When doing arts and crafts or DIY projects, it is important to use the best wood glue to ensure high-quality output. Even though it is very easy to work with wood using nails and screws because of their porous surface, it would still be better to use a high-quality glue to ensure that the wood would have a strong and permanent bond that could last for a long time.
You can use wood glue to stick pieces of wood together. You may also use it to attach wood to different materials, such as plastic, porcelain, and more. That is why picking the right glue is important because you may not use different glues for the same purpose.
There are wood glues that can be used for fixing things found indoors, such as kitchen cupboards, wooden furniture, etc. Some glues are intended for outdoor applications, like a cedar deck, wooden bench, and more. Aside from these two, there are also wood glues versatile enough to be used indoors and outdoors.
CHOOSING THE BEST GLUE FOR WOOD
When choosing the best glue for you and your project, there are a few things to consider. These include glue strength, time for setting and curing, materials used, water resistance, and more. Below is a list of some glue that’s best for wood.
Cyanoacrylate
Cyanoacrylate is also commonly known as super glue. Super glue is ideal for quick and small fixes because of its fast curing process. Once super glue completely dries out, it forms a hard plastic-like adhesive.
You may also use super glue as an alternative for model glue because the strength of the adhesive is just perfect for building your model. If you want a stronger super glue, you may use a gel-style cyanoacrylate as it usually sticks better and has a stronger hold than the original super glue formula.
Epoxy-Based
Epoxy glue is also a great choice for doing projects that involve not just wood but also many other materials. Epoxy consists of two parts – resin and hardener. These two are important because when you mix them, they create a chemical reaction that causes a strong bond between two materials. However, epoxy might take longer to cure than other glue, but you may also clamp down the object you are working with to ensure that the surfaces are strongly affixed to each other.
There are epoxy wood glues that are made for indoor applications. However, some are intended for outdoor applications. So when you want to use this glue outdoors, ensure that you get water-resistant epoxy glue.
Epoxy glue is commonly used to fill in gaps and glue pieces of wood together. Despite its easy application, you must still be careful when using epoxy wood glue. Always have a well-ventilated workspace and create only small batches of the epoxy mixture.
Hide Glue
Hide glue, also known as animal glue, is made from rendered animal skin. This glue has been used for many years now. Hide glue is free from toxins, has a strong and durable hold, can also be stained, and has a variety of colors and strengths.
Hide glue is not an entirely new product for you. You may usually encounter this type of glue when using a glue gun or glue sticks, as they produce glue sticks using hide glue.
Some hide glues require heating and brushing when applied. However, some are stored in a bottle and already come with an applicator.
Hide glue is great, especially when encountering mistakes during the building process since you can easily adjust and move it by heating the glue. This is also why hide glue is perfect for repairing fabric or antiques since the adhesive’s effect is reversible.
Hide glue is helpful for various projects and materials, such as cloth, furniture, glass, leather, and more. However, if you need a water-resistant and waterproof adhesive, hide glue wouldn’t be the best choice.
Polyurethane
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Polyurethane is among the most strong and durable wood glue on the market. This glue is waterproof, so it’s a versatile glue that you can use in both indoor and outdoor applications. Among the best things about polyurethane is that it dries out in clear and natural color, so it would blend perfectly with the wooden surface where you applied the glue.
Polyurethane has waterproof qualities, so naturally, it needs the presence of water to cure completely. So before applying polyurethane, ensure that you wet the wooden surface to create a strong bond.
Once this glue has been completely dried and cured, you may sand it down and paint the surface where you applied the glue. Polyurethane may glue materials such as ceramic, concrete, foam, glass, metal, plastic, stone, and wood.
Polyvinyl Acetate
PVA or polyvinyl acetate is also commonly known as wood glue. PVA is an affordable, non-toxic, strong, and efficient glue that you can use for different purposes.
PVA is also great to use when you are still a beginner in building, modeling, or just handling wooden materials in general since you can easily clean up the glue using soap and water when you mess up. However, you may only do this when the PVA glue still hasn’t cured completely. Nevertheless, it is still important to be careful when using PVA glue as it could cause stains when you soak the wood with dry PVA glue.
This adhesive consists of cross-linking polyvinyl acetate, allowing the glue to be water-resistant. Since PVA glue is water-resistant, you may be able to use it on your outdoor projects. You can use PVA glue for arts and crafts, building models, chipped furniture, indoor and outdoor woodworking, and more.
THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN PICKING THE BEST GLUE FOR WOOD
Strength of the Glue
There are wood glues stronger than the wood fibers themselves. Some glues could remain intact even though the wood fibers already give in and physically break. However, some glues are not as strong as these types of glue.
For instance, cyanoacrylate glue cannot be used as a permanent solution for joining two wooden pieces together. PVA glue, on the other hand, works better than cyanoacrylate glue and can hold a bond for a long time. This is why it is important to know how strong the hold of your glue is and the purpose of your project so that you can choose the right glue for you.
Dry Time
Aside from the adhesive’s strength, how long it would take for the glue to set and cure completely is also another thing to take into consideration. Cyanoacrylate glue would take less than a minute to set and a few hours to completely cure. Epoxy glue may also cure for about 10 minutes after application.
Hide glue may take up to 24 hours to cure. Polyurethane glue could take a few hours to set and cure completely. PVA glue, on the other hand, takes a long time to dry. It would set after a few hours of application, but it would take over 24 hours for PVA glue to fully cure.
Viscosity
Glues come with different consistencies and viscosities, which is another important factor to consider when choosing the best glue for wood. For instance, cyanoacrylate glue has a thin consistency, so it can easily flow into small areas, such as hairline cracks. This makes it the best glue for minor repairs, gluing back small pieces of wood, or also for splitting wood.
On the other hand, PVA glue has a thicker and slightly runny consistency than cyanoacrylate glue. Because of this, PVA glue can easily sip into the wood fibers, providing a strong hold between two wooden materials.
If you want a thicker consistency than PVA glue, you may use epoxy or polyurethane glues. Due to the thickness of epoxy glues, they can easily fill up cracks, restoring the wood to its original form. On the other hand, polyurethane glues may be prone to expand during the drying process, so they require clamping to secure the glue and have a strong and clean finish.