Hot Glue Issues

1815 Views 7 Replies 7 Participants Last post by Blarghity, Oct 3, 2014

stormygirl84

Discussion Starter · Oct 1, 2014

For those of you who use hot glue a lot - do you have issues with its permanency?

Maybe it's just because of where I live (SE Virginia, hot and humid 8 months of the year...), but the few times I've attempted to use my glue gun, within days whatever I've glued together has... Well, come unglued. It just pops right off.

It did it to a wreath I'd fixed and then put up on my kitchen door, and I thought maybe it was because it caught a lot of direct morning sunlight and just got too hot... But a few other projects I had worked on got no sunlight and they still popped off.

Is there a trick to this? Am I using a crappy glue? Or is hot glue just not a good adhesive to use?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

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Hilda

· #2 · Oct 1, 2014

I am no expert in adhesive issues... but I have found that hot glue works best for me with tacking fabrics or items like twigs, twine, little foam items, etc. Even then, you can pull it back apart. In the past, I had repairs done to many of my blowmolds using hot glue and all of them are popping apart. The hot glue will not hold plastic together, especially in cold weather. So I only use hot glue for the 'lightweight' type of crafts now.

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ooojen

· #3 · Oct 1, 2014

I'm not an expert, either, but I like a good silicone sealant for anything that's going to take some expansion and contraction from the weather. Of course it doesn't set quickly, so sometimes taping or clamping are in order to hold pieces together while it sets.

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Terra

· #4 · Oct 1, 2014

Perhaps the gun isn't hot enough? I've found better adhesion when I let the gun get really good and warmed up.

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RCIAG

· #5 · Oct 1, 2014

Are you using a high temp glue gun or a low temp? Not sure but that may make a difference.

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Oak Lane Cemetery

· #6 · Oct 2, 2014

There are different types of sticks. Some are more adhesive than others. Hot glue works best on porous surfaces. I've had situations there I had drill small holes into plastic I was gluing with it in order to get the glue to anchor properly.

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stormygirl84

Discussion Starter · #7 · Oct 2, 2014

RCIAG said:
Are you using a high temp glue gun or a low temp? Not sure but that may make a difference.

Um... I'm not sure. It's a cheap little thing I got at Michael's for about $3. No settings, just plug it in and it heats up.

Good to know that it doesn't work well on plastic... The wreath I tried using it on is grapevine, and what I was trying to glue onto it was a small, flat wooden raven. Not terribly heavy, but again, it did catch a lot of hot morning sunshine.

Hmm. Well, I guess I'll just keep trying. If not, I may just have to brave the super glue once more. (Please don't get in my hair again, please don't get in my hair again...)

Thanks again, guys!

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Blarghity

· #8 · Oct 3, 2014

stormygirl84 said:
Um... I'm not sure. It's a cheap little thing I got at Michael's for about $3. No settings, just plug it in and it heats up.

Good to know that it doesn't work well on plastic... The wreath I tried using it on is grapevine, and what I was trying to glue onto it was a small, flat wooden raven. Not terribly heavy, but again, it did catch a lot of hot morning sunshine.

Hmm. Well, I guess I'll just keep trying. If not, I may just have to brave the super glue once more. (Please don't get in my hair again, please don't get in my hair again...)

Thanks again, guys!

Ah. With cheap glue guns, it helps to be patient and wait until it gets hot enough for the glue to drip from the nozzle of its own accord. Also, that $3 glue gun is identical to the $1 glue guns at the dollar stores, so when it finally breaks, you'll know how to save a few extra bucks.

Also, hot glue is pretty useless on glass, plastics and metals, unless you have some sort of anchoring contouring. For example, when gluing a wire to a tube, instead of applying a drop of hot glue to the tube and sticking the wire in the glue, you would instead continue the glue around the tube to make a ring.

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