Why is it so hard to remove paper-based stickers and labels without tearing them or leaving paper residue?
In: 8
Because glue. The paper absorbs some of the glue, bonding the sticker to the surface.
By applying a solvent like alcohol this bond can be countered and the sticker can easily be removed intact.
There’s a great product not designed for this purpose but works better than anything I’ve ever tried for paper based labels. It’s an air freshener, but for some reason, it peels labels cleaner than anything, even goo gone. You just spray it, leave it for like 30 seconds and peel it all off effortlessly in one clean piece, it leaves no residue behind at all. Goo gone is great for other stuff though
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Pure-Citrus-4-oz-Orange-Air-Freshener-NA222/202528023
The cheap paper used for the stickers absorbs some of the glue, the paper isn’t great quality so it is porous and fibrous. As the glue activates and hardens it also hardens in the paper.
Basically the cheap paper stickers laminate themselves in the process, becoming a composite.
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