What's the best way to clean up some glue (e.g. Titebond II) that gets on the surface of wood, such as oak? Will a damp rag be good enough? I recently put some stain on some oak, and some areas containing residual glue marred the finish.
I prefer waiting until the glue gets to a rubbery snot consistency, then using a sharp chisel to carefully shave it off. The damp rag has never worked for me.
Barry
Maybe. If you are thorough and careful. Obviously, the glue has to be still liquid. If it has dried, scraping works best for me. Or shaving it off with a sharp chisel.
If you are talking about squeeze out from joints rather than just having inadvertantly slopped some somewhere, a chisel/scraper is the way to go IMO. After it is dry it has shrunk, is hard and comes off easily with the chisel. There should be just tiny beads...if you have lots of squeeze out you are using too much glue.
The trouble with using water to remove squeeze out is that one tends to push it around and leave a tiny bit in the grain and that residual glue is hard to get off when dry and messes up the finishing. If the wood has been finished before gluing the joint (I often do so) water, paper towels and a scraper made of hardwood work pretty well.
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For years I have had success with using a paper towel that is almost dripping wet. If you get enough water on there it glue will wash away. Turn the towel frequently.
I will echo the wet towel method, sloppy wet and use lots of towels.
I'll second this method - the first step though is not to use so much that it's squeezing out all over the place. Brush it on and take into account the type of joint when you put it on. If you're getting glue everywhere, you're using too much.
Whats best to apply Titebond II and similar glues? Have used acid brush and cut down paint brushes. Kind of a PIA to use. Haven't found a source for "glue brushes". Any hints appreciated.
Mike B
Whats best to apply Titebond II and similar glues? Have used acid brush and cut down paint brushes. Kind of a PIA to use. Haven't found a source for "glue brushes". Any hints appreciated.
Mike B
I keep a bunch of these around
You have to be careful with with method. Some Oil/varnish aren't compatible.You might find the wax doesn't disolve if the mineral spirits aren't in high enough concentration.
If talking squeeze out from joints, better way is blue painters tape on the wood, let the squeeze out get on the tape instead of on the wood
John
For detailed stuff I like to use a little rod of scrap wood cut at an angle on the end. Can use the point to get in the tight spots, and the face of the angle to spread with. The nearest sink is up a flight of stairs, so a glue brush is pretty much guaranted to be use once and then in the trash for me. This way I can just keep cutting the end off to get a fresh end until it's too short to use. On larger pieces I'll apply the glue directly to the piece and use the stick to spread it, for small stuff I'll squeeze out a blob on the back of a used up piece of sandpaper and dip. Works for me.
-Leuf
I also use whats commonly called an acid brush. Since my nearest water source is a distance away, I keep a small pail of water nearby with a small sponge and an old washcloth for cleanups. Usually, I will toss the brush in the pail at the end of the glue session. Many times, they can be reused, but it seems lately that I got a batch where the bristles fall out easily.
The one glue accessory that I have really latched on to is a bottle with a wide roller tip. This saves so much time in certain instances that I think that I could not do without it now.
Lou
They do tend to shed bristles, though. Still, I keep a bag ful of them around too.
Here is my solution to glue marks:
Use hide glue. Unless you are using a dark stain, any undetected glue marks usually blend into the finish.
I generally use the same small brushes plumbers use to apply flux to a pipe. Check the plumbing aisle! They are cheap and disposable too. --dave
I use the 3/8" acid brushes and toss them in a plastic cup filled with water to keep the glue from drying on them.
RE: Subject
Classic Harbor Freight item.
Acid brushes when they are on sale.
I buy at least 30 at a pop, then use and pitch.
Life it too short to sweat the petty stuff of even pet the sweaty stuff.
Lew
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