Stuck on what type of glue you need? We’ve got you covered. Our glue guide describes the different types of glue you might need for your office, classroom, or home. We’ll also share a few glue alternatives you can use for adhering objects to walls without consequence.
When deciding what type of glue you need, consider what materials you need to adhere, the age of the people using the glue, how fast you need glue to dry, and how sturdy you need the bond to be.
Different Types of Glue for Offices, Classrooms, and Homes
Glue Sticks
Glue sticks are made with a low bonding adhesive but do provide a permanent bond on a range of different kinds of paper, including poster board, foam board, and cardboard. They’re safe for children to use and make less of a mess than the white glue that comes out of a squeeze bottle. Glue sticks are great for scrapbooking, art projects, sealing envelopes, and applying labels.
Glue sticks are the best glue for paper because the low bonding glue dries clear and doesn’t clump. Some glues are simply too strong for use on everyday art projects like collages, and the stronger the glue, the less safe it is for children. A strong glue stick is great for use on paper, but you may struggle to create a solid bond on larger objects like popsicle sticks.
If you’re looking for the best glue stick for paper, we love Business Source Glue Sticks. They’re made with a nontoxic formula, so they’re safe for use in schools and offices alike. They feature a wide barrel that helps you keep a secure grip on the glue stick, and the twist-action applicator makes it easy to extend and retract the glue. So whether you’re young or old, you can use these glue sticks confidently and comfortably.
School Glue
School glue, also known as white craft glue, is one of the most popular kinds of glue out there for crafts. It’s used on porous, lightweight materials like paper, cardboard, and cloth. Since water is the carrier, white craft glue contains low toxicity and is easy to clean. Which is great because who doesn’t remember getting it all over your fingers in school? 😅
School glue needs to dry before materials are firmly and successfully bonded, so it needs to rest after application. Sometimes the project needs to be clamped together to optimize the strength of the bond. It takes about an hour for this kind of glue to set properly, but it will take up to 24 hours to achieve the final cure.
If you want to get creative with your project, consider adding glitter or water-based food coloring to the glue. ✨
Glue Guns
Glue guns use hot glue. They are utilized for many types of craft projects as well as small repair projects.
The glue gun needs to be plugged in in order to heat the glue. A glue stick (not the type used on paper) is pulled through the glue gun as you press the gun-like lever. The glue can bond with materials such as popsicle sticks, fabric, wooden shapes, bulletin board accessories, and other crafting materials.
This is a more dangerous type of glue that should not be used by children, as the glue comes out quite hot from the gun. Within seconds to minutes, depending on the amount of glue you use, it will dry and create a permanent bond.
Glue guns come in different sizes, depending on the intensity of your project, and require different sized glue sticks. Make sure you check to see that you are purchasing the right type of glue stick for the glue gun you have. The common household size is 4 inches long and .27 inches in diameter per glue stick.
Some glue gun sticks include glitter or coloring within the stick for specific craft projects.
Wood Glue
There's no mystery when it comes to wood glue—it’s designed for wood. Wood glue is used for home projects as well as in construction to bond wood together.
Sometimes it is called yellow wood glue because it is tinted to look the same color as the wood it is binding together. As it’s often used for outdoor applications, it is high-strength and waterproof. This type of glue won’t dry instantly and often takes a full 24 hours to completely cure.
Super Glue
Super glue is where things get intense. You do not want to get this glue on your fingers or any surface you don’t want glue stuck on forever. It’s very intense and usually dries in seconds. Keep super glue well-sealed and far away from children.
Super glue often comes in a small bottle since you don’t need to use a lot of it to get a strong bond. It may include a precision tip for small projects.
Blue Summit Supplies carries a number of different super glue brands, including Loctite Super Glue, Gorilla Glue Super Glue, Rapid Krazy Glue, and Scotch Super Glue Single Use Tubes.
Removable Gummy Glue
Gummy glue removable adhesive is the sticky removable glue often found behind credit cards when they are shipped. It is sticky and has a gummy texture but can be removed very easily from paper and other materials.
You may also see this type of adhesive used in packaging, marketing materials, or product samples to keep something in place that can be easily removed once it is shipped or unpackaged.
Removable Adhesive Glue Dots
Glue dots are little blobs of adhesive that you can use to bond craft items and small projects together. The strength of the adhesive will determine what materials you can stick together. Depending on the strength, you may only be able to stick paper together, or you may be able to bond thicker items, such as fabric, wood pieces, or other crafting materials.
Removable adhesive glue dots are—you guessed it🤓—removable if you need to unstick what you’ve already stuck. This makes them great for small crafting projects and for use by children. They generally come in sheets or rolls of dots and are convenient to peel and stick. You also don’t need to wait for any glue to dry as it will bond immediately.
That said, because the adhesive is removable, it’s not the strongest adhesive for repairs, larger projects, and permanent glue jobs.
Glue Alternatives
Want to stick something together, but glue just won’t cut it? Glue often takes a long time to dry or leaves marks behind if you try to unstick what’s already been stuck. Next, we’ll outline a few alternatives to glue for sticking things together without the mess.
Two-Sided Tape
Two-sided tape is sticky on both sides, enabling you to bond two things together. Two-sided tape comes in a range of intensities; it may be designed to stick paper together, or it could be designed to adhere strong hooks to the walls in your home office or classroom.
Two-sided tape generally comes in rolls, sometimes inside a hand-held applicator. This type of tape is ideal for scrapbooking, card making, and other similar projects.
Heavy-duty two-way tape can be used for larger projects and heavier materials. You might recall the two-way tape strips that come with 3M adhesive wall hooks.
Sticky Tack
Sticky tack is designed for sticking paper to walls without leaving a mess behind. It looks a lot like an eraser, but it’s malleable like Play-Doh. You can pull off pieces in whatever size you need to adhere posters, documents, or decorations to the wall.
It’s ideal for hanging light paper materials to a wall, saving you from damaging your wall by poking holes into it with a tack or pushpin. In the long run, the walls in your home, office, or classroom will thank you. Look for sticky tack that’s reusable and guarantees no markings left behind on walls.
More From Blue Summit Supplies
Looking for the ideal supplies for your office, school, or personal needs? We have a number of other supply guides to help you choose the best tools for you.
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