How to remove linoleum glue from old tiles?
I discovered an original encaustic tile mosaic under linoleum in the entry way of my recently purchased 2-fam. I have pulled up the linoleum, but the tiles underneath are very sticky. What is the best way to remove the old glue? Any advice is much appreciated!
I discovered an original encaustic tile mosaic under linoleum in the entry way of my recently purchased 2-fam. I have pulled up the linoleum, but the tiles underneath are very sticky. What is the best way to remove the old glue?
Any advice is much appreciated!
the best way i’ve heard is to heat the tile with an iron or infra red paint remover (thesilentpaintremover.com) the adehesive will soften and come up fairly easily. as will the linoleum.
Home Depot and Lowe’s also carry another product specifically to take old glue and mastic up from floors. I forget the name, but it is in the same aisle as GooGone, strippers and denatured alchohol. The above posters are correct that Goo Gone usually works, and also that it is a tedious, messy job, best done with plastic scrapers.
Wear gloves,long sleeves and a respirator if you have concerns about asbestos, which personally, I don’t think is a huge concern in this case, but why take chances? This is doable, don’t cover the tiles up, they are too beautiful and were meant to be seen.
I had the same sticky problem renovating the kitchen in the apartment in our brownstone. We got all the right chemicls and began to clean. What a mess, a nightmare-ish mess. It was so much easier to quicly cover it with hardboard.
I had the same sticky problem renovating the kitchen in the apartment in our brownstone. We got all the right chemicls and began to clean. What a mess, a nightmare-ish mess. It was so much easier to quicly cover it with hardboard.
So not true. Asbestos can be deadly, especially in smokers, only it takes something like 20-30 years for it to have any effect.
A little asbestos never killed anyone. I worked at a midas brake shop for 6 years, then 4 years working with silica, and finally 10 years as a contractor, and my doctor says my lungs are fine. They make a specific product to remove old adhesive. Is it still sticky, or is it hard and brittle? Do not use a metal scraper to remove the glue as it leaves marks on the tile. Just be gentle. Home depot should have a product. Paint remover will take it off as well.
Be careful. Prior to the 1980s, some tile glue contained asbestos. Most floor guys around here recommend covering over old flooring rather than pulling anything up.
you could try an automotive product: goo-gone
it is used to remove glue from expensive paint work. Try on an inconspicous area first, though.