So, when I carry my bike down the front stairwell in our apartment, the wheels tend to knock against the walls and leave marks. I’d like to take the opportunity to clean said marks, but haven’t the slightest idea of where to start. You see, I’m deathly afraid of chemicals…
I tried paper towels and water, but that didn’t get too far. The walls are plaster with a matte paint finish on them. Do I use Windex? Soap and water? Just dry rub off?
Thanks in advance.
These can just be rubbed off if you rub vigourously, however this could damage your wall covering.
Mr. Clean dry sponges work great for this!
The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
Buy a four pack for $3 and tell me I’m wrong.
Krud Kutter cleans everything off everything. Including your paint off the walls. (It even gets the point off your grout!)
Another vote for the Mr. Clean Eraser sponge thingy. This thing has changed my life. Seriously. I need to get a life.
My mom bought me a package of four. We spent the whole day giggling like schoolgirls, running from one ancient-mark-on-the-wall to the next. It was quite a bonding thing…
What’s the matter, where you bitten by an aldehyde as a child?
Would that be called 1,1,2-chemophobia?
Unless someone else comes up with something before I can get to the store tomorrow, Mr. Clean it is. Thanks for the help.
Re: being scared of chemicals. No, I wasn’t bitten but rather engulfed…
Look under your kitchen sink, you’ll find something that’ll do the job under there. First try a mild solution of dish detergent and warm water. If that doesn’t pick up the tire scuffs, then I expect that a bit of Fantastik or 409 or Simple Green or basically any degreaser and a paper towel will do it. In both cases, first try dampening a paper towel or sponge and rubbing firmly but not scouring.
Sure, the Mr Clean thingee will probably do it. But do you already have one under your sink?
The problem with most of the things under the sink on matte paint is that even the most gentle rubbing will often indelibly mark the surface.
We-e-e-e-lll, I use a regular cellulose sponge and some Ajax or Comet (but just a very small amount) with water, when the kidz mark up my stairwell getting bikes in or out. Two important details – rub gently, as others have said. Also be sure to rinse off the spot you’ve cleaned with a fresh spongeful of water, or the bleach in the cleanser may discolor the area.
Works for me, anyway.
For anyone interested in the results:
Round 1) Water and paper towels. Got off some of the markings, but couldn’t erase them completely.
Round 2) Warm soap and dishwasher soap w/sponge. Basically the same effect as round 1.
Round 3) Non-ammonia based household cleaner and paper towel. Did the same amount of work as round 1 but lots faster.
Round 4) Non-ammonia based household cleaner and sponge. Aha! the best yet. got off nearly everything with gentle scrubbing. Some of the darker stains will probably need another pass in the future, but this is looking good so far. Had a more difficult time on the white walls than the colored ones and didn’t make anything completely vanish, but close enough for my taste. The only problem is that there are some massive dark spots on the wall (noticable only when viewed at an angle and with indirect lighting), but I suspect that this is a result of the moisture being left on the walls. Will see if this affects the paint color.
If this doesn’t work, it’ll be the comet and sponge and if not, then we bring in Mr. Clean…
Here’s another one: When I lean my bike against the wall to open the door, the chain occasionally rubs against the carpet on the stairs. How would I best get this off? Just use Resolve or something?
What color are the walls? If it’s a normal color (as in not mixed specifically for you), and especially if your renting (which you didn’t mention)…How about spray paint. Even if I wasn’t renting, if the walls were straight white seems like that would be the easiest way to go. Just hold the can far enough away that you don’t leave a distinct mark between what you just painted and the existing paint, a couple of nice sweeping motions and nobody will know the difference.
I should mention that if cleaning is possible I would do that first, but if I couldn’t get the marks off after a few trys, this would be my next approach.
Paper towels and a few drops of eucalyptus oil does the job for me but I imagine Aussies and New Zealanders are probably the only people likely to have a bottle sitting around. Mine is in the laundry basket for with the towels and sheets.
It cleans off marks and smells good. I then rinse with paper towel and water.
Before you start prepare yourself for the fact that if the paint is a few years old covered in a few years grime, the clean spots (no matter what you use) may be more prominent than the marks were. Then it becomes time to scrub the whole wall with your cleaner of choice.
I’m going to echo what others have said and tell you (urge you) to go out and buy a pack of Mr. Clean Magic Erasers.
Trust me, you’re wasting your time with anything else.
The things are absolutely, incredibly amazing.
I actually *look *for marks to clean up with mine, it’s just so damn easy.
Mr Clean Magic Erasers are cheap and do the job with no fuss what so ever.
They also get the baked on bug guts off your windshield.