Super glue is amazing – but spill it on leather and suddenly things don’t look so hot. But with Loctite’s guide on how to get glue off leather it is easier to clean than you think.
Super glue is a saviour in many ways. Its quick-bonding quality means that we can fix and save snapped and broken items that would otherwise land in the bin. But it’s precisely that fast-drying characteristic that makes it seem problematic when spilled on, say, a pair of leather trainers or a suede couch.
Fear not though, with just a few household items and the following simple instructions, you can learn how to get super glue off leather shoes and how to get super glue off a leather couch.
No panic! You can remove a stain on leather with warm water and a sponge or alcohol, a cotton bud and a cloth
Test the following procedure on an invisible (or less visible) area of the leather and wait a few hours before proceeding to the glue stain.
- File. Use an emery board, nail file or fine sandpaper to carefully file down as much of the dried adhesive as possible. Be careful to stop once you reach the bare leather, or you will damage it. Brush or vacuum away the resultant glue dust.
- Soak. Dip a sponge into warm soapy water, squeeze it out and gently dab it on the stains.
- Wipe spot dry with a towel.
- Repeat. If any glue remains once the water has dried, repeat the process until it’s all gone.
If the application with soapy water does not work, you can try to get glue off leather with alcohol. This method is suitable for more stubborn stains but also carries some risk because it can damage the leather. So, proceed very carefully!
Be careful when cleaning so as not to damage the delicate material
- Put some rubbing alcohol on a cotton bud.
- Carefully drip the alcohol on a less visible area – for example, on the inside of a leather jacket or under the seat of the sofa. Wait at least 24 hours, then check for discolouration. If it looks fine, proceed to step 3.
- Dip the cotton bud in the rubbing alcohol again and gently dab it on the glue residue you want to remove from the leather.
- Dab the area with the terry cloth, but do not rub it.
- Dip a sponge into soapy water, wring it out, and wipe over the spot. Dry it with the towel afterwards.
- If the stain is still visible, repeat the procedure to remove the glue from the leather.
- Finally, treat the spot with leather care to maintain the surface and prevent it from cracking.