How to Remove Wood Floor Adhesives Safely

Wood flooring is most commonly installed by bonding the floorboards to a foundation. This requires a highly effective adhesive that can be water, solvent or urethane based. When the wooden floors need to be removed for replacement, the adhesive is exposed and should be properly removed. It can seem like a difficult task at first glance, but a liquid adhesive solvent available in home improvement stores will be able to soften the residue for simple removal.

Things You'll Need

• Adhesive solvent
• Hot water
• Bucket
• Scraper
• Broom

Instructions

1. Prepare a ventilated workspace before using the solvent. Opening a window if the floor is indoors will help you avoid inhaling hazardous fumes.

2. Pour hot water over the residue using a 1-2 gallon bucket. Allow it to soak for at least 10 minutes to soften the wood floor adhesive for removal.

3. Read the directions carefully on the product label for properly applying the solvent. Then wait the instructed time period for the adhesive to loosen.

4. Lift the adhesive with the scraper using moderate pressure. Add more of the solvent if certain areas cannot be removed as easily.

5. Sweep the floor of any loose glue. Clean the foundation with a mild detergent for thorough removal.

References

• Removing Flooring Adhesive
• Adhesive Removers
• Removing Flooring Glue