Removing Labels from Jars and Cans

RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Liz (Guest Post) (09/25/2008) Pour very hot water in the jar. The label will come off within minutes. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Mrs Riley (Guest Post) (09/24/2008) Go the peanut butter! Works a treat but can be a wee bit stinky. Suggest you use gloves - on both hands! :-) Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Jaime (Guest Post) (08/04/2008) Simple Green works! Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Granny in Arkansas (Guest Post) (07/01/2008) I've found that Apple cider Vinegar is one of the greatest natural & inexpensive glue removers. I've not only used it to remove labels, but also when refinishing furniture, it helps dissolve the old glue in the joints of each piece. Check out a Vinegar Book, it has many uses. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By (Guest Post) (01/13/2008) haha i was trying to get some really stubborn stuff off my jars. Usually they come off easily after a soak in boiling water. Then I decided to search for ideas and found this page. Tried the peanut butter and steel wool...It works! Who would have thought lol. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Wendy (Guest Post) (01/13/2008) Eucalyptus Oil and Steel Wool (curly girl), then rinse with soapy water and rinse with clean water. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Liz (Guest Post) (12/20/2007) The peanut butter and steel wool was the best! Thanks so much! Liz Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By spikehead (Guest Post) (12/11/2007) The best way to get rid of glue on jars is to use acetone (nail polish remover). You have to use enough to get the glue wet and it will completely dissolve and can be wiped off or else scrubbed off with steel wool. If you don't like using chemicals, you can use steel wool with soap and hot water to scrub the glue off the jar. Just be careful not to let the glass slip out of your hands. I recently cut my finger really badly (tendons and nerves) while hand-washing a glass that fell and broke. I'm not sure if my pinkie will fully recover after the surgery and physiotherapy. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By leigha ley (Guest Post) (11/17/2007) Hi, I tried all the other things and ended up in a mess on this one. My daughter said said throw that jar away and go to the Dollar store. Determined not to give up I found some Desolve_It citrus solution in my laundry room and it worked in seconds, Perfectly. Hope this helps everyone! God Bless! Leigha Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By leigha ley (Guest Post) (11/17/2007) I have worked for about an hour and a half trying to get a left over candle out of a jar and it is hard. Now I have the labels to try to get off. The jar is very large and pretty but the hot water is not working and in the bottom I find a lump of very hardened glue that I can't get out. What do I do next? I would be afraid to put this in the dish washer. Guest Post Editor's Note: You could try using some dishwasher detergent, a tablespoon or two and then fill your sink with hot water. Soak the jar in that. Hopefully it will loosen the glue and the labels. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By dana Mezzina (Guest Post) (07/20/2007) soak overnight in warm water, with or without soap. if you're in a rush, just let it sit there in very hot water for a few minutes to soften the glue. either way, the next step is to use a butter knife to scrape off the label and glue. remove any leftover glue on the jar with a steel wool pad, like brillo or s.o.s. - or even with "un-soaped" plain ol' steel wool from the hardware store. happy label removing from brooklyn! Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post by Ann S (32) | (07/15/2007) Profile | Blog! | Contact Hi, I just soak them overnight in a basin of soapy water. Works fine. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Jayna (Guest Post) (07/15/2007) Thanks for all the great tips here! I have a ton of old prescription bottles I'm trying to recycle/reuse, and some had really stubborn glue underneath the label that hot soap and water wasn't touching. I tried 3 of the suggestions here - 1) Rubbing Alcohol (did absolutely nothing for me) .... 2) WD-40 (may have done something but was so stinky and toxic I didn't want to have to handle it afterward and ended up discarding the bottle entirely) ...., and 3) Peanut Butter - WINNER, Hands Down - TY!! Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Soma (Guest Post) (05/01/2007) Try Cloudy Ammonia. Worked wonders for me Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Tim in the UK! (Guest Post) (12/08/2006) For glass jars, I find putting them through the dishwasher is a very simple, effective and non-messy way to remove all traces of the label, and it avoids having to wash the jar out as well! It helps to pull off the outer shiny surface of the label first, leaving the white papery layer for the dishwasher to remove. Editor's Note: This works well but make sure to check the filters at the bottom of the dishwasher after the load to remove any labels that may be stuck to the filters. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Pat (Guest Post) (04/29/2006) Two words: hair dryer. I use it all the time to remove labels. Just heat the label with the hair dryer and it will peel right off unless it is a water based glue, in which case soaking works well. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post by Debbie52 (973) | (04/27/2006) Profile | Contact I don't have too much problem removing labels from glass jars. I just fill the jar with water and then set down inside of another container filled with hot water....just let it set that way over night and many times doesn't even take that long. Usually the label just comes right off. For any glue residue I use Goo be Gone. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post by glowgirl (36) | (04/27/2006) Profile | Contact Look in the phone book for a Shaklee sales person. Shaklee Basic H works wonders on EVERYTHING! Report Spam or Abuse RE: Removing Labels from Jars and Cans Post By Kim, TX (Guest Post) (04/27/2006) Have you tried peanut butter ? Report Spam or Abuse Brainstorm: Removing Labels From Cans and Jars Post by ThriftyFun (3739) | (09/15/2005) Profile | Blog! | Contact Tips for removing labels from cans and jars. Post your ideas. Answers: - - 03/27/2005 Soak in hot water, scrape with dull side of butter knife, then use nail polish remover on any residue. Use caution with plastic as the scraping and nail polish remover may damage it. Good luck! By beanygurl - - 03/27/2005 W-D 40 or peanut butter will usually work once you get the label off, either one will usually remove the leftover gunk! By (Guest Post) - - 03/28/2005 I usually peel labels under hot running water. Hot as I can stand. Then if any residue is left I use rubbing alcohol to remove it. Works every time. By klr2080 - - 03/28/2005 I've always used Goo Gone. If it's a tough cookie, I let the label soak with Goo Gone on it. Never had a problem getting a label off. By Meari (Guest Post) - - 03/28/2005 Lighter fluid, works every time! By sashya1982 - - 03/28/2005 I always just soak the jars in the dishwater after doing the dishes, leave them for about 1/2 hour and I come back to find most of it off. Warmer water helps loosen the glue. I'm not one to try toxic anything. I have had great luck with this. By Diamondee - - 03/28/2005 I recently heard that mineral oil works to remove labels, but I haven't tried it yet. By Peggy (Guest Post) - - 03/28/2005 I always use peanut butter. Spread peanut butter on the spot, leave it for an hour, then wipe it off with a napkin. The oil from the peanut butter makes the gooey stuff come off! I use it on the glass of picture frames all the time. By michelle (Guest Post) - - 03/28/2005 Lighter fluid works well with really hot water, and if that doesn't take it off, then throw the bugger AWAY! Life is too short to struggle over hard to remove labels! There will be many more cans & jars coming into your life for which the label will practically slide right off, save your valuable time and energy for those. :) By DarWeen in Ga, USA (Guest Post) - - 03/29/2005 I've removed them WD-40. By Beth (Guest Post) - - 03/29/2005 We use regular cooking oil. After soaking in dishwater and use knife to get as much off as possible. Then after it dries use the cooking oil and paper towels. Works great. Just put oil on the paper towel and wipe. Tonya By Dgrams - - 03/31/2005 Sometimes finger nail polish remover works. By MB in WY (Guest Post) - - 04/04/2005 You need to score the surface of the label to allow water to penetrate - a knife or similar will do the job - then soak in hot water to remove the paper component. Then apply label remover to the residue AND LEAVE TO WORK for 15 minutes. Repeat the scoring and scraping and label remover if it doesn't all come off first time. Regards Jo By Jo Bodey Use a Seam Ripper 09/15/2005 I keep a seam ripper right by my kitchen sink so when I use canned goods I just slip the seam ripper under the label and slice it off. Quick and slick. By Diane Syens - - 12/07/2005 I soak jars in hot vinegar water and then scrap off label. Then tried veg oil on paper towel to remove residue. Works well on glass jars but, not so well on plastic. By Linda Creech (Guest Post) RE: Removing Label sticky stuff 03/09/2006 Today, 3/09/06 I read this helpful post on how to remove the sticky stuff from labels, from a surface. My label sticky stuff was on a new outside polly/fiberglass door and I had tried paint thinner, alcohol, nail polish remover, orange cleaner & others with not much luck. After reading these posts I tried WD40 and it worked like a champ! End of story. Thanks! By Bill in FL (Guest Post) - - 03/10/2006 My husband makes homemade wine, and everyone saves their wine bottles for him to recycle. He fills the kitchen sink with HOT water and dish washing liquid (like Dawn), lets them soak overnight, and then scrubs them with a plastic net scrubby. Occasionally, there is a glue residue which he sprays with Pam, lets sit about 15 minutes, and then removes with the scrubby. By jean (Guest Post) Report Spam or Abuse