Pet & Animal: How to Remove Paint from Clothes

Monday 28 April 2014

How to Remove Paint from Clothes

Craft and home improvement projects can lead to paint stains on walls, stone and clothing. The best way to avoid this is covering objects with drop cloths and wearing old clothing; however, they can sometimes be removed from fabric. Find out more about how to remove paint from clothes by reading the laundry tips below.

EditSteps

EditLatex Paint Stains

Attack the paint spill as soon as it happens. The more time it has to dry, the less likely you are to remove the paint.
- Latex paint is a mixture of water and acrylic, so there is a good chance you can remove fresh paint with water and other methods.

Use a spoon, stick or scraper to remove excess paint. If you have a blob of paint, make sure you scrape it off before using a water source.
- Dispose of the excess paint responsibly, rather than through the sewer system.

Pour a small amount of hand soap and a small amount of dish washing detergent into a bowl. Use a 1 to 1 ratio.

Apply the solution to the paint with a sponge. Tamp it repeatedly for at least 1 minute.

Rinse the stain away with warm water.

Repeat the sponging and rinsing until the paint stain is removed. This should work on fresh stains.

Pour hairspray or isopropyl alcohol onto the stain if it has dried.

Rub it lightly into the fabric for 1 minute.

Rinse it. Repeat, if necessary.

Apply a laundry stain remover. Place it in the wash and launder the item immediately.

EditOil Paint Stains

Do not apply water to a fresh or dried oil paint stain.

Buy an oil paint solvent at the home improvement store when you buy your paint. Keep it on hand for oil based stains.

Apply the oil paint solvent to the article of clothing.
- If you do not have a solvent, use WD-40.

Rub the solvent against the stain using other clothing fabric.

Wipe up the solvent and stain with a clean rag.

Repeat application of the solvent, if much of the stain remains.

Fill a bucket with warm water. Mix with dish washing soap, which can cut the grease in the paint and solvent.

Soak the article of clothing for 1 hour.

Launder the piece of clothing immediately.
- If the oil solvent doesn't effectively treat paint stains, dip a cotton ball in turpentine and apply it to the stain. Rub gently. Launder it immediately following the application.