tar paper removal

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For those of you who have not gone insane with frustration trying to remove tar paper from a wood floor, the solution that worked best for me:

Go to Home Depot and get a wall paper steamer like the Wagner Spray Tech Xtra 705 Power Steamer. http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100532752

Get a wall paper scoring tool while you are there.

Use the scoring tool on the tar paper surface to perforate it a bit. This will let the steam penetrate the tar paper a bit better.

Set up the steamer with the larger applicator on the end of the hose. I filled the reservoir with hot tap water and added a few teaspoons of TSP.

Plug it in and let it start steaming (takes ten minutes or so). Put the applicator face down on a patch of tar paper-covered floor and let it sit there for 3-5 minutes. Move it to a new spot and using a broad putty knife scrape up the now liquified tar paper/mastic combo from the first spot. You will want to experiment with the amount of time you steam an area to get the easiest scraping results.

Let me know if this works for you. Good luck!