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I live in an old trailer home with a leaky roof. I have been patching the roof with Henry brand wet patch, which very sticky black stuff made from tar. What kind of solvent is effective for removing roofing tar from leather work boots?

If you rub your boots with cheap vegetable oil, does that remove the black tar? Does acetone work? What solvent do you recommend for removing tar from leather work boots?

A little black stain on leather is fine, but how do you get rid of the large lumps and clumps?

isherwood
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Samuel Muldoon
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7 Answers7

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Removal of large lumps and clumps is best done manually: scrape them off with a putty knife, dull knife, screwdriver, etc.

Acetone is not a great solvent for this task. It is quite "hot" as they say, which means the liquid flashes away to vapor very quickly. This solvent is better for diluting certain paints, cleaning spills, overspray, and tools used with those same paints, etc.

Xylene much less volatile than acetone but in my opinion still too volatile for the task of cleaning heavy residue like tar.

Naphtha is my go-to for roofing tar, residue from stickers, engine or hydraulic oil on my tools after working on machinery, etc. You might find it in stores in the paint department labeled "VM&P Naphtha" short for "varnish makers and painters." Read the label carefully, though: some retailers stock a product that "replaces MEK, toluene, xylene, turpentine, and VM&P naphtha." IMHO it's junk; real naphtha works better.

WD40 is a light oil not very different from diesel fuel or straight kerosene. It'll dilute and spread heavy grease or tar. I don't like it for clean-up because I find there's a lot of residue left behind.

Greg Hill
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Prevention is better than cure, or at least makes the cure easier.

You'll make it easier by starting with a good surface treatment on your boots. For real leather waterproofing wax is normally preferred (applied generously in this case), but the proofing treatments for synthetic boots might be better. Even vegetable oil applied beforehand might be of some use.

After heavy use of solvents, reapply the surface treatment.

Another idea would be (an old pair of) hiking gaiters; some cover almost the whole upper of the boot and tape could fill in the last bits.

In theory you could cover the boots all over in clay mud, then scrape that off taking the tar with it, but in practice this approach is likely to contaminate the tar on the roof.

Again in theory, you could use or improvise overshoes and discard them afterwards. For working at height I wouldn't because they never grip as well as real soles and can snag of rough spots or stick to the tarry surface, all increasing your risk of slips and trips where you don't want them

Chris H
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As other have mentioned, a first pass should be done via mechanical cleaning, so scrape, cut, peel, whatever it takes to get a majority of it off. Then, you should look at the product instructions, which list this in the "cleanup" section:

Clean tools with mineral spirits. Clean hands with waterless hand cleaner.

The tool cleanup method would also apply to your shoes, or any items (non body-parts) you would like to clean.

Source

najel
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I used to work on a highway maintenance crew.

Diesel fuel. 100%.

It's used to control the viscosity of Asphalt Cement (or tar). If it needs thinned down, just add diesel.

Turbo
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I think you would find Engine Degreaser very suitable for the task. It softens adhesives and tars yet leaves painted surfaces intact. I have used it many times to remove sticky labels from walls - even many decades old and after the adhesive has dried and gone brown. My wife lets me keep a can of it under the kitchen sink.

user172530
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Dichloromethane (aka methylene chloride)

People I once knew who worked in a chemistry laboratory suggested that dichloromethane was a good solvent for tar-like compounds.

Be aware that it has a very low boiling point (around blood temperature, I think). Only use it with good ventilation, preferably in the open air and try to avoid the vapour. Do not let it touch your skin - it dissolves natural oils also. Keep it away from plastic or painted surfaces, it is an excellent paint stripper.

Wearing gloves, wet a rag or tissue with the solvent, dab or drip it on the tar, then scrape with a blunt tool or a knife. Repeat as long as you are making progress. Clean tools with the damp rag.

Nowadays, it might be difficult to obtain, as it is thought to be toxic. It never did any harm to those people, though. Do not confuse dichloromethane with methanol, methylated spirit or similar names.

Peter Bill
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When I worked with asphalt (road) tars and we got issued "RhomaSol" to clean tools etc. You can buy it from the maker, but only in bulk, it seems. https://rhomar.com/products/rhoma-sol/ (I am not paid for this post or associated with them at all.)

K.A.Monica
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