Superglue Issues

December 11, 2005 9:38 AM

What is the best way to get superglue off of a countertop?

I was supergluing something that was painted black... I applied the glue and then laid it down to dry without putting down newspaper, etc. Now I have superglue, mixed with black paint on my white bathroom countertops. I have tried fingernail polish remover as well as every cleaning agent I have. Any suggestions?

posted by slim to Home & Garden (16 answers total)

You can buy special super glue remover, wherever super glue is sold. I keep a tube of it beside the other glue. I always have accidents with the nasty stuff.

A quick google also suggests non-acetone nail polish remover.
posted by viama at 9:48 AM on December 11, 2005

I was also going to suggest acetone. Find a small inconspicuous area to test it on first lest you make it worse.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 10:38 AM on December 11, 2005

Acetone should do it. For future reference, though, there's a gel offered by a cyanoacrylate glue maker, called Z7 Debonder. It gels in place, offering a little more control over what glue gets dissolved (and doesn't have an unpleasant odor). It's available at hobby and art stores.

Also for future reference, an entry on these adhesives from This to That.
posted by evil holiday magic at 11:11 AM on December 11, 2005

I can't recommend Goo-gone enough. I love that stuff.
posted by itchie at 11:25 AM on December 11, 2005

Razor blade.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 11:59 AM on December 11, 2005

Goo-gone won't touch Cyanoacrylate.

Seconding/thirding acetone. It's what is used in industrial shops that use superglue. Test a small area first to make sure it doesn't melt or char whatever you're removing the superglue from.
posted by loquacious at 12:29 PM on December 11, 2005

Fourthing acetone. (And, evil holiday magic, I've just discovered This to That and, boy, does it make me happy!)
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 12:31 PM on December 11, 2005

Use a hairdryer on it. The heat makes it much more prone to being scraped and broken off.
posted by lockle at 1:00 PM on December 11, 2005

Yeah, here's the thing. Fingernail polish remover is just pure acetone. So slim already tried that.
posted by Rhomboid at 1:47 PM on December 11, 2005

Yeah, here's the thing. Fingernail polish remover is just pure acetone. So slim already tried that.

Actually, a lot of nailpolish-removers these days are non-acetone--the manufacturers have converted over the last few years. Acetone-based removers are still available (usually right next to the other kinds), but it's possible that slim used a remover without the acetone.
posted by CiaoMela at 2:02 PM on December 11, 2005

I worked in a grocery store for a while; had to clean all kinds of sticky things off various surfaces over the years. Whenever I was trying to remove any kind of tape or glue residue, I used lighter fluid - the type you use to fill a Zippo, for example. Works good, and isn't damaging to most surfaces over short periods.
posted by chudmonkey at 3:06 PM on December 11, 2005

Yes, but superglue isn't just "any kind of tape or glue residue". I don't think naphthalene will cut it.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 5:03 PM on December 11, 2005

Kirth, mothballs contain naphthalene. Lighter fluid contains naphtha.
posted by ryanrs at 5:21 PM on December 11, 2005

So, I was right - moth balls won't take off superglue!
posted by Kirth Gerson at 6:09 PM on December 11, 2005

Has anyone suggested acetone?
posted by mendel at 6:39 PM on December 11, 2005

I second the razor blade.
posted by Oddly at 9:16 PM on December 11, 2005