New Product for Removing Labels

[bstnh1]

I ran across an oddity today regarding removing labels. If you fill a bottle with hot tap water, and apply coconut oil to what remains of the label, and let sit for a few minutes. Add more if it dries out before you get back to it, and rub with a rag. Label and adhesive will both come off.

I wet the label, scrape it with a window scraper and follow up with a stainless steel scrubby with a bit of detergent and it does the job. BTW, any oil will remove the gunk if you put it on a dry surface - works just like Goo Gone.

 

[sremick]

You all are making this much more work than it needs to be.

Fill a kettle of water and boil it. Pour the boiling water into the bottle without letting the label get wet. Wait a while. The glue should be softened/melted and you should be able to peel the label off in one single intact piece. Use Goo-Gone to clean up any residual adhesive.

No scrubbing, no scraping, no dealing with a billion bits of wet paper fragments.

The few/rare bottles that use an adhesive that doesn't melt with this technique: just toss them into recycling and move onto the next bottle. It's not worth the extra effort.

 

[winemanden]

You all are making this much more work than it needs to be.

Fill a kettle of water and boil it. Pour the boiling water into the bottle without letting the label get wet. Wait a while. The glue should be softened/melted and you should be able to peel the label off in one single intact piece. Use Goo-Gone to clean up any residual adhesive.

No scrubbing, no scraping, no dealing with a billion bits of wet paper fragments.

The few/rare bottles that use an adhesive that doesn't melt with this technique: just toss them into recycling and move onto the next bottle. It's not worth the extra effort.

BOILING WATER? Surely there's a risk of heat stress cracks.
I soak them and use a hob scraper across the bottle.

 

[sremick]

BOILING WATER? Surely there's a risk of heat stress cracks.

I forgot to mention that I use warm/hot-ish water from the tap first, then the boiling water.

I've done well over 100 bottles this way and have cracked exactly 0 of them.

 

[bearpaw8491]

I put a couple of tablespoons of water in the bottle. Put the bottle in the microwave on its side and zap it for 1 minute on high. Remove the bottle with a gloved hand, empty the hot water and pick up the corner of the label with a sharp knife point. The label generally peels right off with constant, gentle pulling. I use SoftScrub on a piece of Scotchbright to remove any remaining glue. This has become my go-to method of label removal after many years of soaking and scraping. I've never had a problem with bottles breaking or cracking.

 

[montanarick]

I put a couple of tablespoons of water in the bottle. Put the bottle in the microwave on its side and zap it for 1 minute on high. Remove the bottle with a gloved hand, empty the hot water and pick up the corner of the label with a sharp knife point. The label generally peels right off with constant, gentle pulling. I use SoftScrub on a piece of Scotchbright to remove any remaining glue. This has become my go-to method of label removal after many years of soaking and scraping. I've never had a problem with bottles breaking or cracking.

This was my favorite method as well

 

[bjoll001]

I use a heat gun to warm the labels moving it continuously for about 5 seconds and they peel off easily due to warming the glue. I use acetone on rag or goo gone to remove any remaining glue on bottle. The acetone can be strong so a mask helps but goo gone is easy too. This works quick and efficiently and is cheap.

 

[ratflinger]

I use a heat gun to warm the labels moving it continuously for about 5 seconds and they peel off easily due to warming the glue. I use acetone on rag or goo gone to remove any remaining glue on bottle. The acetone can be strong so a mask helps but goo gone is easy too. This works quick and efficiently and is cheap.

Ugh no. A mask will not help with airborne acetone particulates, you need a respirator for that. You should never use acetone in small, confined spaces.