How to Remove Gorilla Glue From Skin and Other Surfaces
There are a ton of adhesive types out there. Even among glues, there are so many choices that it can become confusing to know the difference. Gorilla glue has stood out as one of the strongest superglues on the market today. It has a seemingly endless number of applications and uses even in everyday home settings.
But what happens if you get it on your skin? Or maybe another surface that you do not want glue getting on? If you get to it quickly enough, you may be able to wipe it up. Otherwise, you are looking at dissolving it, followed by exfoliating your skin over a few days. It isn’t easy, but it is possible to remove the Gorilla Glue.
A Little Bit About Gorilla Glue
Before we worry about how to get it off of skin or other surfaces, it helps to know more about the product. Gorilla Glue, in case the name didn’t give it away, is a type of super glue. Super glue is meant to perform heavy-duty adhesion so that the two pieces being glued together do not come apart.
Gorilla Glue makes a variety of projects for all applications and uses. There are products meant for construction use while others can be used around the home. Making the right distinction is the first place to start. You don’t want a construction-grade super glue for everyday home uses, after all.
How to Remove Gorilla Glue From Skin
Getting super glue on your skin is definitely not a pleasant experience. If left on for long, super glue can become very irritating to the skin. Depending on your sensitivity to the product, that irritation can be light or severe.
So, getting the Gorilla Glue off in a relatively short manner is important. That said, you may not notice that you even have it on your skin until much later. Here are a few steps for getting Gorilla Glue off of your skin.
Step 1A: Sop It Up
Because Gorilla Glue dries quickly, it is of the utmost importance to get to it quickly. The quicker you notice it on the skin, the easier it will come off. So, if you notice that you have Gorilla Glue on your hands right after applying, there’s an easier method for getting it off.
Use wet paper towels or a cleaning rag to wipe it up quickly. Even if there is a slight residue left over, you should be able to wash it away with a little bit of soap and warm water. Getting to it before it has a chance to set can really make the difference when removing Gorilla Glue.
Step 1B: Fingers are Glued Together
If you can get to the Gorilla Glue before it has a chance to dry, that is optimal. But what if you have the worst-case scenario and your fingers have been glued together? Don’t panic and definitely do not try to force your fingers apart. Doing so could tear the skin, leaving you in a much worse position than you started.
If your fingers have been glued together, soak them in acetone. Carefully work your fingers and try to pull them apart naturally. If there is resistance, soak them in the acetone again. Keep going until the Gorilla Glue softens enough that you can pull your fingers apart naturally and safely.
Step 2: Dissolving the Gorilla Glue
When the glue has a chance to dry, things get a little more difficult. That said, it is not impossible to get Gorilla Glue off of your hands. As mentioned in the step before, you will need to become closely acquainted with acetone. Acetone is great at weakening the glue, making it more pliable and easier to clean.
Soak your skin in acetone, starting for a few minutes at a time. You can try to then peel up the glue using your fingers. If you don’t want to use acetone, cold water with a healthy dose of soap will work just fine. The washing can work to loosen the glue enough that it can be scraped off. Acetone is definitely more effective, though.
Step 3: Treating Your Skin
When you have finally gotten the Gorilla Glue off of your skin, you may need to perform further treatment. If there is only a slight irritation, you may be fine just letting it heal on its own.
You may also notice that there is still a little bit of glue left on your skin. If that is the case, you will need an abrasive to do the trick. The good news is that you can find an exfoliating product, something that has coconut oil or sea salt and oil. The abrasive will not only get rid of the rest of the adhesive but treat your skin as well. That is the best of both worlds.
Removing Gorilla Glue From Other Surfaces
Unfortunately, you may find that you have Gorilla Glue on some of the surfaces around the application point. The difference is that, while the skin may require a little patience, other surfaces will require a bit more care. It all depends on what the surface or material is.
Getting Gorilla Glue Off of Clothing
Aside from skin, the most common surface that you will get glue on is clothing. It’s attached to you, can hang just enough to touch the glue, or can have glue outright spilled on it. How it gets there doesn’t matter, it is how we get it off that matters.
It is important that you let the glue dry on its own. If you attempt to accelerate the drying process, you might wind up staining the clothing. If you attempt to remove it while wet, the glue will just get spread around.
When the glue dries, you may be able to peel it up with a fingernail. Even if it doesn’t come up, loosening it by hand is a great place to start. Try using lemon juice or acetone to work at the dried glue, going in 15-minute increments.
If you feel confident that the stain has been removed, finish it off by rinsing with cold water and dabbing dry. You may have to repeat the process a few times to fully remove the stain but this should work just fine.
Getting Gorilla Glue Off of Glass
Glass requires a much gentler touch than other surfaces because abrasives can scratch and damage it. Soak the surface of the glass with acetone to help loosen the Gorilla Glue. Give it a few minutes and see if you can peel up the glue with your fingernail.
This method can be tedious if the glue is really stuck on. You will have to apply acetone multiple times and keep at it until the glue is removed. Getting too aggressive can lead to scratches and other abrasions on the surface of the glass.
Getting Gorilla Glue Off of Wood
The same rule applies across the board: get to the Gorilla Glue while it is wet. You can wipe it away and rinse with soapy water for the easiest cleanup. The same applies to wood. If you can get to it with a damp towel or cloth, all the better. You may even be able to use a dab of paint thinner to get those tacky spots up.
If there are large portions of Gorilla Glue that have dried onto the wood, use a chisel. Do so gently; you don’t want to miss and gouge out a chunk of wood. When you get the large portions up, take care of the residue by applying a fine-grit sandpaper to the areas.
Getting Gorilla Glue Off of Metal
This one is a bit trickier. You want to get the glue while it is wet for obvious reasons but there is another caveat with metal. When the Gorilla Glue dries on metal, it becomes increasingly waterproof during the drying process.
Try to wipe away as much of the wet glue as you can. If there is some residue left on the surface, you may be able to chip away the flakes with your chisel. After that, use some fine sandpaper to get off the residue.
Finish the cleaning process by using acetone, paint thinner, or rubbing alcohol to get any of the leftover residue up. When the glue hardens on metal, you will have to really chip away at it to get all of it up. That means a lot more elbow grease than if you got to it while wet.
Ryan Womeldorf
