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Nothing to do with gardening - stuck bottle top.

B3B3 Posts: 18,688
in The potting shed
Does anyone know how to get the top off an old bottle of watercolour masking fluid?
Hot water? Solvent? Something else?
The bottle is almost full and the contents look ok.
In London. Keen but lazy.
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Posts

  • pansyfacepansyface PEAK DISTRICT DerbyshirePosts: 18,626



    Apophthegm -  a big word for a small thought.
  • B3B3 Posts: 18,688
    Tell me about it! @pansyface
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Central Norfolk UKPosts: 71,856
    I'd try standing it upside down in a bowl of boiling water.

    Failing that a pair of pliers.

    Maybe both?
    “I am not lost, for I know where I am. But however, where I am may be lost.” Winnie the Pooh







  • B3B3 Posts: 18,688
    Will try the boiling water. Pliers on their own haven't worked.
    I assumed it was some form of plastic. That's why I wondered about a solvent.
    Thanks @Dovefromabove
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • pansyfacepansyface PEAK DISTRICT DerbyshirePosts: 18,626
    So far as I remember, from my painting days (which were in about the 18th century), masking fluid was a sort of rubbery material?

    Maybe put the bottle into the freezer for a bit to make the stuff in the cap more brittle, then tap it all round the top with a smallish hammer?
    Apophthegm -  a big word for a small thought.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Central Norfolk UKPosts: 71,856
    Think it's latex ... 
    “I am not lost, for I know where I am. But however, where I am may be lost.” Winnie the Pooh







  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Central Norfolk UKPosts: 71,856
    Just checked ... my bottles all say 'natural rubber latex'. 
    “I am not lost, for I know where I am. But however, where I am may be lost.” Winnie the Pooh







  • josusa47josusa47 Posts: 3,532
    If it's a screw top, try wrapping a thick rubber band round it so you can get a firmer grip.  The ones postmen drop on the pavement are just the job.  Lots of firms that sell mobility aids sell a small sheet of thin rubber you can keep in a drawer for just this purpose.  I find mine very useful.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Central Norfolk UKPosts: 71,856
    A common problem ... https://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/topic/masking-fluid-bottle-stuck/ 
    “I am not lost, for I know where I am. But however, where I am may be lost.” Winnie the Pooh







  • Desi_in_LondonDesi_in_London LondonPosts: 396
    @B3 -- don't know what kind of bottle you have , but if it's so old that the bottle top label has worn off ... only one i ever saw many moons ago had a safety cap ( glass bottle , and one of those childproof caps that require you to press down hard before unscrewing a bit like the cough mixture bottles ) -- sorry if that's stating the obvious , but I'd try that ( perhaps pre and post hot water immersion) , and before resorting to pliers?
    Kindness is always the right choice.
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