Random sticky residues are part of my every day life as a toddler mom. This homemade adhesive remover (aka DIY goo gone) is non-toxic, food safe, and a total lifesaver! Learn how to make this easy foo remover using ingredients you probably already have at home.
Why? Because limiting my family’s exposure to potentially toxic ingredients is incredibly important to me. Plus making your own goo remover is actually super quick and easy!
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Is goo gone toxic?
People are quick to assume that commercially-available items like cleaning products are completely safe. Otherwise they couldn’t be sold, right?
Wouldn’t that be nice!
In contrast, the ingredients in this homemade goo remover are completely food safe so you can use it on your counters, bottles, and jars without worrying about your health!
How to make your own adhesive remover
- Getting labels off jars & cans so you can repurpose them.
- Remove wine bottle labels so you can cut them for craft projects (learn the BEST way to cut glass bottles!)
- Getting sticker residue off your floors and furniture. Because kids.
Ingredients needed for homemade “goo gone”
- Oil
- I used coconut oil, but but you can use any oil. Coconut oil is convenient, though, because it doesn't drip.
- Baking soda
- Citrus essential oil
- A glass jar for storage
- If you use essential oils, an amber glass jar protects them from degradation.
How to make your own adhesive remover
This recipe is for adhesive remover for nonporous, non-plastic surfaces. The oil may stain pours surfaces and essential oils can dissolve plastic!
Place 1 part oil and 1 part baking soda in a glass bowl. Add a few drops of essential oil, if you're using it. Stir until it's combined!
- Because I have smaller 2 ounce amber glass jars, I mix two tablespoons of coconut oil and two tablespoons of baking soda. You can make as much or as little as you'd like.
- In the video, you'll notice that my coconut oil was pretty runny. The calendar may say it's fall (at the time of writing), but it's still pretty hot in South Carolina! Heating the coconut oil ahead of time isn't necessary, but you can melt it slightly if you'd prefer.
Transfer the mixture to an airtight jar for storage, if you're not using it immediately.
For extra scrubbing power, use a 1:2 ratio of oil to baking soda.
If you need to clean a plastic container, use less baking soda and omit the citrus essential oil.
If you need to get gum or other sticky residues off wood or carpet, just use coconut oil! The oil may leave a stain on carpet, but I'd rather have a stain than crusty gum on my floor.
How to use homemade goo off
If you're removing a label, peel off as much of the label as possible.
Coat the sticky residue or entire label with your coconut oil mixture. Allow it to soak for 10-60 minutes so the oil can penetrate the gunk. The longer you let it sit, the easier it will be to remove the label!
Use a lightly moistened kitchen cloth to scrub the sticky area. Wash your jar or surface with warm, soapy water.
I don't have any photos of using these adhesive remover because I'd just removed all my labels when I realized I should share this recipe! I'll update in the future with pictures.
Homemade Adhesive Remover
This homemade adhesive remover (aka "goo gone") is easy to make and safe to use!
Materials
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons baking soda
- 2-3 drops citrus essential oil (optional)
Tools
- Glass bowl
- Metal measuring spoon
- Metal spoon for stirring
- Glass jar with lid, for storage
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a small glass bowl.
- Stir to combine.
- Use immediately or transfer to a glass jar for storage!
Make sure to Pin this homemade adhesive remover recipe now so you don't lose track of it!
More non-toxic, homemade cleaner recipes
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Mold spray with essential oils
Vladka
Handy tip. It always drives me crazy to remove the labels from jars and bottles that I want to keep. I use nail polish remover but this looks like the much better alternative. Can I use citric acid instead of citrus essential oil?
Natasha
I haven’t tried citric acid in this, but since the least toxic paint strippers are citric acid-based it would probably work!
Kaylee
Oooh! I'm going to have to remember this tip! We try to reuse every glass bottle that we can so I definitely need to keep this on hand! Getting those labels off is such a pain sometimes! Why do they have to make everything so sticky?! Thanks for the tip!