contact cement

need to re-glue formica edge of old bathroom vanity. The strip is about 6' long, and about 2' of one end has come loose. how do I repair? should i pull the whole strip off and re-glue or just glue the portion that has come loose? how do i remove old contact cement?

Reply to
gaffer
Loading thread data ...

You'll almost certainly never get the piece off w/o breaking it unless the rest of the adhesive is also letting loose.

You might try very carefully using a putty knife or the ilk and see if can actually separate the piece by pushing it under and slicing the rest of the sheet loose but I'll wager odds are not good.

I would simply recoat (both surfaces) after removing an sizable pieces of dirt grit and reglue w/ contact cement. You'll want to keep the two surfaces from touching until it dries w/ some thin stickers, of course, and then press back down from the inside edge(s) outward to avoid any buckling.

Reply to
dpb

I recenty used some "Sticky Ass Glue" where contact cement failed and it was downright miraculous. I suspect is has some sort of cyanoacrylate mixed in.

- = - Vasos Panagiotopoulos, Columbia'81+, Reagan, Mozart, Pindus, BioStrategist

formatting link
---{Nothing herein constitutes advice. Everything fully disclaimed.}--- [Homeland Security means private firearms not lazy obstructive guards] [Urb sprawl confounds terror] [Phooey on GUI: Windows for subprime Bimbos]

Reply to
vjp2.at

If you want to get it off in one piece, just heat it up with an iron like the one used on clothes. Put a cloth over the piece and work it loose. Then recoat and re-attatch.

R
Reply to
Roanin

I'd try the iron on the un-stuck piece first. Some of that old glue was heat sensitive. It might just melt and heal the boo-boo.

If that failed, I'd try to glue the end on without removing the whole thing.

I haven't tried this-- and thought it was a joke name when someone up-thread posted it. . . but it is real and looks like it might work;

formatting link
Jim

Reply to
Jim Elbrecht

Are you referring to the top or the 2" tall edging piece? If it is the edging, I would try some crazy glue dripped into the crack. If the edging is totally loose alomg that 2' stretch, you could apply the crazy glue directly to the surface except where the piece is still adhering. If it is the top that is loose, I would try ironing it down first as others have suggested. You need to get it hot enough to melt the old contact cement, but not burn the surface of the formica. Try racheting up the heat a little at a time, and iron thru some clean white paper towels to prevent scorching and scratching the formica. I have done this a couple of times on various surfaces and lucked out both times.

Reply to
hrhofmann

I have not had good luck in regluing veneer or plastic laminate with contact cement unless I was able to get all the old glue off and had a really good way to clamp the veneer into position such that pressure was applied over the whole surface. I have had better success in regluing with epoxy. Try using quick-set epoxy and you won't have to worry as much about clamping.

To remove the old glue, try using a hydrocarbon solvent like mineral spirits and a lot of disposable cloths.

Good Luck.

Reply to
Baron

re: ..."a really good way to clamp the veneer into position such that pressure was applied over the whole surface."

I have often used the "reverse" of clamping to hold things in place.

If I can't get a clamp around something, I'll make a long T out some 2 x 4's and wedge one end against a wall or some other solid object to apply pressure where I need it.

For example, I was using some silicon adhesive to install some vinyl base molding and one section kept bowing out. I made a T, jammed it against the toilet and left it in place until the adhesive dried.

I've used the same method to hold a form against a concrete foundation wall so I could pour a repair patch in my garage, jamming the T against the opposite wall.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

Excellent jig for this situation. I was thinking more about regluing veneer when the surface is not a relatively thin straight strip. In those cases, I try to use a vacuum press or make a caul but unless the piece is an easy one to fix, I don't have much luck.

Reply to
Baron

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.