Removing Dried Adhesive Residue

Q: I have a question about removing dried adhesive residue that the installer left on the floor. It’s not coming off and I don’t want to damage it.

A: Teragren definitely recommends removal of any adhesive residue, as stated in our installation guidelines for all products Teragren sells. If allowed to dry, or is not removed immediately after installation; adhesive removal is difficult to say the least.

Most adhesive manufacturers now have adhesive reside wipes to make the job somewhat simpler. But, even those are intended for use immediately following installation. They may help post installation if the adhesive has already cured. But, they won’t wipe it off. It will still require some elbow grease and patience to remove it properly.

To lessen the effort, we’ve been advising folks with this issue, to add a “magic eraser” to their efforts. It will assist without doing harm to the floor. These are micro-abrasion sponges. You will want to use them sparingly and not aggressively. I’ve done some testing and if I aggressively and intentionally rubbed the eraser in one spot long enough, I could create an area with a difference in gloss level. It didn’t look scratched. More like a smear from standing height.

The best part of the testing. It worked!

​~ Teragren Tech