Removing windshield coating

[Bdflies]

Yesterday, I came very close to posting a topic titled "Frustration". I've stripped the protective coating from windshields before, but nothing like this one! It usually peels off, with varying degrees of effort, but it does peel off. Not this one! After several hours of scraping and cussing, I thought I was going to have to buy another one. It appeared that the surface of the plexi was crazed.
My windshield was manufactured in 2013, by LP Aero Plastics. At some point, in its past, I suspect it spent time in the sun, with the protective lat. Having never had such trouble, I combed the LP website, looking for suggestions, to no avail. For reasons I can't explain, I opened their online catalog and found the answer. They recommend using alcohol as a release agent. For really troublesome cases (mine, for instance) the solution is a mixture of 50% isopropyl alcohol & 50% kerosene. Now THAT wasn't obvious to me! I figured that I had nothing to lose.
Today, I layed a series of terrycloth towels on the windshield, covering about 1 sq ft at a time. I then soaked the cloth with the alcohol/kerosene mixture and let it set, for about 10 minutes. With a little effort, the remaining coating rubbed off cleanly... Today's theme is 'Success'! And I don't need another windshield..
Suggestions; Don't allow your coated windshield in sunshine. UV does bad stuff to the coating. Don't wait 4 years before removing the coating.
I wanted to be sure this information would be easily accessible by others, thus the reason for a titled thread.
Tomorrow: ONWARD!

Bill

[Flygirl1]

Bill, sounds like a nightmare! The plastic was on our windshields and Windows for at least 3 yrs., but out of the sun, so it came off fine. Can't say the same for some of the plastic coating on some of the aluminum. I have nicknamed it "the plastic from hell". Very hard to remove and always left the glue behind which was almost industructable and refused to come off. Extremely frustrating. So much so, some is still attached to the floor board metal. Glad you figured it out! Somebody down the road will appreciate the info! D. Onward and eventually UPWARD🌞

[Luke68]

I'm sure I will need to use this trick, my windshield was purchased by the previous owner back in 2007 and I just starting to work on mounting it this week, so great timing on posting this.
thanks

[Bdflies]

You're more than welcome! This is exactly why I posted it. By far, the most frustrating task of the project, that was easily solved.... Only after discovering the release formula...

Bill

[EricP]

This could be very helpful in the near future....

[JimParker256]

Thanks, Bill. Great tip. Now if only someone could figure out a way to get that darned plastic film off the aluminum sheets... Takes me longer to do that than to cut/form the pieces! And I still have some residue on some of them that seemingly nothing will remove. Sigh.

[Bcone1381]

I wonder if Bill's Alcohol-karosene remedy would work on Aluminum?

[Bdflies]

After seeing it remove, what I couldn't scrape off, I'd sure try it on the aluminum protection adhesive.

[davzLSA]

Go for the nuclear option Jim MEK!!!

[Ray Strickland]

I had big problems removing plastic from aluminum sheet that I had for several years. I finally tried heating the sheet, about a 1 foot square at a time, over a kerosene heater. The glue softened enough that the plastic came right off. A heat gun may work just as well.

[Greg_Marlow]

On the aluminum white plastic sheeting from hell, the trick is xylene and a heat gun. But it's still not fun. Or pretty.

[Paul Johnston]

Use toluline to remove the glue after pealing the plastic from your aluminum sheet. Toluline will also clean paint or anything else from plexiglass, but it will melt polycarbonate (don’t ask)

[quadra]

it goes without saying that Toluene , Zylene , and MEK are all excellent solvents, but if you have not worked with them they require good ventilation and are highly flammable. They should be used with solvent proof gloves - as they can be absorbed through the skin.