how to remove old sealer residue

[steven]

just pulled my companion way hatch for rebuilding and am trying to clean up the aluminum runners. Lots of old sealant stuck to them (and some pitting). What will take off the sealant? Not having much luck with acetone.

Also - taking the vinyl letter name off stern. Anyone know an easy way to get them off and clean up the sticky glue residue without hurting the Awlgrip finish?

thanks

--Steve

 

[Rick]

You can remove glue with the Varsol.

 

[Mort Fligelman]

Sealant Removal

Hi Steve & Paula:

When I bought my boat it had very large vinyl letters across the transom. I carefully peeled off the letters and cleaned up the glue residue with Mineral Spirits. It worked quite well for me, and I do not think it would hurt the Awlgrip.......when I wrapped my mast for shipping right after it was Awlgripped I used Duct Tape to seal the plastic wrap, and some of the adhesive got on the painted surface......came right off with the mineral spirits.....I used the oderless variety.

If the sealant you are tying to remove is 3M 5200, 4400, or the old 101 it is a long and slow process, but Rubbing with denatured alcohol and an old turkish towel will do the trick.

I have just purchased DeBond.......I am sure it will destroy the Awlgrip, and probably cause a leak through masking tape.....if the parts you want to clean are off the boat this would be an easy but expensive solution as the stuff is not cheap......I have not used it, but looking at their website it looks like the cats meow.

Ask me near the end of May.....will try it when we return North to the boat.....

Good Luck

Regards

 

[Emerald]

Heat. You'll be amazed what you can do with a hair dryer on high. I try to avoid heat guns though, as FRP doesn't like a lot of heat much more than sealers do. And for through hulls with 5200, put a wood plug in the bottom and fill with boiling water and let sit a few minutes.

 

[steven]

solvents/cleaners experiments

just finished tangling with duct tape residue on cabin top. The following did not work: alcohol (isopropyl did not work and neither did the vodka I use for winterizing my fresh water system), mineral spirits, over the counter hydrogen peroxide, WD-40, bleach, acetone, hot soap and water.

But it (and other sealants and adhesives) came off easily with a very small amount of gasoline (regular unleaded). It did not appear to damage the gel coat - I used very small amounts on the tip of a cloth and then quicky washed down thoroughly with hot water. Nevertheless, I am still not confident that gasoline is safe on gel coat - though it does appear to dissolve a wide range of gooey stuff.

the aluminum hatch cover runners cleaned up using first WD-40 (took off the surface dirt and grease) followed by gasoline. Nothing else worked on varnish residue that apparently had chemically bonded to the aluminum where it was pitted.

 

[mherrcat]

I have some Marine Formula DeBond that seems to work. It doesn't work as easily as in the videos on their website, but I assume that is because the sealant I have removed is probably much older.

http://www.marineformula.com/

(Really annoying music on their splash page...)

 

[toddster]

I've had some success with goof-off and careful scraping with a razor blade. However, I'm repainting anyway, so not too concerned about the (old oxidized) finish. The problem with unleaded gas (beyond the BTEX) is that it's not very safe to get the MTBE additive on your skin, or to inhale it for that matter. Nitrile gloves are a good idea.

But hey, I grew up washing my hands in gasoline, as taught by my elders. And even in college chemistry, they had us washing with benzene. And it has has has hasn hasn't affected me in the least

note: goof-off will NOT remove sharpie marks from the deck - the ink appears to have soaked down below the surface. K. I'm repainting anyway...

 

[pvajko]

Also - taking the vinyl letter name off stern. Anyone know an easy way to get them off and clean up the sticky glue residue without hurting the Awlgrip finish?

I used a heat gun to peel off the letters and cleaned the residue with 3M adhesive remover. Worked fine.

 

[mherrcat]

Acetone might get some of the Sharpie out.

 

[footrope]

This reply is probably too late, but to address your first question about the aluminum runners with the residue from the sealer, you might consider the following.

I've used relatively gentle methods (scraping, cutting, sanding) several times in cleaning the old sealer/adhesive from the hatch frames and the smaller opening port frames. It took forever and wasn't good for the hands. The last time I did this I tried small wire wheels in an electric drill and did it in 1/10th of the time. I had been concerned about the potential to remove too much aluminum in the process, but I found I could control the wheel and actually hardly touch the frame at all. I first cut and scraped most of the residue and then applied the wire wheel. I have a main hatch re-bed coming up and two more opening ports to do and I'm not dreading the preparation like I used to.

You still have to be careful, and use both forward and reverse as you move around the frame. But after a little practice I think you'll be pleased with the results.

 

[clp]

Brake cleaner. Some discretion advised though.

Well....I hesitate to say this, simply due to the flak I generally get about it. And confusion as well. So number two is first. Not brake FLUID, brake cleaner. I have yet to run into anything much that it will not eliminate. Sharpie marks? It don't stand a chance. Glues and adhesives? Same thing. Will stop a wasp in mid flight. It's about 2 bucks per can, and dangerous as hell. And they sell it at any automotive parts store I've ever been in. Even the dreaded MalWart. If it gets in your eyes, well, that might be as they say, "all she wrote" for them. I can not stress enough how terrible this stuff can be in the hands of idiots. But I've used it by the case for different things, and it's my "go to" for anything oily, greasy, nasty, or just plain pesky.
But don't say I didn't warn ya. And let the hate mail begin...

 

[Emerald]

You forgot to mention that the fumes from the stuff are heavier than air, and like to accumulate, and can knock you for a loop in a heart beat. But, that said, you're right about the stuff working like a champ. I use it on concrete to remove oil, amongst other things. Don't forget to keep the open flame under wraps as well. And it IS amazing at how it will drop a wasp from 10 feet.

 

[toddster]

A lot of that stuff is just the same few ingredients mixed in slightly different proportions (or not) and marketed for different uses. I do a fair amount of product testing, and I often test one formulation, but write ten certificates for different products, because they're all the same stuff.

As for killing wasps, all I use any more is plain old multi-purpose household pine-cleaner (lysol or zep) diluted about 1:8, in a spray bottle. I think I was just cleaning one day and took a shot... huh, whaddayaknow?

 

[Christian Williams]

The topic of adhesive remover came up a few months ago, and I said I would try out an expensive product called "Marine Fomula DeBond" (photo).

I was removing 12 feet of 3-inch Velcro that had formerly held up seat-back cushions, lots of random ancient stickum, and big 10-year-old vinyl name letters and a large personal shield on the transom that had that once meant something to somebody, but now just meant the gelcoat around it was worn away.

I startyed with acetone, moved on to drugstore sticker remover, then a Home Depot product called something like "Professional Builders' Tape Remover". They all sort of worked, the last the best.

Then I paid $20 or so for DeBond, with no expectations at all.

It worked better than any of them. They all seem to be a citrus formula, but the Debond product is so powerful that a chance whiff will send you scrambling for cockpit air.

No idea why it's so effective, although you still have to wait five minutes for it to penetrate and reapply several times if the residue is old and thick.

It also takes off those mystery marks on old gelcoat that can resist kitchen cleaners or even acetone.

Conclusion: for big jobs, worth the dough.

 

[Mort Fligelman]

Marine Formula De Bond

Christian:

A M E N

Since my last visit to this thread back in 2012, I removed the four fixed ports on my 35-3.

The openings were cut out way to large originally, with either a sawzall or tomahawk, and no matter how I tried to make the frames cover the opening, there was always a minimum of 1/16 to 3/32 that you could see daylight through. The PO must have been continually trying to seal them with additional 5200...my guess is at least three pounds of it that I collected in a bag after removing them using the De Bond.

It took a lot of it....almost two cans, but it did the job....granted not like shown on the web.....

Well worth the money????? Without doubt.....

FWIW.....a good friend of mine with an EDM machine made aluminum surrounds for me, and I re-installed them with Butyl tape and have not had a leak since then....