Why Bother?
Your hot glue gun is a crafter’s best friend. It’s incredibly versatile, easy to use, and durable. Sometimes, in our rush to do our projects, we tend to grab our glue gun and just get right to melting some glue sticks until we’re done and leave it alone to cool, but we forget that our glue gun needs some taking care of too!
If you’re not careful, your glue gun won’t last very long and you’ll have to spend money buying a new one. It’s actually cheaper to maintain it, and it’s easy to do. Today, we’ll show you the different ways on how to do just that.
What You May Need
There are several different methods of cleaning and caring for your glue gun, and you may want to try all of them out to see which one cleans the best for each situation. You’ll mostly be working with some aluminum foil, acetone, dryer sheets, or small thin towels.
Also, you’re going to need some patience, as adhesives can be notoriously pesky to clean off. But with the right tools, you should be able to rid your glue gun of any filth and errant dried glue with minimal difficulty.
1) Cleaning with Aluminum Foil
Form an aluminum foil ball. Aluminum foil is great for scrubbing hot glue off of the tip of your glue gun. It can also remove some glue on the sides. Make sure to warm up your glue gun so that the glue is easier to remove. Next, place a small sheet of aluminum foil on the sides of your glue gun and heat it using a heat gun. Use your fingers (while wearing gloves!) to rub the foil onto the sides. The hot aluminum and the glue should adhere and make it easier for you to wipe them off the surface of your glue gun.
2) Cleaning with a Dryer Sheet
This one is easy enough and is best done immediately after using the glue gun. Make sure to protect your fingers while doing this as the tip with still be hot. Just rub any excess glue off of the tip of the gun and it should come off very easily.
3) Using Acetone
If you’ve ever accidentally doused something with superglue, you know that acetone (or nail polish remover) is an effective way of removing adhesives. For your glue gun, put some acetone on a paper towel and apply it onto your glue gun, rubbing any surfaces where the glue has settled. This is very handy for getting into those nooks and crannies that are pretty tough to clean normally.
4) Disinfecting Your Glue Gun
You never know what working with different objects can do to the sanitary well-being of your glue gun. Being a hot tool doesn’t automatically mean it kills off any germs on its surface. That’s why it’s a good idea to disinfect your glue gun every once in a while. Just make sure to use a good, non-flammable disinfectant and use a soft towel to avoid too much abrasion. Also, make sure that your glue gun is not plugged in while disinfecting, and take note of any parts you may have to remove while doing so.
Cleaning your Glue Gun will save you a lot of trouble in the future by making sure you always have a tool that’s in tip-top shape, ready to perform at maximum efficiency due to being well-cared for. Don’t skip out on regular glue gun maintenance and it won’t skip out on doing its best for you.
Your Glue Gun is only as good as how you treat it. If you want one that’s already pretty good, to begin with, check out the glue guns we have available at Chandler Tool!
