How to get Leukotape off without ripping skin?

[John Brown]

I love love love Leukotape for blister prevention, and use it heavily. However, when removing, it often ends up taking a couple layers of skin with it – counterproductive and painful! What do you all do to get it off safely/painlessly.

[obx hiker]

Try olive oil. Loosens lots of other adhesive type stuff. Peel an edge and rub it into the edge, then peel a little more. I’ve not tried it but then I’ve managed to get leucotape which I use often; off in the shower (carefully) without loosing any skin.

[Matthew / BPL]

hot shower followed by rolling not peeling is my routine

[edit because horrible proofreading]

[David P]

Hey John brown

i use a product called ‘Hypafix’ both for dressing retention and blister prevention. It is soft and flexible, the adhesive is hypoallergenic and peels off easily, especially around the tender skin that surrounds wounds and blisters. It is kind of breathable fabric so the area underneath doesn’t get as swampy and adhesive doesn’t leave that sticky residue  that some tapes and bandages leave.
It’s not as thick and cushy as leukotape but for blister prevention it works well for me to give just enough cushion and slipperiness to keep friction and hot spots down. Doubling it would give more cushion if needed.
Where it excels for me is covering wounds over areas with lots of movement, fingers, elbows, toes.
When using it to treat a blister that has already formed I put a piece of non adherent pad over the blistered area first just like a cut.

[SIMULACRA]

Never really had a problem with it ripping skin. It’s stuck real good before but has still come off rather cleanly for the most part. Done the hot shower trick as well. Switched shoes to the La Sportive TX4’s and I’ve never needed Leukotape again!

[Karen Kennedy]

Hypafix and Fixomull are great flexible breathable tapes – excellent for dressing retention or say to hold the edges of a cut together. They can also be used UNDER something like Leukotape to aid in peeling off, as their adhesive makes them easy to remove. Or use alone if it’s enough for your purpose. Highly recommended!

[David Thomas]

Karen’s recommendation is probably better stuff, but I’ll sometimes just use the small gauze pad on a BandAid to cover the delicate, blistering skin and than Leukotape to, basically, secure the BandAid.  That way, the stickiness of the Leukotape is only on the intact, uninjured skin away from the blister.

But mostly, I just wear the Leukotape for a few weeks until the defoliating skin causes it to fall off.

[Anonymous]

* Switched shoes to the La Sportive TX4’s and I’ve never needed Leukotape again! *

That’s a bold statement.  I’ll google it up.  Thanks,

 

[Jeffs Eleven]

Wait two weeks

[BlackHatGuy]

As I’ve said in another thread, I use it on my nipples when I do long runs. When I get home, I simply peel it off reeeeeeeeaaaaaaalllllll slow. Hasn’t taken any skin with it yet.

[obx hiker]

^^^^Hair and all huh?

I thought that was called a Brazilian.

[BlackHatGuy]

Ha! I shave before I put it on…

[a_gunslinger]

In a clinical environment they often user a base cover tape then put on the leukotape:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GCRWNA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Jerry Adams]

I just leave it on until I get home and take shower, like Matthew

You put it on your nipples Doug?  Interesting…

[Dena Kelley]

This can definitely be an issue. I found out the hard way that my skin is thinning as I get older by removing some leukotape from my foot earlier this year my normal way…and it ripped a triangle of skin off my foot. I now do the soak/roll method to preserve my skin.

[Author]

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