Removing stickers

[Jeff Shaw]

I use a blunt putty knife and "Lift Off".

The trouble is that vinyl stickers do not let chemicals to the glue under the sticker. For this fingernails tear the vinyl off. Then spray the Liftoff on the exposed glue . Liftoff is a gentle petroleum ether that makes short work of the goo with out affecting the paint. The putty knife just gathers the goo with out scratching the surface. Spray again and wipe clean.

The Liftoff product is extremely handy to have around the house.

 

[9mm]

I use wd40 after I get the sticker off to get the gummy stuff off. It will work great.

 

[zboss]

Stickers can be removed with a heat gun set at 300 deg. F or Hair Dryer on High.
Peel off sticker then use Alcohol or Nail polish Remover to remove glue.

above 130 degrees around a scuba tank - it can weaken the Aluminum.

 

[Tom Winters]

Ber Rabbit wins the prize for this. The razor blade worked carefully is the easiest way to do this. It takes patience, time. a few sharp blades since they get residue on them after a bit.
I use one of those $1.00 razor blade holders that are brightly colored. That is some beautifully functional engineering there. Get a box of extra blades too so you can change often.
I would NEVER use localized heat on any tank - aluminum, steel carbon-fiber - no heat period!
I also would never use WD-40 near any piece of my diving gear. It's petroleum-based, and I don't want it near my life support stuff - which is anything I use underwater.
If nail polish remover or Goo Gone do not work on the residue, nothing will. Use a lot of it and a lot of paper towels and be patient. Yes, there is acetone in the nail polish remover, but it volitalizes rapidly unlike WD-40 which leaves an evaporated oil lubricating layer after use.
I have taken off a LOT of feet of labels off tanks and have found that this is the best and safest way to do it.

 

[TX101]

Aluminum tanks should NEVER be exposed to heat. Doing so incurs the risk that the tank will be weakened and could possibly explode. Specifically, any AL tank exposed to temperatures in excess of 265F should be hydro'd before being filled, any tank exposed to temperatures in excess of 350F should be condemned. TEMPERATURE EXPOSURE

Steel tanks can better withstand the heat but there are easier ways to remove stickers - usually a simple razor blade scraper will peel the sticker off and WD40 will loosen many adhesives without damaging the finish. If that doesn't work, remember that there are worse things than a little dirt on the outside of your tank.

If you point a 300F heat gun at aluminium, it will only get warm. It's the AIR that is 300 degrees. The link you supplied talks about the alloy tank getting to temperatures in excess of 265F. To get alumimuim that hot, you would need at least a large propane torch and even then it probably wouldn't even be enough.

If you leave your cylinder in the back of a car on a very hot day, the air temp would approach 200F - and that’s over the entire surface of the cylinder, not just a concentrated part, like with a hot air gun. Aluminium melts at a relatively low temperature compared to other metals (1200F) - but it's an excellent heat sink and draws heat away from a concentrated area very quickly.

In short, I don't think using a hot air gun will damage the tank in any way.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

Like Tom said, I use Goo-Gone gel to remove old stickers, residue, rubber marks, and other general crud from my tanks. Comes in an industrial-size pump bottle. It's pretty remarkable stuff. You can find it in places like Bed,Bath&Beyond or Home Depot.

 

[Tom Winters]

If you leave your cylinder in the back of a car on a very hot day, the air temp would approach 200F - and that’s over the entire surface of the cylinder, not just a concentrated part, like with a hot air gun. Aluminium melts at a relatively low temperature compared to other metals (1200F) - but it's an excellent heat sink and draws heat away from a concentrated area very quickly.

Wow - Where do yu park your car that it gets that hot??? You'd need some new burst disks after a few hours of cooking a tank like that.
At least that heat would be spread out relatively evenly over the entire surface of the tank - the problem with localized heat for sticker removal with a lot of people is that if a little heat works ok, a lot of heat will work even better.
Now don't get me wrong, but I get the impression that I've pumped a few thousand more tanks than you have, and I always looked at every single one of them as a potential bomb waiting to blow my legs off. For 40 years, I 've seen aftermath photos and read the case histories of tank explosions. So any practice that might marginally or even infintesmally increase the chances of a tank exploding is one that I would avoid.
Overreaction on my part? Maybe. But those were someone's torsos in all those photographs.

 

[zboss]

If you point a 300F heat gun at aluminium, it will only get warm. It's the AIR that is 300 degrees. The link you supplied talks about the alloy tank getting to temperatures in excess of 265F. To get alumimuim that hot, you would need at least a large propane torch and even then it probably wouldn't even be enough.

If you leave your cylinder in the back of a car on a very hot day, the air temp would approach 200F.

I generally dislike arguing on matters like this but hey, go check out the maintenance manuals/ VIP service manuals.

 

[SDAnderson]

If you point a 300F heat gun at aluminium, it will only get warm. It's the AIR that is 300 degrees. The link you supplied talks about the alloy tank getting to temperatures in excess of 265F. To get alumimuim that hot, you would need at least a large propane torch and even then it probably wouldn't even be enough.

If you leave your cylinder in the back of a car on a very hot day, the air temp would approach 200F - and that’s over the entire surface of the cylinder, not just a concentrated part, like with a hot air gun. Aluminium melts at a relatively low temperature compared to other metals (1200F) - but it's an excellent heat sink and draws heat away from a concentrated area very quickly.

In short, I don't think using a hot air gun will damage the tank in any way.

Luxfer states:
Do not expose any aluminum cylinder to temperatures in excess of 265 degrees F (130 degrees C). (emphasis added) The standard specifically states “expose” and does not refer to metal temperature.

Catalina states:
Aluminum cylinders should not be exposed to elevated temperatures, 350oF (176oC) or greater, or the action of fire for any period of time. (emphasis added) Again, the standard explicitly states “exposed” and does not refer to the resulting temperature of the metal. The phrase "action of fire" means exposed to any direct heat source, as opposed to indirect heating such as a closed car on a sunny day.

Gavins' point about BS meters (quoted in your signature line) may be valid, but that doesn't automatically lend credibility to an opinion just because it's contrary. Especially when those expressing those opinions are specialists in being contrary. Please demonstrate that you have some basis for your opinion other than your finely tuned BS detector and that you aren't endangering others.

I'm certainly no authority in metalurgy and am not qualified to have an opinion of my own - which is why I've deferred to the manufacturers (and, for that matter, the CGA and PSI) in this matter. In the interest of furthering the discussion, I would like to ask that you provide us with some information about your background and whether or not you are qualified to an opinion of your own. I'm especially interested in information from you about the effect of transient heat exposure on the strength of wrought aluminum alloys, particularly the alloys used in scuba tanks - the crux of your argument.

A word to other readers: TX101 is right about this much - just because you read it on ScubaBoard doesn't make it true. You should always consider whether or not the advice you read comes from a credible source or is just smoke and might be dangerous.

 

[StSomewhere]

My wife worked in retail management for years, her crews always used one of the Goof Off variants. Instead of a razor, they had what I can only describe as a plastic fingernail on a handle, just a beveled edge, rounded like your thumbnail, with a something you could easily grip. I have no idea where you'd buy such a thing, but I do remember how effective it was at removing adhesive leftovers without scratching paint like a razor might.