Long time ago, I some acrylic paint on my plastic table and forgot to clean it. I didn’t even know how to get acrylic paint off plastic. I didn’t pay heed for many months, but I decided to remove it.
I tried the most convenient cleaner of my artwork: the rubbing alcohol. With the liquid on paper towel, I could get the dried paint out from the region. You can use a brush or putty knife as well.
Alternative things I would’ve to consider were ammonia solution and isopropyl alcohol. They serve the same to remove unwanted paint but differently.
There’s also a method that might sound funny but is effective. You’ll know it in the end, keeping its suspense. But for now, dive ahead to explore ways to remove paint from plastic.
Does Acrylic Paint Come from Plastic?
Unlike oil painting, acrylic paint settles well over the plastic region. And when it passes over time, the paint particles become firm and strong over there.
Because the particles of the paint settle, but plastic doesn’t consume it permanently. But you can remove the unwanted acrylic paint particles from the plastic. You can do that if you just try to remove the paint from the surface.
Most of the time, the dried acrylic stain peels out from the plastic for contamination. You can already understand that the bond isn’t strong; you can remove the paint from the region. Just some proper directions are needed.
Different Ways to Get Acrylic Paint Off Plastic
You already know that you can remove acrylic paints from the plastic, but you must be careful about the steps because that is where you might make things go wrong.
And that hopefully won’t happen after you read the article because my experience sharing won’t let it happen to you. So, here we go with some methods of removing acrylic paint from the plastic. You’ll know the steps of the methods accordingly there.
Method-1: Ammonia Solution
Ammonia solution is one of the most common liquids to remove stains or other marks from non-porous or plastic surfaces. Be it plastic or metal, or wood; you can use the liquid to remove all kinds of stains from them.
Acrylic paint settles firmly. And with ammonia solution, you can get well rid of that too. But first, clean the dust particles from the plastic.
Step 1: Take some ammonia on a white paper towel. Spread the ammonia all over the towel so it can cover the maximum cleaning area.
Step 2: Pour some drops of ammonia solution into the plastic region. Let it rest for 10 minutes. It assures no shortage of liquid in terms of taking the paint off the plastic.
Step 3: Now, scrap the area with the towel firmly. You’ll see white fumes coming out eventually. Alternate the scrapping over the dried acrylic paint after every 10-15 seconds for 2-3 minutes.
Step 4: You’ll see the dried paint coming out from the plastic. But there are some remaining paints. Clear it out with further ammonia solution.
Step 5: When you’re finally done taking the paint off the plastic, rinse the region with soapy water. That’ll remove the stickiness from the region as well.
Caution
The fumes are something to worry about. Because it can be intoxicated or dangerous for you or anyone in your house, you better do the cleaning outside or in an open place. If you do it inside your house, clean the surrounding area properly.
Method 2: Isopropyl Alcohol
If any kind of stain or mark removal exists, you’ll find isopropyl alcohol. The other name for isopropyl alcohol is rubbing alcohol. From the name, you can get that rubbing the liquid over stuff will remove stains.
As a paint remover, rubbing alcohol is one of the best cleaner to remove paint from plastic. You can say that it is the most feasible method to imply. Let’s see how.
Step 1: Pour some rubbing alcohol on the plastic. If the plastic is small, you can soak it in rubbing alcohol. The main goal is to make the paint region covered with liquid.
Step 2: Take a brush or clean cloth. Soak it in the isopropyl alcohol.
Step 3: Now start brushing the plastic region with the paint brushes dip in rubbing alcohol. The more you brush, the more paint will come out from the region. You can go harsh on it, as the brush won’t damage your things.
Step 4: When most of the paint comes out, rinse the region with water. Restart the brushing with more rubbing alcohol. You’ll see some paint stuck there still.
Step 5: Once wholly done removing the dried paints, wash the plastic with soap and water. That would clean up the area and remove any impurities from the paint.
Caution
Isopropyl alcohol is flammable. So, you better don’t keep any kind of fire stuff around. If there already is, take the plastic somewhere else and then do the removal.
Method 3: Denatured Alcohol
For the strongest of the cleaning, denatured alcohol is a cleaner I highly recommend because the cleaner comes with solid components that can take the toughest of the particles out of a region.
Paint can be a good measure for the liquid. Trying to remove the paint from the plastic, I found that it works well. Let me tell you the process here.
Step 1: Take an appropriate amount of denatured alcohol and spread it over the painted region. Let the liquid settle for 10 minutes.
Step 2: Take a bristle and dip it in the denatured alcohol.
Step 3: Some dried paints are coming off the plastic region. That’s the perfect time to scrap the region with the bristle. Don’t go much rough because denatured alcohol is potent and might damage the plastic.
Step 4: You won’t have to go for a re-scrapping here. The work should’ve been done already. Just rinse the plastic with water and soap. You’ll get the outcome the way you wanted.
Caution
Unlike rubbing alcohol, denatured alcohol is potent, so strong that it can damage anything or take out the initial outlook from anything.
Be careful when you’re working with it. Keep your hands and skin covered. Most importantly, don’t overuse it.
Method-4: Vegetable Oil
The surprise cleaning method is here! It has to be one of your house’s most common and available things. Like, c’mon, who doesn’t have vegetable oil at their place? The oil you cook then will be used to remove paint.
Don’t ponder too much; the nature of vegetable oil is capable of doing so. See how.
Step 1: Pour some oil on a clean cloth or rag or paper towel. Use the cloth to rub the oil over the surface.
Step 2: Take a plastic scraper and scrap the dried paint from the region. In the meanwhile, keep pouring the oil on the scrapping region. The target is to keep the place slippery and scrap to get the paint particles out.
Step 3: Once scraping the paint out, clean the area with hot water and soap or detergent. Ensure that the plastic is clean and tidy.
Method-5: Antiseptic Solution
If you’re looking for an easy solution to take the paint out of plastic, then the antiseptic liquid can be a reasonable means. All you have to do is to spread it out over the paint and let it do the rest.
It’s easy. Just know how to do it.
Step 1: If your plastic is small, immerse it in the antiseptic solution. Or, take a clean paper towel or brush and rinse it over the paint region. Let the liquid settle for 2-3 hours. Take much in proportion so that it doesn’t dry out.
Step 2: After the time, take a clean cloth. Soak it in the antiseptic solution and start rubbing on the paint. Remove as much dry paint you can.
Step 3: You’ll see dried paint particles slowly coming out from the plastic. As you’re doing the removal with your hand, put extra effort where you find the density of the paint.
Step 4: There will still be some remaining paint. Get it off the plastic surfaces by yourself, repeating the same steps again.
Step 5: Wash the plastic with warm water and soap after getting all the paints out.
Caution:
Don’t use a scrapper here because the solution is enough to remove dried acrylic paint from the surface. If you implement a plastic scraper or putty knife there, you might damage the plastic region for it. Nail polish remover is the same here.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: Will Vinegar Remove Acrylic Paint?
Vinegar does work to remove acrylic paint. It works best to remove dried acrylic paint from clothes or rough garments or synthetic fabrics.
All you have to do is to mix it with ammonia and pour it over the dried paint. Pinch salt over the region and start scrubbing the paint. You’ll see the acrylic particles coming out slowly.
Q: How Do You Get Dried Acrylic Paint off?
Denatured alcohol is the best medium to get dried acrylic paint off. Just pour the liquid on the cloth and let it soak for a minute or two.
After that, slowly rub the region in a circular motion and try to get most of the paint out. Clean the surface with soapy water or wash it out thoroughly.
Q: How Do You Remove Acrylic Paint Without Damaging Plastic?
You can use rubbing alcohol, ammonia, or antiseptic to remove acrylic paint without any damage. These are the best cleaner to work with, be it on acrylic paint or spray paint.
You just have to select one of those and apply them to the paint. Give a scrub with a brush or bristle, and you’ll find the paint coming out. Wait for some time to let the cleaner settle in there.
Final Words
There shouldn’t be any if or buts in removing dried acrylic paint off plastic now. You should never worry about using acrylic paint openly because you know how to deal with them later.
But some chemicals like acetone or nail polish remover should never be used on plastic. Don’t forget to remove the dust particles as well, otherwise you’ll see the paint remains there.
The methods we mentioned are enough for you to work with. So, you can remove acrylic from your plastics relentlessly now.