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While decorating a room, furniture or just letting the kids do craftwork with spray paint, it ca splatter on to a nearby mirror.
The question is how do you get spray paint off the mirror? It’s simple, just ask “Mirror mirror on the wall, how do you erase paint marks from you all?”
And the mirror might reply:
Unlike any ordinary paint, aerosol paint commonly known as spray paint sticks to glass surfaces firmly.
The particles of spray paint are small and dries quickly. And once it is dried, it is long-lasting and stubborn to remove.
That’s one positive side, but the negative side of using spray paint is that little dots of color will scatter to a nearby area.
Read on for how you can remove spray paint from a mirror surface:
How to Get Spray Paint Off Mirror: 7 Simple Methods to Follow
To get spray paint off your mirror, first, spray warm water on it and wait a few minutes. Then, scrub it using a damp melamine sponge. With repetitive scrubbing, the spray paint will come off.
Since there are many formulas for spray paint, you can read on for more methods to remove any leftover paint stains from your mirror.
Use Nail Polish Remover
Nail polish remover is the most trouble-free method to erase spray paint off the mirror as it is easy to find.
Nail polish remover is made with acetone, which helps the spray paint to come off quickly.
Just dip a cotton ball, or you can use a folded paper towel to get soaked with nail polish remover and wipe over the paint spill area.
You can use as much of the remover needed with regular pressure to not break the glass. With this technique, no harm will be made to the surface of the mirror.
Try Easy-Off Oven Cleaner
To protect your hands from the harmful effect of the chemicals, use rubber gloves.
To use Easy Off oven cleaner, spray it over the paint but make sure that it only touches the glass surface and not any wooden or design part of the mirror.
You can mask the wooden and painted designs with painter’s tape.
Otherwise, its polish can get damaged. Let the cleaner be set for 30 seconds then you can use a scrubber to scrub off the paint.
This way, you’ll get a paint-free perfectly shiny mirror.
Sometimes spray paint is not evenly distributed. In some areas, they are thin and quickly come off, and in some places, they are so thick and stubborn, which needs more strength and reapplying the cleaning method.
Use Vinegar
If you’re still stuck with spray paint stains, use cleaning vinegar.
It is much stronger than regular vinegar. To save your skin from drying out in too much exposure, wear rubber gloves before dealing with cleaning vinegar.
Apply it with a cotton ball and wait for it to do the magic of stripping paint.
Then use a soft cotton cloth to wipe off the paint dots. You have to rub continuously with a circular motion to get the best result.
Use Grafitti Remover
Without calling for professional help, you can recover your mirror by using a graffiti remover.
It’s a heavy duty cleaner that is safe to use around pets and people.
First, I recommended testing the formula on an inconspicuous area.
You can use painter’s tape to mask the border of the mirror.
Then you can spray about 7 inches away from the surface and saturate the area you want to clean.
Wait 2 minutes for it to do its magic, then wipe it with a clean soft cloth.
You can reapply to tackle stubborn or old spray paint stains.
Use Paint Thinner
Another way to remove the paint if it has dried for a few days and turned rock hard, you may find out that the gentle removers won’t work on them.
Other than acetone, you can have some help from other paint thinners like turpentine, Naphtha, Toluene.
Work in a well-ventilated area. It is best to do this outdoors.
Just dip a corner of cotton cloth into the thinner and rub around the messed up area. To remind you again, don’t forget to wear rubber gloves.
To loosen up thick paint, wait for a few minutes to let the thinner do its magic of dissolving the paint and then wipe it off.
Using a Scraper
If you want to avoid using chemicals and the melamine sponge, then you can stick to the old method of scraping paint off the mirror with a sharp blade.
For best result, use hot water with few drops of liquid soap in it. Apply the soapy water on the spots with a small hand towel generously.
Wait a few minutes for the soapy water to penetrate and that will also prevent the mirror from getting scratches.
Scratching your glass depends on how much pressure you put on while scraping. In that case, you have to be very cautious.
Push the scraper from one side to another and gently lift it from the glass after finishing one stroke.
Remember not to drag the blade backward; otherwise, it can have the possibility of making a scratch on your glass.
If you hear a rough sound stop immediately as it means the blade is defective and you have to replace it.
Continue the process until all the unwanted paint mark is gone. Do a final wash with soapy water to make the mirror squeaky clean.
Hair Dryer
If you want to know how you can remove spray paint off the mirror but don’t have the things mentioned above, you will want to try this one.
Use a hairdryer on high heat.
First, you can spray the mirror with soapy water method to soften the paint first.
Then leave the hairdryer on it until it heats up and wipe with a soft damp cloth.
Now, to take precautions and protect all pieces of decor from getting sprayed, it is better to move them elsewhere in the house.
Not all furniture can be moved easily nor fixed wall hangings like a mirror, so what can be done about it?
- You can cover them with old bedsheets which you don’t need anyway
- You can hide them under plastic sheets
- You can cover them up with newspaper
- Or if you want to cover some edges, you can simply use masking tape known as painters tape made with tape that won’t ruin painted surfaces
These are a few precautions to save you from damaging your valuable items.
Takeaway
The first thing you should try is using a melamine sponge.
The methods mentioned will help you get spray paint off of your mirror.
Related:
50 Brilliant House Cleaning Tips That You Must Know
How to Remove Paint from Baseboards
