PMTvoice

Being in the printing business we are very familiar with the different types of adhesives used for stickers. The constant battle comes down to the longevity of the stickiness vs. the ability to remove said sticker. This morning during my daily twitter reading, I came across the following tweet:

@taxgirl My new rule: if you want to give my kids stickers, you can come over and scrape them off of my hardwood floors.

This is not a new problem as kids will always be putting stickers in places that make it difficult to remove. Like wise, we adults (read: older children) similarly find ourselves with a bumper sticker or the like in need of a proper removal technique. That said I proffered the following tweet as a reply:

@taxgirl You should check us out http://www.printmything.com We’ve got removable/repositionable adhesives for our stickers!

That reply can certainly answer one part of that question (ie, how to avoid the problem in the first place) but it does little to address the problem once the unwanted sticker has been affixed to a surface. I’d like to offer a few solutions for removing not only the sticker but the gooey, sticky residue that often gets left behind.

Solution #1 If you’re working with a glass surface, you can simply use a sharp, flat blade (like the ones found in utility knives). Try also wetting the area with a warm damp cloth to aid in the removal.

Solution #2 If your surface is wood, plastic or other surface that can be easily marred, wet down a cloth with warm to hot vinegar. Rub the cloth into the sticker to fully saturate it with the vinegar. Using a fingernail start working the sticker off while continuing to saturate the area with the vinegar. (warning: always spot test any solution on hidden area of surface first).

Solution #3 Purchase commercial adhesive remover like Goo-Gone or Fast Orange. These chemicals may be more caustic to your surfaces and environment so use as a last option if possible. (warning: always spot test any solution on hidden area of surface first)

If all else fails, you can always cover the area with a picture or a coaster or in the case of bumper stickers…another bumper sticker…