Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/12/30/hot-trick-for-blacking-out-thermal-paper-labels.html
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Is it just me or is this rather more effort than just using a sharpie?
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It’s honestly easier to pull the labels off. Doesn’t matter if it rips, as long as you get most of it off.
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But… Fire!
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But… but… FIRE!!
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Just use a hair dryer
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The worst that can happen is that you tear some of the outer paper of the box, but it will still go through the mail.
Or a clothes iron.
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I often reuse Amazon boxes for shipping stuff, and I’ve routinely done this for as long as I can remember. Partly to protect my anonymity / avoid the wrong barcode being scanned, but mainly because it is fun
ETA having looked at the video, I would add that it is very much quicker if you hold the label upside down above the lighter (and also avoids burning your manipulator stalks, if you’re using a normal lighter)
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I cover the labels I can’t peel with opaque packing tape. Or crayon, because kids.
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Because of Covid I’ve noticed that alcohol and alcohol-based hand sanitizer does this as well. I’ve created many a useless receipt this past 9 months.
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If you use a marker you can often read the text through it because of the way the thermal paper doesn’t get along with sharpie. I’ve had private carriers reject the package because the old label wasn’t “fully blocked out”.
The USPO generally doesn’t care. Because it’s entirely clear that label is the wrong label.
So long as the original text is gone or covered it’s fine. The only reason for removing them is so the post office or shipping company can’t confuse which label is the right one.
Iron. On high with the steam off.
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GASP IT’S TRUE
(The printing came back slightly once it dried out though)
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I never ran a variable-controlled experiment to verify, so thanks for putting your resources to the furtherance of science!
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Sure. What could possibly go wrong? 
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