Duct Tape Residue on 1978 Trillium

[Krysti Peck]

Hello - We recently purchased our second pod. We have a 1975 Trillium, and now a 1978 Trillium 4500. Well, the prior owner taped the for sale sign on the side of the pod with duct tape. It left thick corners of sticky residue on the side, to the point where on the one corner where it came off clean, it took the polish off. Any suggestions on how to get the rest of the matter off? I don't want to damage the shell. We are about to put it into storage for the winter, and plan on putting a new polish on it based on the what was recommended here regarding how to get the luster back. Thank you for your suggestions. We have another project ahead of us, not to mention having to pull the windows on the 1975 due to water leakage. Fun to learn how to do all of it on our own, though. Thanks again!

[John in Michigan]

I recently cleaned quite a bit of duct tape residue off the exterior fiberglass (gelcoat) surface of our Boler 17. WD40 worked best. Had to apply several times, each time leaving it on for a minute or so before wiping with a soft cloth.

[Krysti Peck]

Great - I wondered about that, but just wanted to be sure before attempting it. Thank you for the quick reply. Sad to put it away after just buying it, but excited to look forward to a new project in the spring. Michigan colors are amazing right now. Enjoy!

[Glenn Baglo]

Got any nail polish remover ( acetone ). It works.

[skalywag]

Here in Tennessee we refer to duct tape as "Alabama Chrome". Mineral spirits should remove residue without damaging the Gel coat.

[AC0GV]

My used Jayco had been “winterized” with tape and plastic so that it could be lived in for the winter. What a bargain, I got a great deal because the dealer did not want to clean it up. I used both Goo Gone and Goof Off and a credit card as a scraper. Both worked well and did no damage but try it first in an unseen area.

[Terry in Fowler]

50% or better rubbing alchohol works well and is fairly quick. I had to tape my door shut each time we moved when the latch gave out on a long trip and then took a month to get around to removing residue. Came off easily. No residue to clean up if you wipe it up while wet. The same site also calls for cooking oil, but then you have oil to clean up.

[Pete Hein]

I wouldn't use acetone or nail-polish remover. Both contain solvents that can damage polyester gelcoat.

I've had good experience using WD-40 on tape stickum. As someone else noted, you may have to use multiple applications. You also could soak a paper towel in WD-40, lay it on the stuff to be removed, and lay some plastic film over it to keep it wet.

I have no interest, either personal or professional, with WD-40 or its manufacturer. (Pro-forma)

[AC0GV]

Shake well b4 using.

[Terry in Fowler]

From wiki how. It works easily, it is cheap and had know effect on my finish. No doub mineral oil which is the active ingredient in WD 40 would also work.
"Dampen the cloth with isopropyl rubbing alcohol from the medical section at any drug or general store. Make sure the cloth is clean and soft to avoid damaging the surface you're treating. Then, gently rub the cloth back and forth over the area until the adhesive comes off.May 23, 2019"

[Fred762]

1. I agree w WD40

2. get a roll of 2" white Gaffer Tape.. and use it from now on..it stix well and is formulated to NOT leave a sticky residue. We had a couple of strips on our outside storage doors and other places and never had a problem w mess. Got the idea from a LOLOHO video btw.

[Krysti Peck]

Thank you everyone for all the good intel. I sincerely appreciate it. We do plan on recoating next spring, but still don't want to damage the integrity of the shell. All of your knowledge and experience is greatly appreciated!!!

[Denise T]

I used Goo Gone on my Trillium, it worked great. Just rinsed it off well with water after the tape residue was removed.

[Blue Bertha]

I've had luck getting tape goop off with baby oil or mineral oil.

[John in Santa Cruz]

WD40 is about 85% kerosene, and 15% light oil. it's the kerosene that acts as the cleaner. I've had good luck removing old tape residue with deodorized mineral spirit paint thinner. after using either WD40 or paint thinners as a cleaner, I spray lightly with simple green or another mild degreaser, wipe with a clean rag and hose off, to remove any oily residue. especially with WD40. I cleaned my brother's 20 year old mountain bike frame with rags soaked in wd40 followed by simple green, and it came out gleaming, looked like a new bike again.

[Scot M]

I have used methyl hydrate with good results on adhesive goo from Gorilla tape or old blue decal tape. Apply to shop towel and rub. Wear thicker kitchen gloves. Let the shop towels evaporate before putting in the trash.

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Scot M

... methyl hydrate....

aka Methanol or Methyl Alcohol. I had to look that up, I was afraid it was something more akin to a Ketone or something even more highly toxic.

still, I'd prefer to stick with something milder like Isopropyl alcohol, or as I said, kerosene or paint thinner.

[doctoruv]

I have found that the the orange oil based cleaners do a good job on the most delicate materials plus it smells good!

[Terry in Fowler]

Orange oil is an ingredient in duct tape remover according to msds. It's used as a solvent for many things including removing floor mastic when doing asbestos abatement.

[Larry C Hanson]

Hello,
I have found paint thinner, mineral spirits does a good
job of removing tape adhesive residue. It has not harmed the
gelcoat when I used it.

Larry H