Published on: January 5, 2022
Written by Eric Devin / Fact-checked by David Rowan

When I went through the comments and feedback of some videos on this subject, one of the most common questions asked by the viewers was “I have been really struggling with the removal of liquid nails from my workpiece for a couple of days. My workpiece is a little unaligned due to a measurement problem.

How can I remove the adhesive to realign my material?” As it was a common question of the frequently asked questions series, I found it important to answer the question through today’s article. Because sometimes we bond two materials like boards, bricks etc. together with liquid nails which we may need to readjust if they are not attached accurately. Sometimes we may need to remove liquid nails to untie the joined materials for our project.

Liquid nails are one kind of heavy-duty construction adhesive which is used to bond the materials and the variety of surfaces together to keep them sustained in the long run. Liquid nails usually take a few minutes to link breaches or cracks and build a resilient, supple and impact-resistant bond on the hefty materials. It is widely used from the crafts to building construction including renovation as it gets hardened very fast and lasts long.

It is strongly recommended by the manufacturers to always lay down a drop cloth or a piece of wet cloth around the area of your working materials while dealing with liquid nails. It would help prevent any droplet of liquid nails on the unintended surface of the working materials.

If accidentally a drip of liquid nails gets dropped on your materials, you are advised to immediately remove that before it becomes too hard. Otherwise, you have to apply another complex method to remove the harder liquid nails to fully cure your workpiece. It might even take a week for liquid nails to fully get rid of the materials after being treated with some registered chemical solutions.

Sometimes, walls, floors, furniture, plastic materials, crafts tied up with liquid nails may need to be united or separated during building construction or renovation. Removal of liquid nails follows a simple procedure to untie or disconnect materials like walls, floors, plastic materials, drywall etc. Sometimes human skin may come in contact with liquid nails that need to be removed immediately. The longer it is delayed to remove liquid nails, the harder will be the adhesive which may cause injuries to skins.

However, in this article I’m going to discuss how to remove liquid nails from your project materials or skins using a few simple methods.

Removal of Liquid Nails from Hard Surface

One of the removal methods is to apply constant heat on the adhesive gripped to the hard surface like floor, drywall or similar kind of materials to remove the liquid nails. The certain temperature softens the liquid nails. When a strong kind of adhesive comes in contact to heat, it turns to be soft enough to be removed or lifted out.

It releases the clasp which helps remove the liquid nails from the surfaces or the materials. For removal of liquid nails, you need a kit box of essential materials like heat gun, scraper; mineral spirit, petroleum jelly, vegetable or baby oil, nylon and wire brush, music wire, putty knife etc.

Method 1:

The simple way to apply heat on liquid nails is to hold the scraper in one hand and the heat gun with the other to work smoothly. For scraping away the liquid nails from the surface, the recommended temperature level should be above 140 degree Fahrenheit which has to constantly apply on the adhesive to get it softened.

Method 2:

Another method is to apply mineral spirit or petroleum jelly on the adhesive of the materials and leave it for quite a few hours, if necessary even for a day to allow it to soften. After getting softened, you scrape away the liquid nails from the materials or the surfaces. It is another easy option that can be applied alternatively alongside the application of direct-heat on the adhesive. Mineral spirits are not recommended for plastic, color-coated surface, tub settings, vinyl, or varnish etc. as they would damage your project materials.

Method 3:

Another method is to use a three feet long music wire, one kind of automotive wire to remove the liquid nails. To do this, first you need to wear gloves, wrap the end of the wire around your hand and slide another portion of the wire underneath the liquid nail adhesive. Then saw the wire in a vertical motion through the liquid nails repeatedly until a few inches of it had been removed.

Then, crutch a screwdriver underneath the adhesive which was already removed to avoid further sawing of the cured portion. Then continue the same sawing method to remove the left out adhesive from the materials. Soak a microfiber towel into vegetable or baby oil and wipe off the remaining adhesive. Then leave it for an hour or two to get softened. Finally, scrape off the remaining adhesive. A nylon brush or a wire brush comes with a rotary tool that works best for scraping.

Removal of Liquid Nail from Skin

There are few solutions to remove liquid nails from the skin. Apply water and soap to the affected skin, wash thoroughly to remove the liquid nails if it is latex-based liquid nails. In case of solvent-based nails, apply the petroleum jelly or the vegetable oil to the affected area and rub with a soft microfiber towel. Then wash the area with soap and water to remove the liquid nails. Repeat the method a couple of times until it’s gone completely.

Removal of Liquid Nail from Hair

First brush some oil over the glue and then cover it. Leave it for an hour. Then wash the area with soap and water to remove the glue. Always avoid nail varnish remover, hairspray-drenched cotton pad while going through the removal process as they may damage your hair.

Concluding Notes

I hope, by reading this informative article you are now quite knowledgeable on the method of removing liquid nails. Always try to follow the safety protocols and use of recommended liquid chemical solutions while dealing with your project of liquid nails removal. The materials you would need to remove your adhesives are available in the hardware stores. Always get the registered ones so that they neither damage your workpiece nor harm your skin.

Finally, I will be looking forward to having your valuable comments and feedback so that we can gratify our clients’ service to the highest level and use them for our future reference. I would also expect you to share this article with your friends and relatives on social media, websites and other communication networks to help us reach out to more people to offer our excellent services.

How to Remove Liquid Nails (Follow This Experts Guide)