How to Remove Child Safety Locks

Safety locks are a great first step for keeping your curious little ones out of places they shouldn’t be. Using safety locks on cabinets and drawers prevents kids from reaching potentially dangerous chemicals and items such as cutlery, laundry detergents, and cleaning supplies among others.

Cabinet and drawer safety locks are inexpensive and super easy to install. However, when it comes time to remove them, they can be quite a hassle to deal with.

Child safety locks come in five main types including adhesive strap locks, magnetic locks, spring-action locks, cord locks, and sliding locks.

Regardless of the type, you need to consider the installation method to help halve the work involved in the removal process. The most common ways these locks are installed include via adhesive foams or strips, screws, or sliding them through the cabinet handles.

Cord locks and sliding safety locks are by far the easiest to remove since all you have to do is undo the locking mechanism. Additionally, screwed-on child safety locks can be effortlessly undone with a flat-head or a Phillips head screwdriver.

How to Remove Stick-On Child Safety Locks Without Leaving Any Residues

Cabinet and drawer safety locks installed with any type of adhesive prove a challenge to remove as they are most likely to leave some residue. Fortunately, there are three major methods to removing these types of safety locks including using good ole elbow grease, heating, or applying solvents.

How to Remove Adhesive Child Safety Locks Using The Mechanical Method

In some cases, scraping, prying, or scrubbing away the adhesive foam can be the most effective way of uninstalling safety locks.

Scraping can be done using dental floss, razor blades, plastic pan scrapers, a paint/window scraper, or even a credit card. Just remember to use either tool gently to avoid damaging or scratching the surface of your cabinetry or given appliance.

For the prying method, you can peel off the strip at one corner by hand and slowly take it off. Alternatively, you may use a spoon, a flat-head screwdriver, a butter knife (blunt end), a bottle cap opener, or a paint scraper to pry off the lock.

You want to wedge the tool at the base of the lock and then slowly work it towards the top – the lock including the sticky bit should pop right off. If yanking out the lock left some residue, scrubbing it away with fine-grit sandpaper or a magic eraser should do the trick.

How to Remove Stick-On Safety Locks with Heat

Heat does a great job of weakening adhesives. So, you can use a hair dryer or heat gun at moderate temperature to help remove adhesive-backed safety locks.

Depending on the design of the child safety lock, you may first pry it off then use heat if there’s any residue left. Lastly, scrape off any adhesive residue and clean the surface as needed.

Removing Adhesive with Chemicals

Using solvents and oils helps break down the adhesive part securing your safety locks. However, some solvents may damage the surface of your cabinets or appliances. So, be sure to first test your solvent of choice on a small, hidden section.

Wiping down the affected area with soapy water and a soft microfiber cloth can be a good first trial at removing the adhesive.

Cooking oil and oil-based materials such as normal vegetable oil, olive oil, canola oil, eucalyptus oil, lemon oil, peanut butter, mayonnaise, and even baby oil similarly work wonders at removing adhesive residues.

Just dab some oil on a cloth and work it into the adhesive part, allow it to sit for a few minutes, and then wipe the surface clean.

For tougher sticky bits, you may use vodka, rubbing alcohol, distilled white vinegar, or hand sanitizer to remove the safety locks.

Additionally, commercial glue removers such as lighter fluid, paint thinner, acetone, WD-40, Goo Gone, and 3M Adhesive Remover work just as effectively. However, be sure to stick to the manufacturer’s instructions and first test the solvent in a small, inconspicuous section.

Final Word

While using either method works just fine, we have found a great approach is first prying off the safety lock and then removing any adhesive residue left using heat or chemicals. A nice wipe-down with soapy water and a soft microfiber cloth is always advisable.