Cleaning Paint Off of Linoleum

An unfortunate consequence of most painting or remodeling jobs is that occasionally there is a mess to clean up. When dealing with paint, this is commonly seen in the form of spills and stains. Considering how common it is to have both latex paint, and linoleum in a house, it only makes sense that you will need to do a little bit of cleaning eventually. Good thing that cleaning paint off of linoleum isn't all that difficult, just a little time consuming.

Items Needed:

• Sponge
• Razor blade
• Rubber gloves
• Rubbing alcohol
• Dish detergent (powdered or liquid)
• Paint thinner
• Bucket
• Cleaning eraser

Procedure:

1. Wipe it up. If you are lucky enough to catch the spill while it is still fresh, you should be able to wipe up most of the mess with a little bit of water and your sponge. You don't want to have the sponge be too wet, so after dunking it into your water filled bucket, and then wring it out until the sponge is damp. It can also be a tad helpful to add a couple of drops (liquid) or teaspoons (powdered) of dish detergent to the water. Take your time when wiping up the mess, and work your way from the outside in on the fresh wet paint.
2. Use some alcohol. For dried paint, use some rubbing alcohol. Considering that the rubbing alcohol could damage your hands (or at least dry them out) you may want to wear some rubber gloves while doing this. Dampen a sponge with the alcohol, and then begin scrubbing the floor where the stain is located. Work from the inside out, wiping in a circular motion when you are doing this. Periodically rinse out the sponge with water, and then reapply a little bit of the alcohol and continue to scrub away at the stain. Paint thinner will also work in this same manner, but should be used with caution (it could potentially harm your floor or countertop).
3. Apply the eraser. If you are still having some difficulty in removing the stain, you may want to use one of those cleaning erasers to do the job. Simply get the eraser wet and begin scrubbing away. You should have no problem whatsoever in getting rid of the stain, but you may need to use a couple of different erasers to get the job done.
4. Scrape it off. Unfortunately there are some particularly difficult stains out there, and latex paint can be one of those. Using a razor blade can work wonders when cleaning paint off of linoleum. However, you want to be particularly careful when you are doing this since you could accidentally cut into the linoleum. Carefully slip the razor blade under the stain and use it to pry the paint off of the floor. Repeat the process until you have removed all of the paint from the linoleum.