Un-tea staining a white wall
January 2, 2018 1:36 PM Subscribe
So I managed to get a drip of tea down a white wall, unnoticed for some twelve hours. How do I go about un-tea-staining a wall? I've tried scrubbing with warm water and baking soda but got worried I'd make the wall wet and different so didn't scrube very hard (yet).
I found a decade-ago Question about getting grease off a wall and wonder if the same applies. If that seems likely I could see about acquiring a Magic Eraser or that Simple Green stuff. (What's on my wall is un-shiny paint and the paint or wall itself is slightly textured.)
I found a decade-ago Question about getting grease off a wall and wonder if the same applies. If that seems likely I could see about acquiring a Magic Eraser or that Simple Green stuff. (What's on my wall is un-shiny paint and the paint or wall itself is slightly textured.)
Best answer: Magic Eraser would be my first try, you can sort of blend out the erased area if you're careful. If that doesn't work I'd try Soft Scrub with Bleach (let it set for a while before you try to wipe it off). You can also try a bleach pen if you think any scrubbing might show.
As a last resort, if you're a renter, you can probably get a little jar of touch-up paint from your landlord. I've done that for little scuffs and things and they rarely mind providing it.
posted by ananci at 1:58 PM on January 2, 2018 [1 favorite]
As a last resort, if you're a renter, you can probably get a little jar of touch-up paint from your landlord. I've done that for little scuffs and things and they rarely mind providing it.
posted by ananci at 1:58 PM on January 2, 2018 [1 favorite]
Adding on to the last resort, I've taken a piece of paint to home depot for matching. As long as the finish you choose is the same - usually some level of eggshell - then the matching has been near perfect. The trick may be getting the piece of paint.
posted by RoadScholar at 2:22 PM on January 2, 2018
posted by RoadScholar at 2:22 PM on January 2, 2018
Best answer: 1. Liquid bleach - just a smidge on a damp cloth, hold/pat gently on part of stain for a few seconds - if it's going to work it'll happen fairly fast.
2. Bleach pen - good idea for a small stain like tea drip - will give you some control. Have a clean cloth to dry the stain off.
2. Soft scrub (=bleach + abrasive) gently pat some on the stain like a poultice, let it set on the stain for perhaps 30 seconds. Rinse the grit off with wet clean sponge or cloth - don't scrub - the abrasive will screw up the finish.
3. Magic eraser - don't user this unless you already have experience using correctly. Most people don't. It's abrasive and will also screw up the finish. How to use correctly: wet sponge thoroughly, squeeze most but not all of the water out, leave wet enough that it'll drip if you press hard. Hold gently with the palm of your hand and make gentle passes just on the stained area. Dry the drips off the wall as you go with a clean cloth.
posted by Gnella at 2:44 PM on January 2, 2018 [3 favorites]
2. Bleach pen - good idea for a small stain like tea drip - will give you some control. Have a clean cloth to dry the stain off.
2. Soft scrub (=bleach + abrasive) gently pat some on the stain like a poultice, let it set on the stain for perhaps 30 seconds. Rinse the grit off with wet clean sponge or cloth - don't scrub - the abrasive will screw up the finish.
3. Magic eraser - don't user this unless you already have experience using correctly. Most people don't. It's abrasive and will also screw up the finish. How to use correctly: wet sponge thoroughly, squeeze most but not all of the water out, leave wet enough that it'll drip if you press hard. Hold gently with the palm of your hand and make gentle passes just on the stained area. Dry the drips off the wall as you go with a clean cloth.
posted by Gnella at 2:44 PM on January 2, 2018 [3 favorites]
Honestly, the easiest thing to do is make use of a can of Kilz followed by whatever color you want the wall to be. Unless a bunch of furniture needs to move and stuff needs to come off the wall it's maybe an hour or two of work and $30-40 in supplies.
I despise touch up paint because you can always see the seam in some light or another. My landlord repainted half of a couple of walls in the house we are presently renting and it sets off the OCD part of my brain. Despite every painted surface in the place being the same base white, the borders are still visible. :(
That said, a magic eraser might work if it's a latex paint and it hasn't soaked through more than a few microns. It will definitely alter the texture and reflectivity of the surface, though.
posted by wierdo at 3:44 PM on January 2, 2018
I despise touch up paint because you can always see the seam in some light or another. My landlord repainted half of a couple of walls in the house we are presently renting and it sets off the OCD part of my brain. Despite every painted surface in the place being the same base white, the borders are still visible. :(
That said, a magic eraser might work if it's a latex paint and it hasn't soaked through more than a few microns. It will definitely alter the texture and reflectivity of the surface, though.
posted by wierdo at 3:44 PM on January 2, 2018
Response by poster: Thanks, all!
A "Tide To Go" pen which I presume is more or less bleach (the packaging was unclear) has got the drip down to a yellowy smudge. I didn't think of such a thing, stain remover sticks being in my mind as "fabric solutions" while this is a "wall problem", but it seems to have done, if not the entire trick, enough to soothe my tea on the wall staring at me worries.
posted by readinghippo at 3:48 PM on January 2, 2018
A "Tide To Go" pen which I presume is more or less bleach (the packaging was unclear) has got the drip down to a yellowy smudge. I didn't think of such a thing, stain remover sticks being in my mind as "fabric solutions" while this is a "wall problem", but it seems to have done, if not the entire trick, enough to soothe my tea on the wall staring at me worries.
posted by readinghippo at 3:48 PM on January 2, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by srboisvert at 1:55 PM on January 2, 2018