When making home improvement projects like painting your house, it is normal for it to splash or drip on your floor. Sometimes when lucky, you might notice it very early and wipe it off effortlessly before it dries. In some cases, however, it might go unnoticed until it has dried up.
Also in some cases when you are painting laminate flooring, you might get paint in areas that you didn’t want it to get. Either because you didn’t tape the areas correctly or the paint was too thin and trickled in other areas.
To remove paint from laminate flooring is an easy and pocket-friendly task. You can make a homemade solution using vinegar, warm water, and rubbing alcohol. Mix them in equal proportions and apply them to the affected areas. This should just do the job effortlessly. Acetone-based Nail polish remover and ammonia-based window cleaner can also remove paint from laminate flooring.
Fortunately, laminate flooring is stain resistant and with the right solution, you can get the paint off completely. Cleaning dry paint on laminate flooring might be a little bit challenging but it is completely doable.
The most important thing to note while undertaking this procedure is to make sure you do not use abrasive tools. Concentrated solutions should not be used. Laminate flooring has a top glossy finish and if wiped with a very harsh solution you might destroy the finish.
4 ways to remove dry paint from Laminate Flooring
- Scraping off
- Using a home-made solution
- Ammonia-based window cleaner
- Acetone Based Nail Polish remover
Scraping off
Some paints when completely dry can be easily peeled off even by hand. In this case, however, you will need a non-abrasive tool to remove the paint. A good example is plastic putty knives or anything plastic in the house, even an old credit card.
Step 01: Place the putty knife at a 45-degree angle to the floor and push it away in the direction of the paint. You can use a tapping bar and gently hit the other side of the putty knife.
If after removing there’s some residue left, you can use a soft microfibre cloth dipped in a dilute solution of paint remover to rub it off until no trace is left.
Using a home-made solution
To make a homemade solution, you will need vinegar, rubbing alcohol, warm water, and dish soap. A soft microfibre cloth to make sure you don’t damage your floor through abrasion. A bucket to mix, a dust mop, and rubber gloves to protect your hands from being eaten by the chemicals.
Step 01: Use a dust mop to clean and remove any underlying dust and debris underlying on the floor.
Step 02: Mix equal parts of vinegar, warm water, and rubbing alcohol into a bucket and gently stir. Add a few drops of dish detergent soap, about 4 drops as you stir until they perfectly mix.
Step 03: Dip the soft microfiber cloth in the solution and wring to remove any excess solution. The cloth should be damp and not completely soaked to avoid moisture damage on the laminate floor.
Step 04: Wipe over the surface in back-and-forth motions. Rinse and repeat this procedure until all the paint is gone. Allow the floor to dry for some minutes before stepping on the surface.
The dish soap and the rubbing alcohol should remove any oil-based paint on the floor. The water and vinegar in the solution should lift and dissolve any water-based paints.
Ammonia Based Window Cleaner
Step 01: Vacuum the floor to remove any dirt and debris that might scratch the floor during the cleaning process. Use a dust mop after for a final smooth touch in case the vacuum left some particles.
Step 02: Put a solution of ammonia-based window cleaner in a spray bottle, and apply it to the affected areas. Allow it to sit to soak in the paint. Use a non-abrasive tool to scrub off as much paint as possible.
Step 03: Ammonia cuts through many ingredients that are found in paint. After scrubbing most of the paint, repeat the procedure of spraying but this time wiping with a soft microfibre cloth.
Make sure the room is well ventilated and no kids are in the house while doing this procedure. When you’re satisfied that the paint is all gone, allow the room to dry before stepping into it.
Acetone Based Nail Polish Remover
You can use acetone-based nail polish remover if your homemade solution does not seem to give you the expected results. Acetone helps in loosening paint and lifting it off your laminate flooring making it easy to wipe off.
The procedure is simple, apply the polish remover, let it sit for a while then wipe it off. If it does not work the first time, repeat until you get satisfied.
