Tip of the Week

How to Remove Dried Glue Squeeze-out

Even though removing dried glue squeeze-out is a common task, it’s no picnic. But, as you can see in the photos above, a chisel is the perfect tool for the task.

When glue has dried in a corner, like the drawer you see above left, try a bevel-down grip to “pop” the glue out. The bevel acts as a “safety” to keep the cutting edge from gouging the workpiece.

Squeeze-out on edge joints calls for a different approach. Here, you want to hold the chisel nearly vertical and pull it along the glue line (inset photo). This scraping action quickly shears off dried glue.

One more thing: To avoid having to spend a lot of time resharpening my best chisels, I bought an extra, inexpensive chisel just for this job.

Remember, glue is easier to clean while it is still wet and also before it dries hard.  In areas where you can’t wipe the glue because of clamp placement, wait 15 to 20 minutes remove the clamps and scrape the glue while it is still semi-soft, then replace the clamps.  This prevents damage caused when removing dry hard glue.