Large Scale Central

Gorilla Glue......what experiences have you had, if any, with it

General Discussion
#1

I’ve been experimenting with Gorilla Glue, and it seems to be fine for a few of the tasks I’ve subjected it to. For example; I am using it, as a test, to glue down a length of 332 rail, on a piece of plywood.
I’m interested in anyone’s long term experiences. Pro and cons. I’m not planning on using it where it would be subjected to weather, other than hot and cold temperatures.

I've heard speculative, good and bad reports, but no facts.

We are over the middle of February, and only need to deal with March, before SPRING appears…there is hope of recovery from Cabin Fever…I think…!!!

#2

Fred,

The biggest problem I have found with Gorilla Glue is that it does not store well. Once you open the container it has limited shelf life. I’ve used it to glue wood togther and great seams if you clamp it tight. It wants to expand and push the pieces being adhered around.

Yes, 6 weeks and it all starts again.

#3

I’ve used it once to bond wood. I clamped it tight and it worked great. Many people caution to beware of it’s expansion properties.

I’ve heard it said that for bonding wood to concrete that the Gorilla Glue bond is stronger than the materials - trying to break the bond will split the wood or pull up concrete.

It’s been recommended to me for repairing laminate on desks and cabinets.

Jon

#4

I used it a couple years ago on a test-build of a trestle. Clamped and glued up ok, and it looked like it was fine. The bond were nice and strong. This past summer, however, the glue had gone brittle and I could easily pull apart the wood bonds.

#5

The roof on my box cab pictured below is glued on with Gorilla Glue. That is a bond of sheet steel to wood. It does expand but in my case a little expansion in the form of ooz out the sides doesn’t hurt anything. I like it for big projects but am a little wary about it with smaller…mostly because of the expansion.

#6

I have had it do the same thing as Bob is talking about.

#7

But at least it has short shelf life so you’re not tempted to use it again.

#8

I have used it for a few outdoor structures (arbors and such) for clients. I’m not a fan. It works well for larger joints but it expands for quite awhile and makes a mess (and its impossible to clean off anything!). Also, its short shelf life once open makes it expensive. I do use it if I have a particular need where those expanding properties are a plus but I only buy the small (3 oz.?) bottles of it and toss the rest once done. I use Titebond II or III for most outdoor wood work.

-Brian

#9
Bob McCown said:
I used it a couple years ago on a test-build of a trestle. Clamped and glued up ok, and it looked like it was fine. The bond were nice and strong. This past summer, however, the glue had gone brittle and I could easily pull apart the wood bonds.
Bob,

Did you wet the wood before gluing? That is recommended for proper capillary action into the wood fiber. That is also what caused me to question its use for outside work. Many times these glues say “water resistant”, but what you want and need is “water proof”. I’ve had good luck with the epoxies (West System) we use in the boat industry, but you must paint it because of ultraviolet breakdown.

The “Timesaver” is put together with “gorilla glue”. It has been stored in an unheated garage, but not subject to being wet or covered with ice, rain or snow.

#10

Yup. It needs the water to react right. Like Ric said, I bet its not weatherproof, just water resistant.

#11

My only experience with “Gorilla Glue” specifically has been where I glued the closet door retainer to the tile floor of my bathroom. Damn strong stuff for that. It does expand a bit as it sets.

I have used other polyurethane adhesives outdoors (the stuff that comes in caulking tubes) to hold the frames of my buildings together, and it’s proven VERY good for that task. I’ve one building that’s been outdoors in raw form (frame only, no siding, roof, or details) for two winters now, spending most of it buried under the snow. The joints are still completely solid.

Later,

K

#12
Kevin Strong said:
I have used other polyurethane adhesives outdoors (the stuff that comes in caulking tubes) to hold the frames of my buildings together, and it's proven VERY good for that task. I've one building that's been outdoors in raw form (frame only, no siding, roof, or details) for two winters now, spending most of it buried under the snow. The joints are still completely solid.

Later,

K


Kevin,
Is the polyurethane adhesives in the caulking tubes the same thing? I thought the stuff in the caulking tubes had some expansion contraction capability, unlike the “Gorilla Glue”?

#13

So far as I know, it’s the same kind of adhesive, just in a different form. It, too, expands a bit as it sets, and the cured joint looks strikingly similar to the Gorilla Glue joint in my bathroom. The brand I used is called “PL Construction Adhesive” or something very similar. I don’t know what it’s shelf life is in the tube, because I tend to have rather rotten luck with regard to anything that comes in a caulking tube staying fresh. Things like that tend to be “one time” shots for me anyway. :frowning:

Later,

K

#14

Fred,
My son made a WW 1 airplane wind vane for me. Small square wood stock in places using Gorilla glue. It lasted about 2 years out doors before I started finding pieces laying around. Lookedlike the glue failed even though the entire piece was painted. The glue still showed on both pieces of each of the separated joints.I wouldn’t use it for anything I want to last.IMHO
Dave

#15

Thank you, everyone, for reports of your experiences.

#16

Due to its lower VOC levels than other more common model glues i use it for gluing borke pieces !

There was an article regards the product a couple yrs back in GR mag.

I squeeze the air out of the bottle and quickly put the cap on And when reopened I may have to stick a straight pin down it to reopen but at least the air hasn’t hardened the whole container …

doug c

#17
Doug Cannon said:
I squeeze the air out of the bottle and quickly put the cap on And when reopened I may have to stick a straight pin down it to reopen but at least the air hasn't hardened the whole container ....doug c
Thank you Doug, that is good advice. I really had given up on using this glue because of its poor shelf life. Glad to hear someone has had success on how to store it.
#18

Gorilla Glue or other similar brands - CAUTION:
If you can use an applicator whereby you don’t touch the glue you are way ahead of clean up.
Once on the hands it becomes a real effort to rid yourself of the dark stain. Lacquer thinner, if used within 15+ minutes will work – sorta – otherwise, repeated washing and use of a hand cream is the only recourse I found.
I stopped using the product because of the staining feature and the fact that it takes water to activate.

Wendell

#19

Gorilla Glue is nearly the same stuff as ProBond. It will last a few years out of doors, but it will eventually fail if placed under much stress.

It also darkens in the sun, and quite quickly at that.

Indoors, the stuff is great, I’ve done lots of repairs with it.

The squeeze out due to the foaming action is a bother, be careful with how much you use, you don’t need much.

Buy in the smallest bottle available, even that will probably be dead before the bottle is done. The same goes for ZapCA. I’ve yet to actually finish off even the smallest bottle before the batch is dead.

The water is important, it sets off the curing action. This is why it dies in the bottle, it doesn’t take much moisture to enter the bottle in the form of damp air to set it off.

#20

George,
Welcome and don’t be so shy…:slight_smile: :slight_smile:
You don’t know how many times I referenced your website for tips!
Thank you!

jb