help!! emulsion paint on carpet
- Thread starter baggies
- Start date
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Sorry but emulsion paint is not really water based. The paint resins aren't dissolved in the water - a better word would be dispersed. That's why it's called emulsion.
Emulsions are funny things and I don't pretend to understand them completely though I think it's got something to do with electrically charged particles surrounded by water's highly polarized molecules. Any chemists reading this please help me out!
Once the water evaporates it is not possible (for us) to re-emulsify the paint itself. Moreover, paint doesn't just dry; it also polymerizes. Try wiping freshly dried oil based paint with white spirit. It comes off. Now try the same trick with old, well hardened paint. White spirit won't touch this stuff. You will need something like methylene chloride and even this won't actually dissolve old paint.
None of this is helping you get that paint off your carpet but here's something I learnt by accident - and I don't know why it works. Meths takes emulsion paint off walls. This is worth trying on you carpet. If it doesn't work you can remove meths with water.
I do have another trick that works only with small spots and only if they haven't sunk down into the pile. Get a small pare of wire cutters or nail clippers and cut the spots out. The slight dents in the surface of the carpet will never be noticed.
Emulsions are funny things and I don't pretend to understand them completely though I think it's got something to do with electrically charged particles surrounded by water's highly polarized molecules. Any chemists reading this please help me out!
Once the water evaporates it is not possible (for us) to re-emulsify the paint itself. Moreover, paint doesn't just dry; it also polymerizes. Try wiping freshly dried oil based paint with white spirit. It comes off. Now try the same trick with old, well hardened paint. White spirit won't touch this stuff. You will need something like methylene chloride and even this won't actually dissolve old paint.
None of this is helping you get that paint off your carpet but here's something I learnt by accident - and I don't know why it works. Meths takes emulsion paint off walls. This is worth trying on you carpet. If it doesn't work you can remove meths with water.
I do have another trick that works only with small spots and only if they haven't sunk down into the pile. Get a small pare of wire cutters or nail clippers and cut the spots out. The slight dents in the surface of the carpet will never be noticed.
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Hi,
I bought a little tube of 'Paint Away' from Kleeneze. Its for emulsion or gloss and I've used it successfully on my jeans. Its a gel that lifts the paint off but you still have to pick at it a bit. I think its their own label so not sure if there is something in the shops thats similar....
Emma
I bought a little tube of 'Paint Away' from Kleeneze. Its for emulsion or gloss and I've used it successfully on my jeans. Its a gel that lifts the paint off but you still have to pick at it a bit. I think its their own label so not sure if there is something in the shops thats similar....
Emma
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Maybe its a job for your insurance company!
2
2scoops0406
felix said:
You mean a liquid / liquid colloid, emulsion indeed !!
I have had the same problem but managed to clean off dried emulsion paint with bicarbonate of soda.
Probably sorted now , it was 6 years ago.
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