How to remove paint from carpet?
Painting walls at home can be a tricky affair. There is always a danger of spilling it on to the carpet or floors. Nobody likes dried up stain of paint on the carpet. It becomes really difficult to get rid of the stain and many usually assume that such stains cannot be removed. However, it is not permanent stain and can be get rid of.
First, know the quality of the paint; whether it is oil based or water based. While water based paint would cause wet stain on your carpet, oil based paint stains are dry. Usually, water based paint can be cleaned up by using soap and water. For oil based paint, you would need paint thinners and mineral spirits.
How to remove wet paint stains
First, soak up as much of the stain with towel as you can so that it would not run down to other areas. Next step would be to moisten the affected area. Use spray bottle filled with soap water for the purpose. After repeatedly moistening the stain with soap water, dab it with towel and repeat the procedure. Be careful only to blot the stain so as not to rub the stain into the carpet fiber.
Once you have blot the stain from the carpet, use paint thinner on the stain. Paint thinner are available in the paint stores. Thinner will dissolve the paint stain on the carpet.
After applying the paint thinner, you should use the soapy water again on the affected area. It should be followed by the blotting by paper towels. Blot the stain as much as you can so that the discolouration is no longer visible.
To make sure that there remains no segment of stain on the carpet, apply a mixture of water and vinegar on the affected area. Vinegar should comprise of 1/10th of the mixture, rest being water. Along with cleaning up any remaining stain, vinegar would also help to rinse the soap from the carpet.
Rinse off the vinegar, unless you want a yellowish spot on the carpet. After rinsing off vinegar, dry the carpet. Once it is completely dry, use your vacuum cleaner.
Removing dry paint stains
Carpet cleaning is to be handled with maximum care and patience to make sure the carpet remains as beautiful as before. To remove dry paint stains, you can scrape the paint or try to moisten the area. To scrape the paint, you can use pliers or toothbrush or a scrape blade or even scrubbing tool.
You can use a solvent for oil based paint removal and gently dab it on the stain. Use a cloth/towel to blot the paint. You can use mineral spirits for the purpose of cleaning, too. However, consider the quality and colour of your carpet before using mineral spirit.
Hairspray can be used to blot the paint as well. Unusual choices like dish washing liquid and alcohol can also be used for dabbing the paint. Whether you use mineral spirit or alcohol, always remember to use a clean cloth for blotting out the paint, otherwise you may find all your hard work go in vain.
