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Using WD-40 to remove duct tape residue from berber carpet?

 
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Mike Harrison
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Joined: 03 Nov 2007
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Location: Equidistant from New York City and Philadelphia, along the NJ Shore

PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2018 10:04 am    Post subject: Using WD-40 to remove duct tape residue from berber carpet? Reply with quote

There comes a time you have to accept the fact that there is a great difference between duct tape and true gaffer's tape. No doubt, duct tape is sticky, but it is meant to seal air leaks in HVAC duct work and stay where it's applied. Gaffer's tape, on the other hand, is what's used by media professionals to, for example, secure cables to the floor to prevent tripping, etc., and is meant to be removed cleanly after having served its purpose. Their respective adhesives are very different.

Despite knowing that, but thinking I could get away with using it temporarily, until I got some gaffer's tape, I idiotically used duct tape to secure my office chair mat to the berber carpet. Well, the duct tape itself came up easily enough, but it left a lot of adhesive behind.

The company that makes WD-40 proudly says their product will easily remove tape residue, but they don't explain how to remove the residue from a carpet (removing it from a smooth surface is a piece of cake). I know the stuff will loosen the adhesive from the carpet fibers, but actually removing the gunk is the challenge. Has anyone used WD-40 this way?
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Lee Gordon
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2018 10:51 am    Post subject: Re: Using WD-40 to remove duct tape residue from berber carp Reply with quote

Mike Harrison wrote:
duct tape is sticky, but it is meant to seal air leaks in HVAC duct work and stay where it's applied.


If you're referring to the silver-grey cloth tape, "duct tape" is a bit of a misnomer. It is a multi-purpose tape that's good for just about everything -- except sealing HVAC ductwork. The heat makes it brittle. For sealing ducts, you need to use the foil tape that is sold specifically for that purpose.

The stuff we commonly call duct tape, is properly called "duck tape" because it repels water in a similar way that liquid rolls off a duck's back. Its original purpose was waterproofing ammunition boxes.

WD-40 was also originally developed as a waterproofing product. the "WD" stands for "water displacement." It was created to protect the fuel tanks of Atlas missiles, before all its other uses were discovered.

WD-40 should work on tape residue, but I'd test in some inconspicuous place to make sure it doesn't stain your carpet in the process.

There is another product that you might try that also turned out to have far more uses than it's originally intended purpose: Avon Skin So Soft lotion. It does everything from repelling insects, to cleaning brass, to removing tape residue.

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Jen Gosnell
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Joined: 14 Jan 2010
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2018 10:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey, Mike - I'm not sure about the WD-40. I feel like it could cause staining either now or in the future. No proof of that but it's just a hunch.

You might want to give Folex a try. It's my favorite stain-removing product for carpets, upholstery, etc. The company says that it can remove road tar and beach tar, so I'm thinking it might do well on other sticky substances too. Good luck.
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Bish
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Joined: 22 Nov 2009
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Location: Lost in the cultural wasteland of Long Island

PostPosted: Sun Mar 04, 2018 6:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I agree wholeheartedly with the fact that people need to know the difference between the tapes. Having spent many years taping cables to stage floors, I know there is nothing in this world that compares to real gaffer tape. Anything else is a pale pastiche of the real thing. Years ago "duct tape" was close... but over the years there has been a horrible reduction in quality and the cheap stuff available in places like Home Depot (whether the call it duct of duck tape) only leads to frustration... and is not fit for purpose... especially (as Lee said) on HVAC ducts. Over the years, I've had about a full roll sucked into my system where it has failed to hold the main return duct to the register.

I'd not use WD-40... although there is a certain appeal to solving a duct tape problem with it, there's going to be an oil problem residue. Personally, I'd try isopropyl alcohol first, and then some of the proprietary solutions.
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