How To Remove Protective Film Off Cast Acrylic Hatches

[YPSILANTI]

I recently purchased Cast Acrylic and manufactured new hatches for my Lewmar frames. I left the factory fitted plastic protective film on the outside after fitting to protect the acrylic surface during my extensive renovation of 14 months. The film has been totally destroyed by the Suns UV rays. When I try to remove the film, it splinters and flakes off in minute pieces and I cant remove it . Does anyone have any ideas how I can remove the film without an abrasive chemical that will destroy the cast acrylic or is there a product that wont destroy it? Any suggestions? Thank you.

[Suijin]

I would give Tony at Hatchmasters a call and ask him. I'm sure he gets this question all the time since they refurbish hundreds of hatches per year. He's a really nice guy and super knowledgeable.

[Matt Johnson]

Thinking it was keeping the sun and dust off acrylic, we kept the protective film on our ports too long too. The heat build-up from the paper surface ended-up crazing the 1/2" acrylic within 5 months. Let us know what you find-out.... I still have a bit more to remove.

Matt

[rwidman]

You could try calling the manufacturer for advice.

[bsurvey]

warm it up with a hair dryer and try peeling it with a credit card or plastic scraper

[YPSILANTI]

Herewith a reply from Tony of Hatchmasters:
Mike, this is a tough spot.

I would try gently warming the existing or remaining shards of polyethylene with a heat gun on low power. they may peel.

The poly unfortunately is not UV stable and virtually bakes onto the acrylic. Any chemical that will dissolve the masking will also destroy the acrylic beneath. let me know how you make out. best of luck... Tony.

Thanks so much for the comments and suggestions. All very helpful in finding a solution. Ill try Tonys suggestion and will advise how we progress. Rgds
Mike

[jholder51]

What ever you do, DO NOT use any type of scraper or you will damage your acrylic. The property that makes the acrylic break resistant is the same property that makes the surface easy to scratch.

[Sailorbob8599]

Don't know if this might be of help: - For removing grease, Gum, Stickers, Crayon, Ruban etc. We use a product called "Goo Gone". It's manufactured by The Homax Group. Inc. of Bellingham WA. 98227 Tel. 800-729-9029 or, you can look up their website http://www.GooGone.com]Goo Gone.com[/B] ... we have used this product for many years on many things. It is Citrus based and works well on all kinds of adhesive labels etc. Comes in a 236ml plastic bottle.
I have never used it for the problem you are dealing with, but it just might be worth a try. you could always try it on a small area, I doubt it will harm the acrylic but I don't 'know' that for certain.

[Sailorbob8599]

I've edited the above post previously to correct the website for GooGone but I see it has automatically added the brackets with//B at the end of the website after the word COM just delete that.

[bb1710]

I had some for a number of years and had the same problem. I put a good glass cleaner on them and then covered it with a piece of clear plastic in the sun for about 30 minutes. Took a water and washed them an all came off. Hope that it works for you but it did not take to long and was easy to do.Good luck

[buzzstar]

YPSILANTI, I , along with any others, look forward to seeing the results ((in words, not photos) which we hope are 100% successful. Thanks.

[kryg]

I have the same problem, but in my case, I outsmarted myself, as I left the protective film on my flexible solar panels and now I have the same baked on film issues.

I plan to try the glass cleaner idea, I will let you know how it goes.

Many Thanks
Kryg, Skoiern IV

Originally Posted by bb1710

I had some for a number of years and had the same problem. I put a good glass cleaner on them and then covered it with a piece of clear plastic in the sun for about 30 minutes. Took a water and washed them an all came off. Hope that it works for you but it did not take to long and was easy to do.Good luck

[Matt Johnson]

Don't use glass cleaner. The ammonia in almost all "windex" type produces destroys the acrylic.

Matt

[Sailorbob8599]

Originally Posted by bb1710

I had some for a number of years and had the same problem. I put a good glass cleaner on them and then covered it with a piece of clear plastic in the sun for about 30 minutes. Took a water and washed them an all came off. Hope that it works for you but it did not take to long and was easy to do.Good luck

Hi BB1710, . . . What made you use this method and why did you use "glass cleaner"; Is it something you read about, or did you come up with this idea yourself? Also, did you try water first, or any other commercial liquid product? What was the purpose of covering it with clear plastic?

I'm very curious to know how you arrived at the process you describe, and especially because you say it was successful . . . for you.

What exactly did you mean when you wrote: - "Took a water and washed them an all came off." . . . Does this mean you took a water hose to it, or did you just use a pail of water and wash it by hand? . . . Please explain in a little more detail

[jholder51]

Removing Masking: If there is difficulty in removing the masking, use aliphatic naptha, kerosene, or distilled alcohol to moisten the adhesive. Do not use other chemicals or sharp objects to remove the masking.

The above instructions are per the manufacturers of acrylic sheets. DO NOT use window cleaners that contain ammonia or alcohol. While it may not do anything to the acrylic at the time that you clean it, it can cause hazing or cracking after a period of time.