Are you trying to get some pesky spray paint off your concrete patio or stairs? You're in the right place!
In this ProPaintCorner.com guide, you'll learn:
- What you need to know about spray paint on concrete
- Supplies you'll need to remove spray paint from concrete
- How to remove spray paint from concrete
And much more!
So, how exactly do you get spray paint off concrete?
Luckily, it can be done, and in some cases it's much easier than you'd imagine.
That's why we created this helpful guide to ridding your concrete of spray paint once and (hopefully) for all!
So, before you try to removing spray paint from concrete, I recommend you read our guide below to learn how to do it as easily as possible!
What You Need To Know About Spray Paint on Concrete
The difficult thing about spray paint is that it goes on in layers very quickly. Just by its nature, spray paint is a difficult paint to remove because it's spraying on so many layers of quickly-drying paint in a short amount of time.
While some paint removal are easier than others, that doesn't mean it's impossible to do with spray paint. Removing paint from your concrete surface is possible thanks to various paint strippers, pressure washers, and other tools that will loosen up those layers and spray them away, (hopefully with minimal scrubbing).
Protect Your Concrete While Removing Spray Paint
First of all, we don't want to damage your concrete with these paint remover solutions while we try to take care of that paint stain.
This is especially true for those using nail polish remover, lacquer thinner, or any sort of toxic chemical component to dissolve the paint.
But, if that compound can dissolve concrete, it's certainly not good for your health. Avoid direct contact with any of these solutions while you're removing the spray paint and make sure you're always wearing goggles, gloves, and proper protective equipment.
You may find that the stain you're working on isn't as bad, in which case if you want to try out a baking soda solution or even just pass over it with a pressure washer first to avoid the chemicals, it's worth a shot!
Concrete Is Absorbent
The downside to this stain is that concrete is absorbent. It's a porous material, so it can act like a sponge.
This might mean that you need to apply extra elbow grease and a few reapplications to get your garage floor or concrete wall back to normal.
The best thing you can do to avoid a permanent stain is to address the stain as quickly as possible.
However, the steps detailed below should still help you remove even the toughest paint stain out there!
Did the spray paint stain your brick wall too? Read our other article on how to remove spray paint from brick here.
Supplies You’ll Need to Get Spray Paint off of Concrete
- Paint remover or paint thinner
- Scraper
- Pressure washer or power washer
- Safety goggles
- Bristle brush or scrub brush
- Goof off
- Elbow grease
How To Get Spray Paint off of Concrete (5-Step Guide)
Now that you've gathered the proper supplies, here are the 5 key steps to removing spray paint from your concrete wall, garage floor, or any other slab of concrete that's been affected!
- Use a Solution to Saturate the Area
- Go over the area with a sprayer full of hot water
- Scrub with a firm bristle or wire brush
- Reapply solution until paint fades completely
- Thoroughly rinse the concrete with hot soapy water until clean
Did the spray paint stain your wood or wood trim, too? Read our other article on how to remove spray paint from brick here.
Step 1: Use a Solution to Saturate the Area
The first thing to do is saturate all the paint stains with your chosen paint remover solution. We recommend Goof Off for most stains since it's a tried and true paint remover for spray paint.
But, if it works just fine and you're seeing some progress, go ahead and saturate the entire stain and let that absorb for a few seconds.
Step 2: Go Over the Area with a Sprayer Full of Hot Water
Next, you'll want to go over that area with a pressure washer, pump sprayer, or any other form of power washer you have access to.
This will not only blast away the paint that the solution loosened up, but it will also dilute the paint thinning solution on your concrete and minimize any damage.
As you spray the stain, keep an eye on how much of the stain it's removing. Sometimes you'll get it on the first try, but usually you'll have to repeat these steps a few times to completely remove the spray paint from the concrete.
Step 3: Scrub with a Firm Bristle or Wire Brush
Here's the fun part: scrubbing.
Now, if you're one of the lucky folks who got all the spray paint off in step 2, this won't apply to you.
But if you're starting to see some progress and you want to completely eliminate the paint, you'll need to scrub at the concrete with a firm bristle brush of some sort.
Don't be afraid to put in some elbow grease. As you scrub away, you should see the paint moving around and liquifying a bit. This is a sign that it's working!
Step 4: Reapply Solution Until It Completely Starts to Fade
This is where we start repeating steps 1-3 in order to get the best results possible.
With most solutions, it's safe to reapply them several times as long as you're watching carefully for any concrete erosion.
As long as your concrete can handle it, you can keep applying to get every last speck of paint off of your concrete floor or wall.
Step 5: Thoroughly Rinse Concrete With Hot Soapy Water Until Clean
Hooray! You've got all the spray paint off the concrete, now it's time to give it a thorough cleaning.
This is an essential part of the process, though, because if you leave paint thinner, nail polish remover, or any other thinning agent on your concrete it will erode over time.
That's why you need to completely remove all the remnants of the thinner as well as the paint from your concrete.
If you still have that pressure washer handy, I'd recommend giving it a rinse at least 2 times with some soapy solution.
If you're scrubbing by hand, I'd aim for 3-4 rounds of cleaning just to make sure you got it all off.
And once that's all done, you get to enjoy your newly-spotless concrete again!
Final Thoughts on Getting Spray Paint off of Concrete
Spray paint and graffiti can be tricky things to remove from any surface.
It's important to take great care when working around spray paint because of the chemicals involved that are toxic to the human body.
While spray paint is removable from most surfaces, that doesn't mean it's a fun DIY project to get it off, right?
So, if you find yourself needing to remove spray paint from various surfaces, these tips should be helpful.
Check out our ultimate guide to removing spray paint from any surface here to learn more about how spray paint stains work!
