Removing your false nail enhancements should be done by a trained professional to avoid injuring your nails. Most of the common methods used to remove acrylics or gel nails, are generally risky to the nail, so be careful and make sure to consult your nail technician before performing any of these procedures.
Removing Acrylics
Acrylic nails have a loose cross linked molecular network that is great for keeping a strong, beautiful, sturdy nail, but is really dang hard to break apart and get off! The basic method for removing these from your nails does not involve lifting or popping off as that could cause major damage to your nails and make infection a likely possibility, instead we are going to use some fancy chemistry to get them off.
First remove all varnish, enamel, or gloss from the top surface of the nail. remove the shine of the artificial nail with a 240 grit file. By removing the shine, we will be able to get more solvent into the molecular structure of the artificial nail. This will help to speed the rate of absorption which will help to stretch out that molecular link until we can break it apart.
Pour solvent into two warm-able finger bowls. Warm-able finger-bowls either sit warm water. Tip: Put marbles into the finger bowls, it will help your client pass the soaking time. Soak your clients fingernails for 15-30 minutes while the hands and bowl are covered with a terry cloth towel (this helps prevent evaporation and preserves warmth) make sure not to lift fingers or nails out at all during this period or it will extend the acrylic removal time.
After soaking, with the nails still submerged begin to gently remove the artificial nail with a cuticle pusher or an orange wood stick. Once finished treat your clients nails to a nice manicure and make sure to moisturize.
Removing UV Gel Nails
Uv Gel nails are much more difficult to remove because they are more resistant to solvents.
To start you will want to slowly file down the gel until there is only a thin layer left on the nail. be very careful not to hurt or damage the nail during this process. Soak the nails as before with the gel removal product. Once the soaking is complete you may gently proceed to scrape the nail clean with an orange wood stick.
