TIL at a job site in Portland that my glue was freezing on me

I was out on a kitchen install last January and my Titebond was gelling up in the bottle. The homeowner saw me trying to squeeze it out and goes "you know that stuff freezes under 50 degrees right?" I had been fighting with it for an hour thinking it was just a bad batch. Has anyone else had their glue fail on them in cold weather like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

wesley831mo ago

Laughing my ass off at you fighting a frozen glue bottle for an hour like it was personal. That's some top tier contractor energy right there thinking the glue just decided to betray you that day instead of it being basic science. I've definitely done similar stuff though like trying to use caulk that turned into toothpaste in 40 degree weather and just kept blaming the tube like it owed me money. Pro tip next time just stick the bottle in your pants for like 10 minutes or sit on it like a weirdo and it'll loosen up fine. Or you know read the damn label like a normal person but where's the fun in that.

lee7331mo ago

Oh man, the caulk turning into toothpaste is the perfect comparison! I once had a tube of silicone that I literally threw across the garage because it wouldn't come out. Later I realized it was 38 degrees and the tube had been sitting in my truck bed for three days like an idiot. So here's my real question for you - how cold did it actually get in that job site? Was it like just barely freezing or were you out there in proper frostbite weather? Because I've noticed there's a big difference between glue that's just thick and glue that's basically turned into a solid hockey puck you could use for target practice. The water based stuff seems to get weird way before 32 degrees, like it starts acting up around 40.