I had a pen blow up on me inside my clothes dryer. I managed to get most of the ink off with water, some soap, and friction, but how can I get the faint traces out? What kind of cleanser should I use? For safety’s sake I am not using the dryer until I get this figured out.
One of the best things I’ve ever found for removing ink stains from surfaces is lighter fluid–the sort used in wick lighters, like Zippos. Dampen a paper towel with a bit of it and with a bit of rubbing, the ink should come off relatively easily. Let it dry with the door open for about an hour or so, to allow any flammable vapors to fully dissipate. If any odor from the solvent remains, run the dryer empty for one cycle on high heat.
Nail polish remover (which is mostly acetone) may work as well. Follow the same safety procedures as in Q.E.D.'s post above.
Haj
You could try using paper towels dampened with rubbing alcohol. I think that using lighter fluid might leave a light coating of petroleum distillates on the dryer drum. I guess you could first use the lighter fluid and follow it up with the rubbing alcohol.
Good luck.
The same thing happened to me a few years ago and I used hairspray. The aerosol, bad-for-the-planet type that my grandmother loves. It’s called “Spray-net”, but I think any other kind would work as well.
Just spray it onto the ink marks to soak them well, and then rub them off with a rag. Works like a charm!
Wd-40
Same thing happened to me too. I realized that there was ink I’d never get to, so I did the best I could then left the rest to dry out. All the volatiles dried out quickly and no further harm was done to my clothes.
My advice? Don’t sweat it.
Peace,
mangeorge
Thanks, folks. I used rubbing alcohol; there’s still very faint traces of the darkest marks but as Mangeorge says, I doubt they’ll harm our clothes.