Removing Scotch tape from hardwood floor

December 15, 2023 6:42 AM

Rearranging a kids bedroom the other day, I uncovered a 3' length of Scotch tape on the floor. I think it's been there for years. I did not anticipate it would be difficult to remove. I was wrong.

There seems to be a top plastic layer that will flake away a bit if scrapped at a precise angle, but it's very very slow going and sometimes there is no 'edge' to attack. Once that top is off, there is a a residue that I feel like I can address with a scour pad and maybe Dawn. I am leery of Goo Gone or anything similar, as I want to protect the hardwood floor finish. Suggestions on approach or products to try? Thanks in advance

posted by walkinginsunshine to Home & Garden (10 answers total)

Lighter fluid (the kind you put in a refillable lighter, not the campfire stuff) removes tape residue from book covers without staining the paper. Maybe it would work on wood too.
posted by goatdog at 6:58 AM on December 15, 2023

Naphtha a.k.a. Zippo lighter fluid. It's good for loosening sticky residue & "melting" the top plastic layers of tape or stickers, but evaporates quickly so rarely if ever does damage to wood. I use it on unfinished guitar fretboards all the time. (Also on finished guitar bodies, but those are usually thickly coated in some type of polyurethane. Which might be a component of your floor finish, hard to say.)

I'd start with using just a paper towel lightly moistened with naphtha, no need to jump right to scouring pads.
posted by soundguy99 at 6:59 AM on December 15, 2023 [1 favorite]

I use Goo Gone on my old hardwood floors from 1960 that are the kind coated with a poly type of substance which might be different than new hardwood floors. This works well for the sticky part, not sure it would do anything for the top plastic layer.
posted by RoadScholar at 7:12 AM on December 15, 2023 [2 favorites]

Edge of a credit card and scrape gently.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 7:56 AM on December 15, 2023 [1 favorite]

Be extremely careful with a scouring pad, those can damage finishes as well by creating tiny scratches that dull the surface. Speaking from experience.

I've had good luck removing some sticky residues with vegetable oil. Spread a thin layer of vegetable oil on the residue and leave for 5-10 minutes, then gently scrub off with dish soap and a soft wet cloth/sponge. This works for residues which are oil-soluble.
posted by mekily at 8:00 AM on December 15, 2023

Warm it up with a hair dryer to soften the glue underneath the tape. Scrape with a plastic scraper of the sort you can use on Teflon. Alternate degreaser detergent such as dish detergent with any vegetable oil. One or the other will probably soften it enough to make it removeable.

If it remains sticky, dust it with talcum powder or cornstarch and then scrape off the thickened muck.

Let the kids try. They might as well get a chance to try out removing it, since it is their room.

I would only use a plastic scouring pad that was usable on non-stick pans, not steel wool soap pads.
posted by Jane the Brown at 8:21 AM on December 15, 2023

I use an orange based degreaser-cleaner called Orange aPEEL to remove sticky stuff. It does not harm my floors. I also use it for greasy laundry stains — just a drop is enough. It is really the best cleaning product I have ever bought — I'm very prone to greasy and sticky messes.
posted by Lescha at 10:46 AM on December 15, 2023

Seconding the hairdryer. Naphtha is also a good idea, but don't mix your volatile flammables with your heat sources.
posted by Sunburnt at 12:22 PM on December 15, 2023

Plastic Razor Blade Scrapers might work, if the plastic is harder than the gunk to remove, but softer than the wood finish. Link
posted by soylent00FF00 at 3:10 PM on December 15, 2023

This might sound counter intuitive but I have had a lot of success with this method for removing tape or sticky residue. I use a piece of packing tape and press it in the the residue, then pull the tape off. It can something be slow going but generally works.
posted by tman99 at 10:24 AM on December 16, 2023