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Vinyl removal help, Wallpaper Steamer or something else?
We’re currently working through a fleet of vans that are going through a rebrand, all’s good with the exception of the rear panels on 11 vans. We’re quite adapt at getting it off, however the rear panels are flood coated with what I suspect is a cast vinyl.
Vinyl removing fluid works slowly, but only attacks the top layer, with text laid over the top it’s slow going.
Heat gun we can only remove small sections that are warmed before it shatters.
Caramel wheels work on the small text, but eats them up.
Whilst we have priced it accordingly, we have to strip 18 vehicles by the end of the month, the easier the better.
The mechanic/body shop guy over the way assures me a kettle of hit water or wall paper steamer will do the job.
I know it can be done, any tips on doing it this way?
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19 Replies
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Just thinking out loud here but do you think a couple of halogen heater would do your job? We do graphics for a local garage, they essentially write a book on the side of the vehicles which I get the pleasure of removing. Recently I’ve started heating a section with a heat gun and using another on a tripod to heat the next section to be picked. Works great and considering getting a couple of those heater to see if they’d do to heat a wider area then the heat gun?
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My old man suggested an infra red heater, like what bodyshops use… nothing to do with him painting his car at mo too 😆
I think it’s a case of getting heat into the panel, so it holds the heat longer.
Will give it a go if the steamers fail tomorrow :thumbsup:
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Although I’ve not tried the steamer myself, we had an artic trailer which had a full wrap in just polymeric vinyl with no laminate. I thought this would be an absolute nightmare and got the cleaning company next door onto it! They used steamers and removed it all so quickly.
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Will see what happens tomorrow. Fingers crossed I don’t spend as long on the back panel as I did on the two sides 😆
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wall paper steamer is my weapon of choice, works very well and you can put it down with out burning something and less chance of damaging the paint.
also i can say that they glow a nice bright orange just before they go bang through running out of water -
quote Chris Wool:wall paper steamer is my weapon of choice, works very well and you can put it down with out burning something and less chance of damaging the paint.
also i can say that they glow a nice bright orange just before they go bang through running out of water[emoji23] [emoji23] [emoji23]
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quote Chris Wool:also i can say that they glow a nice bright orange just before they go bang through running out of water
😆 😆 😆 😆 I’ll be sure to remember that :yikes:
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You really should have got a vehicle to do a test removal before quoting.
if the vinyl is very difficult to remove, price the job per hour, for the removal because you can spend more time stripping than you do the graphics installation.regardless, I would still end up using the heat gun. or a heat gun assisted by the infrared heater.
it is all about "keeping the panel warm, while you strip it and the area just ahead of you" as you strip it. not so much about the source of getting the heat there, though there are various methods. -
The rest of the vehicle’s are stripped really easily, just the panel infill on the back that’s being troublesome.
We’ve priced accordingly, but I don’t think my patience, or my fingers can handle 10 more vans 😆
Stripped a little cherry picker this morning and it worked a treat, just picked up the next two, so will attack the rear panel with the steamer and see what happens :thumbsup:
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Steamer all the way :thumbsup:
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It worked like a charm :thumbsup:
The time saved, has been spent removing the vinyl from the roof they forgot to mention :rollseyes:
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I’ve not tried the steamer method, wish I’d had it on a couple of toyota warranty roof wraps of late… 3hrs removal and 60 mins to fit new!
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Hire a hot water pressure washer, it really gets thge panels hot!!!!
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quote David Stevenson:Just thinking out loud here but do you think a couple of halogen heater would do your job? We do graphics for a local garage, they essentially write a book on the side of the vehicles which I get the pleasure of removing. Recently I’ve started heating a section with a heat gun and using another on a tripod to heat the next section to be picked. Works great and considering getting a couple of those heater to see if they’d do to heat a wider area then the heat gun?I use a halogen heater exactly like this and it works really well.
But removing vinyl is best done in bright sunshine (where available!) with the side of the car you are working on facing the sun. -
quote Simon Worrall:quote David Stevenson:Just thinking out loud here but do you think a couple of halogen heater would do your job? We do graphics for a local garage, they essentially write a book on the side of the vehicles which I get the pleasure of removing. Recently I’ve started heating a section with a heat gun and using another on a tripod to heat the next section to be picked. Works great and considering getting a couple of those heater to see if they’d do to heat a wider area then the heat gun?
I use a halogen heater exactly like this and it works really well.
But removing vinyl is best done in bright sunshine (where available!) with the side of the car you are working on facing the sun.I live in Northern Ireland. What’s the sun?
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Steamer works brilliantly for the larger parts, caramel wheel for the small text.
Wazz over with some Tar & Glue, for the little residue thats left, followed by some rather nasty, but highly effective traffic film remover, jet wash it off, and you’d never know it had been signed up.
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Sounds good David,
Another tip.. as long as the customers isn’t a painters van full of thinners, or some such combustible, put a heater in the back of the van and leave it half an hour, longer if it’s panelled out, nice and toasty for bot removal and fitting!
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We got these nailed to T now.
Whilst the steamers warm up, caramel wheel over the small text, then straight on with the steamers to get the bulk done.
Looking about 90mins from start to rinsing them down :thumbsup:
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Hugh’s method with a heater inside the van is something that I use as well as the wallpaper stripper, the advantage of the heater in the van method is that it gives you 2 free hands to work without the need to keep putting something down or to one side if you need both hands 😆 😆
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