Keep An Opened Tube Of Caulk From Drying Out
Apply a generous amount of hot glue to the opening of the caulk tube. Keep adding layers to create a plug, which you can easily remove the next time you need the caulk.
Attach A Gift Bow That Won’t Stick Anymore
We’ve all done it; we’ve all tried to stick a recycled gift bow onto a gift by doubling over tape, and then watched as the bow keeps falling off. Drop a small dot of glue onto the wrapped present, give it a second to cool a little, then press your gift bow into position.
Cabinet Door And Drawer Bumpers
A quick fix for cabinet doors and drawers that slam shut is to put a dab of hot glue on the top inside of the offending door/drawer, and the sound of slamming shut is gone.
Joining Polystyrene Shoe Moulding And Crown Moulding
If you’ve worked with polystyrene moulding, you already know how frustrating it is to join crown molding angles and shoe moulding returns. Shoe moulding returns are especially frustrating because they are so small and impossible to nail. Join them with hot glue. The raw ends of the moulding will melt with the glue, permanently bonding them together.
Screws That Keep Coming Loose
If you have a metal screw that keeps popping out of wood (like a cabinet door), that means the screw hole is stripped or has widened during use. Fill the hole with hot glue, quickly replace the screw, and allow the glue to harden.
Make A Mould
This worked perfectly for replacing a section of intricate trim that was missing from an antique picture frame as well as repairing a small section of damaged decorative roping at the bottom of a chair. Make a mould from a section of undamaged trim. First, coat the section of trim you will be moulding with dish detergent. Next, apply several thin layers of hot glue, allowing each layer to cool slightly before applying the next. When the glue is no longer hot, but still warm, press the glue into the trim with your fingers. Allow to harden before removing.
Keep Rugs In Their Place
Does your doormat or runner refuse to remain in its place? Flip it over and add 8-12 large dots of hot glue near the edges. For thinner rugs that tend to bunch up, add an additional 8-12 dots of hot glue around the center.
Melting Holes In Plastic
The heated metal tip of a glue gun works great to “drill’ holes into some plastics. Do this outside to avoid any fumes that might occur while the plastic is melting. Wear gloves to protect your hands from any dripping melted plastic. Use your glue gun to add drainage holes to plastic planters, plastic soda bottle planters, adding ventilation holes to mini plastic greenhouses, etc.
Wobbly Table?
On a non-porous surface (marble, steel tray, ceramic), press out hot glue in the form of a circle roughly the size of a quarter. Once it’s hardened, slide the glue disc under the offending table leg. If you need more height, make another glue disc and once it’s cooled join the discs together (with hot glue, of course).
Make Glue Sticks Longer
If you use your glue gun a lot, reloading it with glue sticks can quickly get annoying. Glue the ends of several sticks together and you can glue on uninterrupted.
Repair A Torn Stylus
If the rubber tip of your favorite stylus has ripped, partially fill the inside opening at the tearwith hot glue. As it cools, mold the tip into the proper shape making sure that there it is smooth with no pointy edges.
Find Keyboard Home Row Keys By Touch
Place a small dot of hot glue on your F and J keys and let cool. Now you’ll be able to find your home row position without ever looking down.
Close The Top Of A Gift Bag Without Ugly Tape
When you need to ensure the contents of a gift bag aren’t seen, or don’t fall out, put a small dab of hot glue at the top center of the bag in between the handles. Press and hold together until it hardens. The bonus is that the bag won’t tear when opened.
Repairing Frayed Shoelaces
When the plastic sheath on the ends of shoelaces breaks apart, it makes getting laces through the shoes eyelets impossible. To Fix this, trim the frayed ends of the laces evenly. Next, spread the end fibers apart and flat. Apply a thin layer of hot glue to the fibers. While usinga towel or pot holder to protect your fingers, pressthe glued shoelace fibers tightlytogether until it has the narrow profile of the original sheath.
Repair A Small Pulled Loop Or Snag In Berber Carpet
Cover the undamaged sections of carpet near the snag with masking tape. Apply a thin layer of hot glue directly onto the exposed carpet backing. Using a dull knife or the tips of scissors, press the snag into the blue, making sure the fibers are level with the rest of the carpet fibers. Hold in place with the knife until the glue is completely cooled.
