5 Easy Methods To Clean & Get Dried Acrylic Paint Off Plastic Palette
With their many uses and adaptability, acrylics are quite well-liked. Acrylic adheres to most surfaces, even plastic palettes, which is one of its drawbacks. How then may dried acrylic paint be removed from a plastic palette? A plastic palette should be soaked in hot water and scrubbed with a soft-bristled brush to remove dried acrylic paint from it. Alternative cleaning techniques include soaking dried paint in oil, wiping paint off with a solvent, and peeling paint off with an acrylic gel medium. Heavy coats of dried acrylic paint can be removed with ease and without the use of additional cleaning agents. There are alternative methods to remove the paint, though, if you are unable to peel off dried acrylic paint.
Method 1: Leave The Palette In Hot Water
Acrylic paint hardens into a coating that adheres to your plastic palette as it dries. This coating can be made simpler to take off by soaking the palette in hot water. This technique doesn't involve chemicals and won't scratch the surface of your palette. To remove dried acrylic paint with hot water, follow these steps:
- Pour boiling water into a bowl and put the palette inside. To stop the palette from floating up, weigh it down.
- To soften the dried acrylic paint, soak the palette in water for a few hours (ideally overnight).
- Remove the palette and rub or peel the acrylic coating off. Save the paint in a glass container for recycling or reuse if it comes off in chunks.
- Use a brush to remove any remaining paint from your palette if there is any. Clean it off with water, then let it air dry.
Due to the fact that acrylics are water-based, hot water helps to remove dried acrylic paint. Even after it has fully dried, a water-based paint is quite prone to disintegrate in water. The water's warm temperature makes it easier for the paint to quickly absorb the water, hastening the cleaning process.
Method 2: Scrub Dried Acrylic Paint Using A Soft Brush
With the use of a soft brush and dry scrubbing, you can remove heavy paint layers off palettes. Although using a hard-bristle brush rather than a soft one may be more productive, your palette could get scratched. The subsequent time dry paint becomes adhered, these scratches will make removal more challenging. The dried acrylics will really be literally torn apart by the brush's bristles. Wash the dried paint off with warm water after it has peeled off in chunks.
Method 3: Soak Dried Acrylic Paint In Oil
Oils and acrylics don't mix since acrylics are water-based. So, if oil comes between dry acrylics and a solid surface, dried paint may start to peel off. Use the straightforward instructions below to remove dried acrylics with oil:
- Cotton balls in olive oil to soak.
- These cotton balls should be placed on your palette.
- The pallet should be covered with cling wrap and left overnight.
- Take out the cotton balls, then use a rag to wipe the paint away.
- Using soap and warm water, clean the palette. Dry it out.
Oil does not dissolve the paint, in contrast to the other cleaning techniques described in this article. The oil really creates a layer between the plastic and the cured paint by slipping beneath the surface and seeping through. The dried paint separates from the palette's surface as a result of the oil and water in the paint's immiscibility.
Method 4: Rub The Paint Off Using A Solvent
If hot water or oil soaking doesn't work, consider using a solvent like isopropyl alcohol. To remove the dried paint using this technique:
- The solvent should be poured onto your palette, then left for roughly two hours.
- To remove the paint from the palette, rub it with a fresh rag or cotton ball.
- Wipe the palette clean after the paint has separated from it.
- The palette should be rinsed with warm water after the paint has been removed, then dried.
A solvent is a substance that helps paint dissolve. Any acceptable solvent will combine with dried paint to restore it to its liquid state when it comes into touch with the solvent. The palette can thus be easily cleaned without exerting any effort by simply rinsing out the liquid paint.
Method 5: Use An Acrylic Gel Medium
It is very possible that you have acrylic gel medium on hand if you are an artist who utilizes acrylic paint. Acrylic gel mediums are used to change the characteristics of acrylics and make them thicker. Due to their capacity to bond with paint, they are employed to preserve the texture of the paint. Furthermore, dried acrylic paint can be removed using an acrylic gel medium. Follow these steps to do so:
- Spread your preferred gel media over the dried acrylic paint.
- Give the gel time to thoroughly dry. That ought to take three to four hours.
- Peel off the dried-up gel by chipping the edge. The gel and the majority of the acrylics should come off easily.
- After giving the palette a warm water rinse, let it air dry.
Once the gel medium dries, it fuses with the paint layer and creates a skin on top of it. The paint also pulls from the palette's surface as you peel off the dry gel.