- Q.I need to remove old
Formica from wooden sills in a house we’re
restoring. I’ve had limited success using heat
guns for this task. Any recommendations?
A.Bruce Wooster
responds: I’ve had good luck using
acetone to remove glued-on laminates. I fill a
spray bottle (use glass — a plastic bottle
will melt) with acetone and spray a mist along one
edge of the laminate. After the acetone has soaked
in for about a minute, I start to work the laminate
loose with a putty knife. I continue to spray
acetone into the widening gap, repeating the
process until the entire piece comes off.
Using this method, a helper and I have removed
30 square feet of laminate from a kitchen
countertop in about 40 minutes.
Bruce A. Wooster owns and
operates William R. Wooster & Sons in
Crisfield, Md.