bucket and mix a scoop of oxy clean with hot water and one of the copper kitchen brillo pad things. Then after im done with that i just use my bottle brush and hit the inside and then rinse good with my double bottle washer then put them upside down in there crates or boxes till bottling time. 

Hey Brian take a trip down to Naylor Winery He might hook you up with some free bottles. If not let me know i might have a source for you.


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## Brian

sly22guy said:


> Hey Brian take a trip down to Naylor Winery He might hook you up with some free bottles. If not let me know i might have a source for you.



Thank Sly! I will try that. I need some more bottles I am running low. I put it on craigs list but people are ridculous they want like $10 per case and they are dirty and still have their lables on.. I do have a few friends that donate to the cause.. I am always looking for new sources.


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## sly22guy

Check with some of the Restaurants that serve wine, most will save bottles for you as long as you pick them up on a reg basis (doesn't hurt to give them a full bottle in return too) If you get lucky alot of the bottles will be the same size shape and you can pick and choose what ones you want. Olive garden would be a good source too.


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## gicts

Rookies. There is no label that I have found that survives the flame thrower!....err mini propane torch


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## Larryh86GT

BobF said:


> Some bottles are easy. Some are a bi^H^HPITA!!!



A few weeks ago I had 2 identical bottles, same exact wines. I let them both soak together overnight and then went at them with my scrapper. 1 label just peeled off easy as can be and then I cleaned the little remaining glue off with a wet sponge. The other label was not water soluble and I had to work at it with my razor scrapper and then remove the glue residue with a solvent. Go figure.


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## TheWineBrewer

Hey I got a great video showing how to easily remove labels and glue residue here:
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fr9E3xhSZqQ[/ame]


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## Cjk

I put my bottles in a glass vase. I fill the inside of the bottle with hot water. Then I put two squirts of dish soap on the outside. Fill the vase with hot water. I let it sit for 2-3 hours. Then scrap the label with a razor blade. It's important to scrap from side to side not top to bottom. The labels come right off. A little wash off with a scrubber sponge with some some soap and hot water and the bottle is good to go. The key is scrapping from side to side. Top to bottom is when the glue becomes a pain in the neck. 

Chris


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## acorn

As impatient as I am, I just take a meat cleaver (well, sort of) and scrub the labels in the sink under slow-running hot water, then finish off with a wire brush. If the glue is particularly stubborn due to its chemical nature, I find that 99% of the time either memeber of my chemical trio (kerosene, acetone, and rubbing alcohol) would leave no sign of the label or glue, with kerosene being the most useful in this task. This, of course, applies to scraping off commercial silicone-glued wine labels. 

For my own labels I use glue stick  It holds just like any other when dry, but when it comes to removing the labels, I need nothing more than a bit of lukewarm water and my hand for its' virtually instant removal.


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## Troll

Desolvit works if you can find it. Not quite as good as goo gone but smells better and is a lot safer.


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## rainharvester

Getting the glue off 30 bottles was very time consuming until I did this:

https://youtu.be/FUbZ4BjBErY

Well, ok, it still takes time, but NO MORE SCRUBBING, and NO OIL!!!


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## Floandgary

There are as many different label papers and adhesives as there are wines. So to accommodate them all I razor scrape the label off then 0 or 00 steel wool soaked in goo-gone. Wash off with soapy water, rinse with hot and rack 'em to dry. Oh and that most important other ingredient ,,,, elbow grease. If you're willing to give your wine time to get right, cleaning a few bottles is the blink of the eye


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## vacuumpumpman

Acetone - 

works great - just be careful as it is highly combustible


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## RobGlug

The labels that come off in water are easy, just soak them, but MOST sticky labels come off quite easily if you fill the bottle with just boiled water. Don't wet the labels! The labels then usually just peel off. Any sticky residue comes off using eucalyptus oil. Oil comes off in warm soapy water.

I saw bottles available down here (Australia) for $15.00. Each. EACH! I prefer to peel - I can't afford not to


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