Adhesive Remover: Simple, Natural Homemade Goo Gone Recipe

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Adhesive Remover Homemade Goo Gone

This adhesive remover recipe is a natural homemade goo gone that works without using all the harsh chemical additives. Use with confidence.

DIY Adhesive Remover

Why bother making your own natural adhesive remover? A few things come to mind:

  • it’s less expensive
  • you control the ingredients so you can make it non-toxic
  • creating things is fun and rewarding
  • you can formulate it to have several uses.

Multiple Uses

One of the greatest things about natural DIY products is that many of them have multiple uses. This is rarely the case with store-bought products.

Example: would you ever use your store-bought deodorant as an exfoliating scrub for your face, and as an adhesive remover? Probably not. BUT, when you make your own all-natural products, you can formulate them to be used in several applications.

I had a homemade deodorant mixture of coconut oil and baking soda that was a little heavy on the baking soda, making it too strong for my underarms. But I hate being wasteful, so I kept it and repurposed it as an exfoliator for my face. After coming across this article, I knew I could also be using it as an adhesive remover to get sticky labels off jars, or price tags off new purchases.

Safety Concerns of Commercial Adhesive Removers

The EWG safety guide gives Goo Gone a safety rating of “C.” You will also you’ll find they have this to say about it:

Top Scoring Factors: May contain ingredients with potential for cancer; damage to DNA; nervous system effects.[1]

What about Goof Off, another popular adhesive remover currently in stores? Well, the EWG safety guide gives that product a safety rating of “F.” Further, they have this to say about the general safety of the product:

Top Scoring Factors: Poor disclosure; May contain ingredients with potential for cancer; damage to DNA; respiratory effects.[2]

I’m not sure about you, but that is concern enough for me. So, let’s talk more about making our own natural AND effective adhesive remover!

Adhesive Remover: Natural and Homemade

It might seem counterintuitive to get gummy labels off with an oil-based adhesive remover, but it works like a charm! In the past, I had tried using straight orange essential oil to get stickers off things. Sweet orange oil has wonderful de-greasing power when used for cleaning or beauty. However, it did not always work when used to remove gummy, stuck-on labels.

I had also tried plain baking soda, along with lots of elbow grease, and I just wasn’t happy with the results. Well, what do you know, the combination of baking soda and a little oil makes labels and stickers slide right off. It’s the perfect recipe for an adhesive remover, a.k.a. homemade goo gone!

Adhesive Remover Homemade Goo Gone

Adhesive Remover: Homemade Goo Gone

5 from 1 vote

This adhesive remover recipe is a natural homemade goo gone that works without using all the harsh chemical additives. Use with confidence.

Prep Time
5 minutes
Active Time
5 minutes
Total Time
10 minutes
Servings
1 application
Estimated Cost
$1

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Thoroughly mix all the ingredients together.

  2. Remove as much of the label or sticker as you can before beginning. Combine ingredients in a small bowl and mash together with a spoon or small spatula until it forms a thick paste.
  3. Apply adhesive remover with fingers or a cloth, rubbing it in until label/sticker is completely gone.
  4. Wash with warm water and soap to remove any leftover goop or oil.
  5. Voila! The label is gone. (Just so you know how well this stuff works, I couldn’t tell where the label had been when I went to take the “after” picture. I think I showed you the wrong side – ha!)
  6. You can store your adhesive remover in a sealed container and keep it for later use.

Recipe Video

Notes

This DIY adhesive remover also makes a fabulous moisturizing facial exfoliant! With the addition of sweet orange essential oil, it’s perfect for oily skin.

The best part – I don’t have to recycle glass containers just because I’m dreading the hassle of removing the labels. Now, if I could only find more space to keep my glass jar hoard.

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Want More Natural Cleaning Tips?

Our book, DIY Natural Household Cleaners, includes 60+ natural recipes to help you save money while making all your own cleaners! You’ll learn about simple ingredients (most of them found right in your own kitchen!) that can help keep your house clean and green. Buy it here in print or ebook format.

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Sources

  1. Environmental Working Group Saftey Guides. Goo Gone Stain Remover. Accessed Feb 19, 2019.
  2. Environmental Working Group Saftey Guides. Goof Off Professional Strength Miracle Remover. Accessed Feb 19, 2019.
Avatar photo

About Betsy Jabs

Betsy holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology and a Master's degree in Counseling, and for nearly a decade worked as an elementary counselor. In 2011 she left her counseling career to pursue healthy living. She loves using DIY Natural as a way to educate people to depend on themselves to nourish their bodies and live happier healthier lives. Connect with Betsy on Facebookand Twitter.

PAID ENDORSEMENT DISCLOSURE: In order for us to support our website activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this website.

DISCLAIMER: Information on DIY Natural™ is not reviewed or endorsed by the FDA and is NOT intended to be substituted for the advice of your health care professional. If you rely solely upon this advice you do so at your own risk. Read full Disclaimer & Disclosure statements here.

Comments

  1. Avatar photoGloria says

    I’ve used this combo for quite a while now, and I love it! If I have a “stubborn” label, I just leave the paste on it for an hour or so….or the next time I wash dishes, and it comes right off…no scrubbing most of the time. LOVE being as chemical free in my home as possible!!! Love your site!!!

  2. Avatar photoKathy B says

    Ha ha! I accidently found out about oil removing sticky stuff when my son worked for a tree service. He came home covered in pine sap every day. Rather than have him scrub off a layer of skin every day I concocted a recipe made of olive oil and orange and lemon essential oils. Worked like a charm!!

  3. Avatar photoRobin says

    I’ve had great success soaking glass jars in a bowl or sink of hot water with a 1/4 cup (or so) of washing soda dissolved in it. If you’re patient and let it do it’s thing, most labels slide right off after 20 minutes or so – depending on the type of adhesive.

    • Avatar photoBetsy Jabs says

      Hmmm…I’d be hesitant to use this particular goo remover on fabric because the coconut oil is so greasy. Instead, you may want to try pulling the sticker residue off with another really sticky tape. Sometimes dabbing masking tape or scotch tape onto sticky residue will pull it right off.

  4. Avatar photoKerry says

    I have stickiness on my carpet left behind by duct tape. Would this work for that or what would you suggest to remove it that will not harm the carpet?

  5. Avatar photoJudith says

    I just tried it with the residue from nicotine patches. Pleas no one judge me. I am vegan and as green as I can be. As an ex addict/alcoholic (in recovery) this is my last vise and very hard to beat. Thank you!

    • Avatar photoSusan says

      Judith –
      How awesome that you are successfully following a path of health. Pat yourself on the back for how far you’ve come. Presumably you’ve gone from cigarettes to nicotine patches – that’s progress. Stay true to being the healthiest YOU can be!
      Nice share. I respect you.
      -Susan

  6. Avatar photoAnony says

    I know you may not know the answer to this but I’m a bit desperate. I was using a mason jar for a sleep salve I saw off of Camp Wander. One of the instructions was to put a mason jar with the ingredients in a boiling pot of water. I did this but I never paid attention to the UPC sticker on the bottom of the mason jar. It came off easily but I was so happy I got the recipe right that I forgot about the sticker. A few hours later I went to clean up my mess and saw the sticker sticky side down stuck to the bottom of my non-stick pot. I don’t know why I tried to peel it off. It barely did leaving the sticky residue at the bottom of my pot. I know baking soda is kind of abrasive and was wondering if you know if this remedy will work on non-stick items?

    • Avatar photoBetsy Jabs says

      This recipe makes a very smooth paste that should be gentle enough on most surfaces – even nonstick surfaces. If you’re worried about the baking soda, try using just coconut oil at first to see if that works. If not, add a tiny bit of baking soda and rub it around gently.

  7. Avatar photoRhoda Edwards says

    I am enjoying your site. It is very uplifting and rewarding. In Trinidad and Tobago like almost everywhere else in the world, money matters so when I found your site I was overjoyed. Thank you and your family for taking the time and effort to share with not only your friends but with the whole world. Blessings on you! Re: aloe vera, always wash gel right after scooping out of insides to get the bitterness out. Proceed to blend for juice.

  8. Avatar photoMari says

    IF it is glass or plastic bottle or jar labels you are wanting to remove…. fill the jar with very hot water with out wetting the outside of the jar. This softens the label and you can usually just peel it off in its entirety with in a few seconds. If you wet the outside of the jar, it won’t come off cleanly. Then just put some ordinary cooking oil on to the residue and it will rub off easily with your thumb. It can remove the residue from cardio dots too.

  9. Avatar photoCarla says

    Can’t wait to try this. I have jars in my pantry with “goo” on them still from labels just waiting for me to figure out a way to get it off. So glad you posted this! One question… do you have a way to get the odor out of used jars? For instance, I have an old spaghetti sauce jar that has even been washed in the dishwasher and still smells like sauce. I don’t want anything I put in there to smell like spaghetti sauce!

    • Avatar photoBetsy Jabs says

      I usually fill smelly jars with white vinegar and water and allow them to soak for a day, then rinse well. If that doesn’t work, you could try putting some baking soda in the dry jar, capping it, shaking, and allowing it to sit for a day or two to soak up odors. Then of course, rinse and dry.

  10. Avatar photoEmily says

    You can see the date stamp in all the pictures. That can tell you where the goop was. Almost the right side. Looks good!

  11. Avatar photoPat says

    The funny thing about this is….. I use this same paste to brush my teeth, only use peppermint oil instead of the orange oil!

  12. Avatar photoTerry says

    This is something I’ve been waiting for. I hate using Goo Gone. I can tell from the smell it is at least partly a petroleum product and the thought of using it always repelled me. But sometimes I found it to be the only thing that worked and resigned myself to having to use it occasionally. I’ll be delighted to throw the bottle away!

    • Avatar photoBetsy Jabs says

      Yes, the list of warnings on bottles of Goo Gone are pretty long. It DOES contain some nasty stuff. I was the same…I kept a bottle of it around because sometimes it was the only thing that worked for me – UNTIL I started using this. Hope you love it!

  13. Avatar photoKay says

    I’m SO excited for this! I had some cardio tests done, and I’m full of adhesive marks. I have very sensitive skin and wasn’t about to use Goo Gone or WD40 on my skin, but this should work perfectly 🙂 I’ve used this as a facial scrub before… didn’t even think of it for removing adhesive. Thanks!