Refinishing a vintage chair or tearing up old carpet usually feels like a great idea until you reach the tedious part. You look down and see hundreds of tiny, rusty metal fasteners staring back at you. Trying to pry them out with your fingernails or a butter knife is a guaranteed way to ruin your day and your project.
Fortunately, this complete guide to removing staples from wood is exactly what you need to speed up the process and save your hands from unnecessary scratches.
Gathering Your Toolkit
You cannot effectively remove staples without the proper gear. Attempting to do this with makeshift tools will damage the wood surface you are trying to restore. Therefore, you should start by grabbing a few essentials. A flathead screwdriver is the most common tool people reach for, and it works well for prying up the center of the staple. However, a pair of needle-nose pliers is equally important for grabbing staples that break in half.
Additionally, you might want to invest in a dedicated upholstery staple remover. These specialized tools have a forked tip that slides easily under the fastener and uses leverage to pop it out.
The Removal Technique
Patience is your best friend here. Slide your flathead screwdriver or staple remover under the center of the staple crown. Gently wiggle the tool back and forth to loosen the legs from the wood grain.
If you yank it straight up immediately, you risk snapping the metal or gouging the wood. Instead, rock the tool backward to leverage the staple up. Once the staple lifts slightly, you can continue leveraging it until both legs pop out.
Dealing With Broken Fasteners
Sometimes, despite your best efforts, the staple snaps. One leg might come out while the other stays buried deep in the timber. Do not panic! You simply need to change your approach. Use your needle-nose pliers or diagonal-cutting pliers to grip the exposed nub of the metal. Squeeze tight and pull straight up.
If the metal is flush with the wood and you cannot grab it, you can try to dig it out with a sharp awl, but this will damage the wood.
Upgrade Your Gear
Restoring wood furniture or prepping a subfloor is hard work, but having the right equipment will make the process easier. Now that this guide to removing staples from wood has helped you clear the way, you might be ready to start the re-upholstery or installation phase of your project.
If your current tools let you down or you need stronger industrial staplers for the job, visit Staple Headquarters. After all the hard work of removing old fasteners, the last thing you need is a tool that fails during reassembly. We have a huge inventory of hand pliers, hammer tackers, and upholstery staplers for any project. Explore our tools today!