How to Remove Paint Stains From Sidewalks

A sidewalk is made from concrete.

Sidewalks are made from unsealed concrete. Unsealed concrete is a porous material that will soak up and absorb any liquid it comes in contact with. This makes stain and paint removal difficult, especially if the paint has worked its way into the concrete and dried. If possible, absorb as much of the wet paint as soon as you see that it has spilled. This will make for easier removal. If the paint has already dried, it may take several attempts to remove all of the paint.

Things You'll Need

• Paint thinner
• Paint brush
• Metal paint scrapper
• Hose or bucket and mop

Instructions

1. Select a paint stripper. Chemical strippers are the most common and widely available paint strippers. When working with chemical strippers, be sure to wear protective gear, such as eye goggles, breathing mask and rubber gloves. Soy-based strippers also will work to remove the paint and are low odor and environmentally safe.

2. Dip a paint brush in the paint stripper. Paint a thin, even layer of paint stripper onto the part of the sidewalk that has a paint stain. Follow the manufacturer's recommendations for the amount of time the paint stripper should remain on the sidewalk. Typically, it's 10 to 30 minutes.

3. Use a metal paint scraper to lift the edges of the dried paint stripper. Once the edge is lifted, peel the stripper off in long strips. If it doesn't remove in long strips, scrape all of the paint stripper off. Repeat Steps 2 and 3 as many times as needed to remove the paint stain.

4. Spray the sidewalk down with a hose or fill a bucket with clean water and mop the sidewalk to remove all traces of the paint thinner.

References

• All Things Concrete: How to Remove Paint From Concrete