How to remove plastic film & adhesive from stainless steel, brass

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Heat Guns

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A. Bill,

You really should find out WHAT the covering material was and WHAT, if any, was the 'glue' used! Then and then only could people make suitable suggestions.

Let's hope that those other people's helpful suggestions will work .... but when you mentioned a slew of aromatic hydrocarbons, I was a-wondering if the protective sleeving was Polyethylene which had somehow 'heat bonded' itself to the sheeting ... in which case, Oh Dear ... maybe heat would have to be used.

A. I have had to remove the plastic film from stainless steel on many occasions over the years so was surprised/happy/delirious when I came across this site suggesting that ammonia would remove the film. Wow, I thought, is this what I have been missing! So I tried it, but alas, it wasn't to be. Actually, I probably would have been pissed thinking about all of the work I could have avoided.

Anyway, the ammonia seemed to make no difference at all. The plastic I am talking about is the white kind that is standard from the mill to protect polished SS. It is very tough and, if left exposed to sunlight, is almost impossible to remove without trashing the underlying surface. The basic problem is that the white (vinyl?) coating makes it very hard to get at the glue with anything that can soften it.

Here's what I have found to be the best way to remove this plastic coating from polished SS:

- Use a heat gun ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] (mine is a B&D Heat and Strip) and a 1 1/2" putty knife, to heat the plastic coating and gently scrape it off the surface. This is the slow part. Someone else here suggested a blow torch, but I have found that that can damage/distort the surface. Be sure to work in the directions of the polishing to minimize surface damage.

- The result will be a mottled, greasy-looking surface, the remains of the plastic and the glue.

- Next, using rubber gloves ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , apply a generous film of Jasco ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] water based paint stripper, all over the surface. Wait 5 minutes and then re-strip with the putty knife. This should remove almost all of the residue.

- Buff out the remaining residue with a paper towel soaked in Jasco.

- Buff out any remaining scratched with a SS pot scrubber, again working in the direction of the underlying polish. Incidentally, NEVER use mild steel tools or steel wool on a SS surface. If you do, atomic iron from the mild steel will become embedded in the surface where it promptly rusts and discolors it.

Hope this helps.

A. I have tried for a number of days to come up with a method of removing some of the black and white LDPE film from some carts that were built a few years ago and stored in a location where they saw sunlight. As with most people I tried every solvent I could think of. Then I did some searching and found that Xylene ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] at elevated temperatures would penetrate the LDPE. What I found to work was to use a heat gun and warm the metal. Then I soaked a towel in Xylene and placed it on top of plastic and let it sit. After 10-20 min, the plastic coating peeled off as if it were new. Nice and easy leaving no residue. I did get it a little too hot in a few places and melted the plastic fairly severely. But what I found was that by laying the towel over the area second time for a few minutes, the residue wiped right off.

A. I can absolutely second the approach taken by Timothy Hicks (described above).

I used a heat gun (the type used on shrink tubing) to heat up the white vinyl (which effectively melted it) and a soft cloth to wipe it off. I was then left with the glue residue. A combination of Goof Off ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] and a citrus cleaner worked fine. No marks or stains on the metal at all.

Notes:

It takes a *long* time to do this. Figure 30 mins for 2 x 2 ft sheet of stainless sheet;

Wear a respirator ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] - the fumes from the heated vinyl are toxic - you don't want to be breathing them in.

Good luck!

A. I figured it out! I just had to remove the film from four elevator doors on a mega million dollar high-rise. It had been left on for four years. The condition was similar to gold flake film with a tar adhesive adhering it to the stainless. It was not fun at the beginning, but I learned the trick to doing it.
After reading and and trying everyone's recommendation and failing, I found that a combination of a few of your suggestions worked like a charm. Using a razor blade scraper, a heat gun ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , and Goo Gone ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] .

With the blade, place it on an edge of the film. With the heat gun, warm the point were the razor's edge meets the film until it starts to peel up. Slowly and carefully work your way down, trying not to break the film you are peeling away. Pull the heat away a little once you get started, while staying in front of the blade. It peels like butter without a scratch. Then use the Goo Gone to clear off the remaining adhesive.

A couple hand cramps later and you are done!

A. I work at a industrial manufacturing facility that specializes in stainless, and we've had similar problems. Our best solution for getting the blue plastic off is to heat it with a hair dryer style heat gun ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , then wipe the goo left behind with acetone ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] Warning! highly Flammable! .

A. Morning, I have a metal roof that the blue protective tape has been baked on. Some will peel off a little. What seems to work the best is a propane torch just enough to melt the tape & adhesive then wipe with a cloth. Just keep moving along & rotate the cloth to a clean area. Caution the tape will be very hot and can stick to and burn your skin. It's time consuming but works!
Good Luck

A. I am building my home myself and I installed a stainless steel range hood a couple of years ago and made the mistake of leaving the protective covering on until I was done with the kitchen. The hood had a heavy white plastic covering which I was able to pull off with some effort. The glue that was left behind came off easily with the citrus cleaner Goo Gone ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] .

I also installed a 12 inch high stainless steel filler between the hood and the bottom of the pot shelf rather than a cabinet that would be of little use to me. The filler piece was covered with LDPE and therein lies the problem. After finding this thread, I tried various methods to remove the LDPE with no positive results. I finally purchased an electric heat gun (575 & 1125 degrees) and a plastic putty knife (Home Depot). Using the heat gun on LOW (575 deg), I heated the LDPE to the melting point and then used the plastic putty knife, in a nearly perpendicular position, to scrape the plastic off the stainless. If the plastic is heated enough, it will come off at least 95% clean. After the LDPE is removed, the remaining black part that is left on the metal will come off with household ammonia and a Scotch-Brite Non-Scratch scrub sponge. Any little bits that resist the scrub sponge can be scraped off with the plastic putty knife.

CAUTION: Always direct the heat flow away from the cabinets since 575 degrees can damage the wood finish. Where the filler came in contact with the bottom of the pot shelf, I used a 14 inch wide broad knife to protect the enamel paint from the hot air from the heat gun. Do not use flame as it could discolor the stainless. Do not use a metal scraper or a metal pot cleaner because it will scratch the stainless.

I had also used some blue painters tape to cover any parts of the range hood that were not covered by the factory installed protective film. To remove the glue left after removing the tape, the household ammonia ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] works just fine.

Remember, low heat and no metal tools. Take your time and don't rush this job. Damage the stainless and you'll have to live with it or pay to replace it.

After everything was cleaned, I used a stainless steel cleaner to finish the job and the stainless looks great. Good luck and remember, the effort will be worth it.

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Thanks to everyone for responding helpfully to my question about removing adhesive residue from stainless-steel sheet metal. I also made direct inquiry to the 3M company and they suggested if the adhesive resists organic solvents like toluene, MEK, xylol_xylene, etc., as well as citrus-based products, the adhesive may be acrylic-based and it might be attacked with household ammonia. This was indeed the case. Household ammonia removed the adhesive residue easily.

Thanks so much for keeping this information out on the web. I bought a stainless-steel gas range, and have been unable to get the residue off with WD40, hair spray, etc.
The ammonia worked like a charm! Now I can cook in the new oven. I believe the protective plastic did not pull off cleanly because of the hot climate down here in Mexico.

Thanks again.

Plastic film on Vermont Castings B-B-Q Grill

ammonia
My greatest appreciation to Bill D for his tip about household ammonia dissolving plastic film on stainless steel. I live in the Dallas area and found a great 5 burner Vermont grill I really coveted. As the price was way more than I could budget, I caressed it fondly every visit and kept cooking away on my old Wal-Mart grill. After Christmas THE grill was put on clearance. They had left the protective plastic on and displaying it in the Texas heat melted it to the steel ... a discounted price of $300+. After trying everything from De-Solve-it to the blow dryer to remove it I Googled and ended up at your site. The ammonia melted the plastic, even in the crevices, and removed the adhesive residue. (Total $2.19!)
The grill looks brand new, has been appropriately installed and just this weekend broken in!

Thank you for the great time and money saving tip!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank YOU. I too bought the Vermont Casting Grill at the Clearance price only to have the same glue/plastic staining/residue ... I am buying ammonia tomorrow. Thanks.

Q. I have the same Vermont Casting Grill from Home Depot with the plastic baked on. I tried the ammonia, but did not see the plastic dissolve. I have a feeling that I am not applying it properly. Can someone please let me know how they used the ammonia on their grill.

Thanks

A. Hi Dov. Keep reading and Alison MacKenzie's posting explains how she applied the ammonia. Good luck.

Regards,

A. Bought a new/used stainless steel outdoor refrigerator. Prior owner let the blue plastic film shrink-wrap and melt to the door. Tried everything to remove it. Then found this column. I soaked a washcloth with lemon ammonia and let it set on the door (set horizontal) for 15 minutes. Then used a plastic scraper to scrape away the softened film. Worked great and did not hurt the brushed stainless finish. Thanks!

! I didn't get the hoped for melt-away on my Vermont Castings barbecue. After about 40 minutes of soaking via ammonia covered paper towels, however, it was easier to scrape off. I then used non-acetone nail polish to get the glue residue off (didn't have Acetone type). Still have plastic on back side of the hood around small vent holes and don't plan on making myself nuts getting it off. Thanks for all the suggestions, I suspect a lot depends on how long it's been stuck on.

! Read this post, found some household ammonia, used it on the blue plastic on the doors to my new BBQ. The blue stuff just peeled right off. It doesn't just dissolve away. It seems to just loosen the plastic from the steel so that it can be peeled away easier. Start at a corner of the blue, apply a bit of ammonia with a rag and then start peeling. My brother-in-law (who knows everything) stumped. I said I would go check on the net and voila - there was the solution. Thanks all.

! Wow, I couldn't believe it! Was kind of depressed when we opened our dishwasher box, it had been in storage for a year and when we finally got around to installing it I couldn't get all of the wrap (blue) off of it. The wrapper came off but left a residue and smears on the face of the stainless steel door. It looked horrifying. Tried the ammonia and within seconds it was gone. Thanks so much for this suggestion, as I would have had to look at that ugly stain forever as elbow grease just was not taking it off.

Ammonia worked for me. In 15 minutes flat I was able to remove the protective plastic on my dish washer. Thanks for all the tips. Big up to this site.

A. I recently purchased a dishwasher with a stainless steel finish that came wrapped in blue plastic. The plastic came off easily but the imprint of it (14 inches wide) could still be seen on the finish. It wasn't sticky but wouldn't come off with stainless steel cleaner, nail polish remover, or vinegar. However, undiluted household ammonia and some elbow grease removed it completely and left a beautiful finish. Thank you to everyone who suggested ammonia as I would not have thought to try it and it worked!

Thank you. After a struggle, your solution, ammonia, worked wonders! In 2 minutes all the plastic was off. Thank you!

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Acetone

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A. To the people asking about removing the protective plastic film stuck on stainless steel appliances, nail polish remover with acetone works perfect. I first tried Goo Gone which didn't work, then read about using acetone ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] Warning! highly Flammable! and it works perfectly. Removes it clean off.

A. I just purchased a new stainless wall oven and put it in. The Blue Plastic Film was stuck to it like a price tag. I set for an hour with an orangewood stick carefully pulling the film off piece by piece and worked for an hour doing this. I was at my wits-end and decided to look for an answer online. I did try several things and it did not work. So I read on this site about acetone ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] Warning! highly Flammable! and had some and got some cotton balls and applied it to the area that I was working on. It made the film turn loose and then I went back over the area again with the acetone and got the glue off. It took me 15 minutes to get all of it off, and I am pleased to say it really works. I worked on a very small area for over an hour and finished all of it including polishing the over in 15 minutes . Thanks for the help.

! NAIL POLISH REMOVER.
My husband and I bought a brand new oven from an outlet store that had been returned for whatever the reason, but it was beautiful... until we got it home and tried to peel off the blue plastic film. It had melted onto the oven so we used Goo Gone which sort of helped, but it took at least a painstaking hour to peel off the film even with Goo Gone. It was off, but there was a residue that was not coming off with the Goo Gone no matter how hard I scrubbed.

In my frustration, I turned to the web. We didn't have any Ammonia, but I had a non-acetone nail polish remover. I used a cotton ball to apply the nail polish remover and it worked instantly! My husband and I used that and within 10 minutes the oven looked amazing! We wiped it with a microfiber cloth after applying the nail polish remover. Then we polished it with stainless steel polish. It's beautiful. Thank you!

A. Protective blue plastic left a residue on a new fridge. Read the posts and opted to try nail polish remover with acetone ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] Warning! highly Flammable! . Worked like a charm!

Thanks everyone for your collective input!

A. NAIL POLISH REMOVER
I tried warm water, ammonia, and rubbing alcohol to remove the protective blue coating on my chrome sink. Nail polish remover did the trick. I still had to rub, but it clearly dissolved the coating and did not hurt the chrome finish.

Note: Having a teenaged daughter, I had two bottles of nail polish remover, each with a little at the bottom in the house. The first one was Cutex for natural nails, and promised to work 2-3 times faster than the others. It was the best. The other (purple) one was not as good but I used both up and ran to the dollar store for more. Their generic brand worked fine, not as fast as the Cutex ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , but better than the purple stuff, and it had a nice smell!

Acetone was a miracle resolution to removing plastic film from a Stainless Steel BBQ Grill. Thank you for the invaluable tip.

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Power Washers

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A. Had the same problem with the protective coating on aluminium composite panels that had been exposed to the African sun for about 10 months. Tried all the suggestions with no luck. Eventually had success with a pressure washer ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] .

A. The company I work for is a new commercial truck dealer. When we get new Mack trucks in from the factory the aluminum fuel tanks are covered with a protective film. The film is almost like a powder coating or Rhino lining in texture and durability, more so the longer it stays on and exposed to the sun. We have struggled with removal techniques but it seems like the most effective and least time consuming is a HOT pressure wash.

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A. Okay kids ... this is the deal: We just boiled some water in a tea kettle and poured it on the doors of the outdoor gas BBQ, and presto, the blue film peeled off in a flash. Taking off the residue in addition to the film. Easy and free!!

I had fitted a stainless steel oven a year ago but had not yet moved into the house so the film was never taken off. It had been getting the morning / afternoon sun everyday and the blue film was "double baked". I had been struggling for the past 2 days trying to peel the blue film off. Finally googled it and came across this thread and right at the end was Terry Smith's solution. Immediately boiled some water and took off the oven door and poured the boiling water on it, the film peeled off like it should have when it was new. It was as simple as that. unfortunately I still have the glue residue where I had been peeling it bit by bit. Tomorrow morning I'll head to the supermarket for some ammonia and will try that out. Hopefully that should work. I think Terry's reply should be on top of this thread, so people don't have to struggle with other things when the solution was so simple.
Thanks a lot, Terry.

A. This worked very quickly and very efficiently:
On a pair of new Range Hood filters the blue film was virtually impossible to remove until I soaked them in HOT water where the plastic became soft then it literally washed off.
Cheap solution if nothing else.

We had white wrapping on our new, just installed canopy range hood. Some of it peeled off easily as you would expect but a large area did not. We were working it little by little with our fingers peeling it and it took an hour to get just half of it off. Found the boiling water solution mentioned by Terry earlier in the thread (after trying and failing with nail polish remover). Just boiled water and poured it on the range hood, then tried peeling immediately - worked like magic! Just remember to wear gloves when pouring the boiling water...it's rather hot. There is still glue residue so will try ammonia to clean that off when we can hold of some. Would love to see Terry's solution posted at the top of this thread too, as another person has pointed out it would save many people much time in searching through the thread. Thanks!

Hi, the boiling water worked great on a stainless steel camera flash handle that had clear tape that had yellowed. The handle being 50 years old and tape applied at that time.
The handle was fairly small so I was able to boil it in a large pot for 10 minutes. The hard outside of the tape boiled off and the residue was easy to scrape off with a plastic fruit peeler. My wife was not home while I was doing this otherwise there might have been a lengthy discussion regarding using the kitchen utensils for this purpose. :-)
Great tip without using chemicals and sooo cheap.

A. It works like a charm, you have to work quickly as the film will cool and adhere to the metal. Wearing leather gloves, I poured the heated water as I removed the film. As it cools, don't tear the film off completely so you can continue pulling the film as you apply the next batch of hot water on the surface. It's easier with 2 people but I did it myself. The white film that remains can be cleaned with Windex Commercial Line ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] or ammonia.

A. Best solution I have found so far is a plain household steam cleaner ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] with a plastic scraper. I'm removing the wood effect from the sandwich board in a sliding gate. Tried chemicals and a blow torch (which baked it on harder).

The steam cleaner softens the plastic and loosens the glue; it's slow but I'm not scratching the gate panels and the plastic is slowly coming off without leaving visible trace of glue.