# Removing Vinyl Tile Adhesive from Linoleum



## HomeDepot23 (Jun 15, 2008)

Is it definitely Linoleum? Not Sheet Vinyl flooring?

If it is sheet vinyl, I don't see why mineral spirits won't work. Check a small area to make sure the finish isn't removed.

If it doesn't hurt the finish, apply the spirits to a cloth. Never apply directly to the floor and gently wipe. Go over the area you just wiped and repat until it is clean.

This won't be quick, make sure you keep the place ventilated, have pleanty of rests in fresh air yourself and drink plenty of fluids.

If it is linoleum, I'm not sure what will work.


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## The Raven (Jul 19, 2008)

*Used Corn Oil to Remove Vinyl Adhesive!*

Thank you for your reply, HomeDepot. It is definitely linoleum, tile to be exact. In Toronto, many of the apartment buildings built in the 1960s and 1970s have linoleum tiles in the entry way and kitchens and parquet floors in the living areas and bedrooms. 

Anyway, I came up with a way of removing the adhesive that was non toxic and quick. The adhesive was sticky, and I remember that I sometimes use cooking oil to remove sticky labels or I will use hot water. I tried putting boiling water on the vinyl adhesive (the tiles over the linoleum were stick on tiles by Armstrong) and it did not work. So, I decided to use oil. I have a large container of corn oil. I spread it on a couple of tiles and let it sit for 40 minutes. I then wiped it off with a dry towel. All the adhesive was gone! I then tried it on the entire floor, waited 40 minutes and wiped with the towel. No adhesive was left. Of course, I had to clean up the oil, so I used dish washing liquid and water. I put the dish washing liquid on the floor first then followed with water. I used a scouring pad, although this may not be the best way to treat linoleum. This was messy, but it worked very, very well - and no toxins.

There is ground in dirt in the linoleum, so now I have a lot of cleaning to do. But at least there is no longer any sticky adhesive. 

I would like to know if anyone else has tried using oil. By the way, be careful of slipping while doing this. I almost fell a couple of times!


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## HomeDepot23 (Jun 15, 2008)

Wow. Great job. Hope it works out for you.

I had to ask vinyl or lino because we have so many people ask for lino when they really want vinyl.


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