One way to get paint out of the carpet…

June 28, 2008 > 8 Comments

How do I know this… well, I tripped and spilled about a cup of paint on the carpet today while I was finishing the playroom. Unfortunately, I do not have pictures of this little mishap, although getting the camera did cross my mind in the initial moments of panic.

When the paint first spilled I grabbed the towel next to me and put it directly on the spill. I was trying to blot it up, this worked a little bit, but there was too much paint. I did this several times, blotting, not scrubbing, and was able to remove the top layer of paint. While I was doing this I was thinking that there had to be a way to remove this paint, and then I thought about how you remove paint from a paint brush… water! I called for every rag in the house and a pitcher of water. I poured water on the spill zone and then blotted it up, I continued this process for about 30 minutes, I could have gone longer but we ran out of rags. I removed about 90% of the paint using this method. Fortunately I spilled bright yellow paint on beige carpet so it did blend once the paint had faded significantly.

After my constant flooding of the carpet I put a fan on the carpet to help dry it out.

You can see there is a little yellow tint in a few parts of the carpet. The paint was sunshine yellow, so I was happy with the results. I think if I would have spent more time adding water and blotting I probably would have been able to get it all out.

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Comments

8 Responses to “One way to get paint out of the carpet…”

Rachel
June 28th, 2008 @ 8:51 pm

My husband has spilled black dye on our beige carpet before while building a mandolin. We used acetone & it came right up (even from dried spots). So if your carpet is more yellow than you prefer once it dries, try pouring a little acetone on it! I would recommend blotting a spot that is concealed first to ensure it doesn’t bleach though!

happyathome
June 28th, 2008 @ 11:14 pm

Thank goodness it was yellow on a beige, better than purple on beige!

Kim
June 29th, 2008 @ 12:51 am

Either you did a great job cleaning it up, or I’m blind, because I didn’t see any yellow at all!

Elizabeth
June 29th, 2008 @ 11:33 am

I also don’t see any yellow so you did great!

pattie
June 29th, 2008 @ 11:41 am

I think I heard Martha Stewart suggests the same thing. Something to do with diluting the stain at the same time. I have yet to try it but if it lifts yellow paint it must work!!

tara@from dawn till rusk
June 29th, 2008 @ 4:50 pm

I remember a friend of mine had just moved into a new-build house with brand new beige carpets throughout.
Her husband came home late after having to take the car for a tyre change – and walked oil across the lounge.
Big cartoon-style footprints across her lovely lounge.