We often feel like we don’t have enough time to clean up our surroundings, including paint stains on our wooden floors. Unfortunately, letting paint stains sit still on the wooden surface can make them more difficult to remove in the future.
It is because these stains have hardened and become paint splatters. Attempts to remove paint splatters from our wooden floors can damage the surfaces if we’re not careful in executing the ways to get rid of them. Here, we present how to remove paint splatter from wood floors.
What are the different types of paint splatters on wood floors?
Essentially, there are two types of paints, which are oil-based and water-based. These two paints can stain and become splatters on wooden surfaces. Even so, there are several things that we can refer to in differentiating between the two paint types.
Oil-based paints produce thicker splatter dimensions than their water-based counterparts when they become splatters. As a result, we need to scrap oil-based splatters thoroughly when we think about how to remove these oil-based splatters from our wooden floors’ surfaces.
At the same time, it doesn’t mean water-based paints are less problematic than their oil-based counterparts. Since water-based paints are more resistant to weather conditions and more prone to fall around the surfaces, these paint types can also be challenging to clean, particularly from the angles of the “waterfalls”.
What are the precautions before removing the splatters from the floors?
The environment around the floors is what comes to our mind when talking about precautions before remove paint splatter from wood floors.
We must set up the room environment in certain ways to prevent damaging our wooden floors’ surfaces. Here are the things:
- A well-ventilated room is a must. If there are no fully-functioned air conditioners, the room has a window and a large-sized fan.
- Avoid lighting things that ignite a fire, such as candles and fireplaces.
- Before removing the splatters, make sure the wooden floor surface is free of debris, dust, mites, bugs, and the like.
- Study and experience different natural solutions to eliminate splatters, as professional help can be costly.
- Never use bare hands when removing the splatters. Instead, use safety gloves and other equipment while we execute the steps.
How can we remove oil paint from wooden floors?
Follow these instructions to remove oil-based paint splatters from your wooden floors:
- Mix isopropyl alcohol and lemon juice with a ratio of 3:1 in a measuring cup. Dip the damp cloth inside the solution to clean up the oil splatters.
- Use a putty knife or the plastic edge of our credit cards to scrap the remaining splatters.
- Use toothpicks to remove smaller-sized splatters.
- Repeat Step 2 and Step 3 until we can remove the entire splatters.
- Wipe the dipped damp cloth on the wooden floor until you cover the whole floor.
- Let them sit for around 2-5 minutes.
- Use another dried cloth to remove the debris and dry the surface.
- Re-apply varnishes with the same colors and patterns, then repeat Step 6 for the wooden varnishes.
Other methods to get oil-based paint off the hardwood floor
You probably know it’s hard to get rid of oil-based paint. If you know from the paint can that the paint stains are oil-based, or if the above methods don’t work, you may need to try the most powerful oil-based paints.
Work carefully because these more powerful ways to get rid of paint can hurt your floor if you don’t do it right.
Removing oil-based paint with denatured alcohol
Most oil-based paints won’t come off with soap and water. With some denatured alcohol and a rag, you should have better luck.
Apply denatured alcohol on a cloth and dab it on the paint for a few minutes. Then try to scrape off the softened paint. Please don’t use too much alcohol; if you spill it, wipe it up immediately to protect the wood floor.
Remove oil-based paint with a hair dryer
Water- and oil-based paints can be dried with a blow dryer or heat gun made for floors. If you can’t wash off a tricky acrylic paint, you can try heating it next. In any case, oil-based paints should work with it.
Turn on the blow dryer or heat gun and hold it a few inches away from the spot of color while scraping it with a plastic spatula. The heat should make the paint easier to take off.
This method should take only a few seconds of heat with a heat gun. Keep checking to see if the paint is soft enough to scrape off so you don’t use more heat than you need to. Heat can warp or damage parquet, especially high-quality parquet with a nice finish.
Once the paint is off, go over the area with a wet and a dry rag.
Removing oil-based paint with paint thinner
If you can’t get an oily paint stain off your floor with anything else, you might have to use paint thinner. When using paint thinner, you must take extreme caution since it can be hazardous to your health and harm the surface of your hardwood floor.
Before using paint thinner, ensure the room has a lot of airflow. Open the windows and doors and use a fan if you have one. When cleaning a big stain, this is even more important. If you smoke or burn candles, don’t do it because the smoke can start a fire.
Paint thinner is dangerous if it gets on the floor. Dip a small rag into the paint thinner and rub the paint splatters away with it until they are gone.
Again, please don’t add too much water to the paint. This chemical is dangerous and could hurt you or your soil. Use the right fluid and pressure to get the dried paint off.
How can we remove water paint splatter from wood floors?
Water paints’ different characteristics from oil-based paints make removing paint splatter from wood floors different. More precisely, here are the step-by-step instructions:
- Use a heat gun to target the splatters until they soften.
- Step two is the same as the oil paint splatters in Step one. Or, you can substitute the alcohol and lemon juice with the usual soapy water while dipping the damp cloth inside the mixture.
- Scratch the already-softened splatters with a putty knife.
- Repeat Step one and Step three for the entire water paint splatter.
- Use a paint thinner for the remaining splatters.
- Meanwhile, coat the entire surface using the dipped damp cloth in Step two.
- Let them sit for around 2-5 minutes before we can dry the surface with another cloth.
Other methods to remove water-based paint from a hardwood floor
There are two basic types of water-based paint: latex and acrylic. Latex paints are a little bit easier to clean up than acrylic paints. In the following sections, you will find different ways to get rid of different water-based paint.
Remove water-based paints with soap and water
After scraping off as much as possible with a plastic spatula, mild soap and water are the next steps for water-based paints.
Mix some mild dish soap with warm water, then use a damp cloth to scrub. Don’t let the floor get too wet because too much water can hurt the parquet. Use enough water to make the paint wet, and focus on removing the stain.
The soap breaks the paint’s chemical bonds, so it’s easier to scrape off. If you need to, use the spatula again on the softened paint. Lastly, use a dry rag to clean the soap, water, and paint.
Removing water-based paints with alcohol
If soap and water aren’t enough to remove the paint, Try the stronger chemical alcohol.
It would be best if you had used denatured alcohol for this procedure to function well. If you can’t find denatured alcohol, mix three parts isopropyl rubbing alcohol with one part lemon juice. You can use an alcohol cleaning pad if you’re in a real bind.
Dip a ragged corner into the alcohol and press it against the dried paint splatter. Don’t touch it for 5–10 minutes.
Then rub a little bit more alcohol into the spots. Some of the paint will soften and break down because of the alcohol. This will make it easy to scrape off.
Use a wet cloth to wipe up the last bits of water and dry the floor.
How can we remove paint splatters without scraping?
Some wood types react sensitively to scraping. Plus, false scraping methods can damage wooden floor surfaces. The good news: We can remove paint splatters without scraping them, and here’s how we do it:
- Spill some white vinegar and nail polish remover on the splatters. Alternatively, you can also use WD-40 or other commercially-available cleaning agents for paint splatters that have sat for too long.
- Apply some portions of glycerin on a dried towel. Later on, we used glycerin to dampen the towel.
- Wipe away the towel in Step 2 around the surface until we cover the entire surface.
- Peel the splatters with our hands that we’ve covered with safety gloves.
How to remove dried paint from the floor
Let’s say the paint spots have been there for a long time and have dried. In that case, you can try to soften them with hot air, like a hair dryer, soften them with a cleaning solution of hot oil and water, like boiled linseed oil, or dissolve them with a solvent, like turpentine or alcohol.
If you can get the paint to come off, you can wipe it or scrape it.
Most of the time, the only way to get paint residue off the wood floor without leaving a mark is to scrape it.
For instance, you could use a scalpel, a ceramic hob scraper, or an old plastic credit card. But you must be careful not to damage the floor’s surface when scraping off the leftover paint.
How to use paint remover for dried paint
If these everyday household items don’t work to get rid of dried paint, you might want to buy something made for the job.
Paint remover can be poured on the stain and then wiped away.
They don’t hurt the floor in any way. Even better, they work on both water-based and oil-based paints.
Just pay close attention to the instructions for the best results.