Painting walls in your house is a good way of exercising your level of creativity. It can also be a fun and therapeutic activity only if done correctly.
Adding some accent to your walls using oil-based paints is a good way of making your home warmer and more habitable.
Although the painting session may be full of fun, it may sometimes get messy, and you will have accidental spillages on your carpet. So what happens next?
By now, I am sure you know that removing oil paint from the carpet is not a walk in the park and can be daunting if you do not know the appropriate steps. But do not worry; we’ve got you covered.
We will discuss various ways to get oil paint out of carpets in the post below. The ways are easy and will make your carpet spotless in no time.
Stay with me.
What Is Oil Paint and How Long It Takes to Dry on a Surface
Oil-based paints contain colors made with an oil solvent as a base, unlike other paints. The oil solvent commonly identified as turpentine is the mineral responsible for the great daily finishes you see on the walls.
What about drying time? Before cleaning an oil-based paint from any surface, the greatest factor is time.
To be on the safer side, the sooner you clean the paint from the carpet, the better because the paint has not had enough time to dry up on the carpet.
Waiting for the oil paint to fully dry can take several hours, even days, depending on the outside weather. If it is sunny, it may take fewer hours due to high temperatures, but it may take days in some cases if it is rainy due to low temperatures.
And if that’s not enough, you may fail to have the appropriate materials used for cleaning that may spread the oil paint on your carpet, leaving you with more mess than you anticipated.
What does this mean for you?
You need quality cleaning materials that scrap every paint particle from your carpet. Stick around.
What Removes Oil Paint From Your Carpet?
Before removing oil paint from your carpet, it is vital to know the products that will do an outstanding job. Getting just any type of product is quite risky as it will do a shoddy job leaving you in regrets.
For convenience, you can use home remedies that are easily accessible and usable. If used correctly, materials such as dishwashing liquids and mineral spirits can do an equally amazing job.
When using the materials above for cleaning the carpet, ensure you use cold water as it eliminates stains faster.
Apart from the readily available home remedy, other market-ready cleaning agents can do a better job when cleaning carpets. Materials such as turpentine and paint thinners are the usual products for cleaning oil-based paints on various surfaces, including carpets.
They are both strong chemicals crafted to thin out the paint corrosively into small disintegrated particles that you can easily wash away with soapy water.
After adding either of the chemical solutions to the carpet, you should let it seep into the paint for approximately 15 to 20 minutes before considering scrubbing the paint out. This seepage action allows the chemicals to easily dissolve the paint, dislodging it from the carpet’s surface.
Since the chemicals are corrosive, it is advisable to use more water to avoid corrupting your carpet. You can also use a natural solution such as a citrus solvent to deal with the toxic chemical fumes from turpentine and paint thinners.
How to Get Oil Paint out of Carpet: A Step By Step Procedure
Having discussed the basics above, let’s delve into a comprehensive step-by-step analysis to make your next cleaning exercise worthwhile.
Step One
Immediately after the oil paint accidentally splashes onto the carpet, dab a rag with your preferred paint remover options above and place it on the wet stain.
When placing the rag, ensure you do not smear the paint on other carpet parts since it will give you more work. You should also avoid rubbing as the paint will lodge into deeper parts of the carpet fabric.
Take note; this step only works well when the oils stain is fresh and a few minutes old. If you want this step to prove effective, use it immediately when the paint falls on the carpet, and you will be surprised.
On the other hand, if the paint has dried on the carpet fibers, you do not have to worry anymore. We have you sorted.
Now, let’s move to step two.
Step Two
Since the paint is dry, you will first have to rehydrate it to make the cleaning process easier.
First, you soften the paint using a carpet steamer to prepare it for step three.
The carpet steamer heats the spot up to 285 degrees Fahrenheit. Such high temperatures dislodge paint from the carpet fabric without damaging it.
After steaming, we now head to step three.
Step Three
Since the paint is soft enough, it has dislodged from the carpet’s fabric. You can use various methods to remove the paint, such as picking with a needle.
But the most effective way is washing the affected part with soapy water. Soapy water easily dislodges the paint particles from the fabric of the carpet.
When done, you can rinse it off with cold water, and if you still see some patches, repeat the following steps above until there is no visible patch.
Wrap Up
Oil-based paints can completely ruin your beautiful carpet if, by chance, they spill and manage to dry without your knowledge fully. But once you realize spillage has happened, do not worry or get angry.
The steps above are a sure way to have your precious carpet back to its original look without damaging its fabric.
However, whichever chemical substance you use for cleaning, you should be cautious when handling them since they are toxic and can cause some serious health issues.
If you master the steps above, you will have no trouble whatsoever when cleaning your carpet. I am positive that your stained carpets will be getting cleaned soon.
