Glue Shelf Life

[Rich Riddle]

How often do you change out glue? I noticed a bottle going tan/light brown and replaced it.

[John Coloccia]

What kind of glue are we talking about? Good epoxy will last forever. Titebond will give you a good 6 months to a year if you take care of it. Cyanoacrylate should give you a year, but in practice it's often far shorter. I recommend buying only what you can use in a few months of Titebond and CA.

[Jim Matthews]

I try to buy Titebond that is less than six months old, on the shelf.

It also has a distinct smell when it goes 'off'.
http://www.woodmagazine.com/materials-guide/adhesives/cracking-the-glue-code/

Any more - I avoid large quantities of adhesive or finish.
They're not bargains if they spoil before use.

[Rich Riddle]

Mine was Titebond. I only use the original and Titebond III. Can't remember why, but somewhere an article indicated Titebond II wasn't that great.

[Ken Platt]

I date mine when I buy it, mostly use the Lee Valley pva glue, and find that it lasts for many years. I worry whether there might be some subtle loss of strength, so I tend to use the older stuff for noncritical uses. Earlier tonight I was using a bottle bought in Oct 2011, opened December 2013 (sometimes I buy stuff too far ahead but I hate to run out) to make some quick shop drawers. Seems to be working fine, looks the same as when new best I can tell.

I have had similar longevity from Titebond products

Ken

[Shawn Pixley]

I usually run out of it (TB III) before it goes bad. I have had only one bottle go bad (85% empty) at about a year.

[Fred Heenie]

The subject seems to be PVA Adhesives. Titebond 1, II, and III. the glue has an intended life of about a year for I and II, I have little experience with III but it seems that has a longer life, IIRC. I and II may discolor and de grade but remains usable for as long as it spreads. I have had PVA 1 and II that lasted for several years and worked fine. Ya know a bottle that rolled under a bench kind of situation.

[glenn bradley]

For PVA I found that buying containers sized to my needs was much more economical than buying large and tossing the spoil. A 32oz bottle will fill my glue well and a large and small glue-bot with some leftover for "free-handing" larger areas. When the containers start to get low I pick up another bottle. This seems to work for me but, many stores that carry Franklin products at competitive prices are nearby. YMMV.

[Randy Red Bemont]

If unsure do a test glue up. If it is stringy toss it. If it smells off toss it. I agree with everyone that you should try to only buy what you think you'll use over the next year or so. Glue is cheap compared to the time and materials in any project so it's wise to only use good glue. I used to know how to read the manufacture code to see when it was made but I have forgotten how.

Red

[Matt Day]

For Titebond, you can decode the alphanumeric stamp to find out when it expires.

From their FAQ:
How Do I Read The Lot Numbers?
Our current lot numbering system is a 10 digit code. The format is: aymmddbat#. The "a" stands for Made in the U.S.A. The "y" is the last digit of the year of manufacture. Digits "mm" represent the month, and "dd" represent the day of the month. The final four digits represent the batch number used for quality control purposes. Therefore, a product with the lot number A104270023 was manufactured on April 27, 2011.

And I believe it has a shelf life of two years.

[Keith Hankins]

Interesting discussion. Learn how to read the codes on the bottles of titebond. Many many moons ago, I got sucked into the buy a gallon it's chepaer. Well when I threw half of it away because it was old and had separated, was not such a good deal.

My method for glue, is buy only enough glue to do the project. I work in bigger pieces, so mid size bottle generally will do what I need. If there is a small amount left at the end, it goes in the trash can, unless there is another project right behind. I will go a year on specialty glues, like veneer glue, that unfortuantely you have to get in a bigger bottle. Now my PPR glue is a diff story, it's powder and will be easier to maintain in a plastic tub, but thats some nasty stuff so it's treated special.

[David Ragan]

I have a gallon of TB III for about 4 years. I keep waiting for it to go stringy. Have used it and even stress tested a couple of sample joints a while back.. Still good.

My understanding is that the molecular structure is there, until it goes stringy (curing in the container?)

[John Stankus]

I just got rid of a bottle that had completely cured in situ. Nice translucent orange color. I went and tossed any glue older than a year figuring my time is worth more than the cost of a bottle of glue.

It might be interesting to do a shelf life study. I have to see if I can easily measure degree of cure with the instrumentation I have.

John

[John Schweikert]

I buy 16oz bottles, just to preface my comments. But gallons are better regardless.

Buying a gallon is still more economical or equal cost regardless of having to throw away half of it. Here's how, using Titebond II prices as an example, a 16oz bottle is about $6 (1/8 the volume of a gallon but 1/3 the cost of a gallon) If you were to buy 3 bottles of 16oz per year, you already paid for a gallon. Sure, it sucks to throw away the glue if it has gone bad from a remaining gallon, but 3 bottles a year is easy to use for a regular hobbyist and piddlins' for a pro.

[Chris Padilla]

If you buy a gallon and can separate it into smaller bottle AND store those bottles away in a dark, cool closet or perhaps even vacuum seal them, you will come out on top.

I tend to hoard glue bottles since I usually buy the 16 oz bottle-shaped size. I now have enough of these to buy a gallon and separate.

I also write the date on the bottle of glue when I buy it regardless of the code.

[Max Neu]

if you store it in the refrigerator, you can get up to 10 years out of it.

[julian abram]

Mine was Titebond. I only use the original and Titebond III. Can't remember why, but somewhere an article indicated Titebond II wasn't that great.

Hmm, I mostly use Titebond original but seems like I read somewhere that Titebond II out sold all the others.

[Chris Padilla]

The Titebonds are all good glues. I normally have I, III and their Molding & Trim glue in my aresenal. III replaced II for me when it came out. I use I when I need a bit faster set and I use the M&T when I need a super fast set. Otherwise, III is pretty much my all-purpose glue. I wonder what IV will be like? :D

[Rick Moyer]

if you store it in the refrigerator, you can get up to 10 years out of it.

Yeah, but it tastes lousy on a hot dog!

[Jon Nuckles]

This is from the Franklin/Titebond website FAQ:


Our literature states the shelf life of all a majority of our wood glues as one two years. Titebond Liquid Hide Glue includes an expiration date on the bottle, because it can progressively lose its ability to dry hard, and this change is not visually obvious. Titebond Polyurethane Glue has a one-year shelf life in an unopened container, but is useable as long as the glue remains fluid. Polyurethanes, however, are designed to react when exposed to moisture. Sometimes, they begin to cure, and solidify, after the bottle has been opened. Most of our yellow and white glues, including Titebond Original and Titebond II, remain usable beyond two years. Should Titebond Original become thick and stringy, or Titebond II turn into an orange-colored gel, these changes signify that the glue is no longer usable. The minimum shelf life of Titebond III is stated as one two years. When stored appropriately at room temperature, Titebond III is expected to last beyond its stated shelf life. If thickened, shake vigorously by firmly tapping bottle on a hard surface until product is restored to original form.

[Max Neu]

http://www.titebond.com/news_article/13-09-18/How_to_Store_Your_Wood_Glue_for_Longer_Life.aspx
here's some more info.

[Ben Silver]

I have kept Titebond II around for several years, even with the bottle opened. Never had an issue, even with the bottle I left in the shop while I was deployed and ended up using it up a little over a year later (wasn't doing a ton of work at the time). So, over two years on an open bottle of Titebond II.

[Mike Schuch]

When I was doing a lot of cabinets I bought a gallon of original Titebond. After about 7 years I finally gave up on that jug although I used it throughout that 7 years and never had any issues with it.