The older your home is and if it has some type of masonry (brick, cement, granite, etc.) foundation, walkway, or patio associated with it, the better the chance that at some point along the way someone may have dripped paint on it.
While this may be unsightly, it is not unusual for blind eyes to be turned to this normally eyebrow raising appearance and for the paint drips to accumulate over time.
Dripping paint on areas where it is not supposed to be is often an unfortunate part of the job of painting your home.
As many precautions that are taken and as many dropcloths and protective measures that are put out and about, Murphy often strikes and the annoying paint drippage always seems to find its way to that one area that for some reason is just not protected enough.
The ideal time to get rid of the drips is immediately.
These days it is easier than ever to do so as a super high percentage of paint and stain coatings that one uses above their foundation and areas where masonry is more likely to be found, are water-based and very easy to clean right away if hit with a hose.
But what happens if you do not catch things right away and the paint dries?
Or what happens if you simply have a home with “inherited” drips from a history of folks intending to “clean it later”?
All is surely not lost.
While great care does have to be taken in order to make sure that the paint is removed without damaging the masonry, it can still be cleaned.
Any search online will surely generate a plethora of remedies for this endeavor.
The current approach that I like best is by utilizing a product called ‘WipeOUT’ made by a company called ‘Watch Dog’.
It is fairly simple to use.
You would basically apply the product to the drips/spilled paint on the areas you are working to clean, let it do it’s thing, and then come back and clean it with a light powerwash or stiff scrub-brush and water.
If everything is not all off on the first pass, you would just keep repeating until you reach the desired results you are looking for.
I would hesitate from incorporating a ‘wire brush’ into the process.
Though many of us within the industry may have been taught this methodology years ago, the wire brush could unintentionally mar the finish of the masonry in a manner that is most likely not required to do so.
Years ago, before discovering this Watch Dog product (which, incidentally, we often also use in the removal of graffiti), I used to recommend this certain super intense masonry paint removal paste for these errant drips and spills, and this would DEFINITELY do the trick.
You would follow the same paint removal procedure described above, but the challenge was this paste was not something you wanted to get on your skin, it would, literally, burn a hole right through you (ask me how I know!)!
The beautiful things about the Watch Dog product that although ‘no joke’ in its own right, I find it not to be as brutal as the products from yesteryear while still delivering equal results.
So if things get a tad drippy the next time you are high up on a ladder and your walkway gets a bit multi-colored in the process, and you do not catch it to clean it before things dry, do not fear, the methodology described here will help things get cleaned up “good as new” as they say, and you should hopefully feel VERY relieved when you see the results.
