Remove printer ink - the faster, the better.

Learn with which tips and tricks you can remove printer ink.

Printer ink is liable - and best of all where you really do not want it at all. Because ink is persistent! Resourceful users have already taken advantage of the ink's excellent coloring properties with particularly creative ideas: undoubtedly, the most bizarre is the tattooing of printing inks on ink - an idea that is highly discouraged! In most cases, however, the skin contact with printer ink is more likely to be due to an accident when changing cartridges than the desire for decorative skin jewelry. And here it is important to act quickly, before a small spot becomes a permanent annoyance ...

Pigmented inks hold better - not just on paper.

Unfortunately, what produces luminous tones on paper also stands out on other surfaces due to its particular color intensity: printer ink with color pigments is even more difficult to remove than water-based color inks. The high-quality pigmented inks are usually smudge and waterproof and thus adhere easily anywhere - even on the hands, on clothing and on the desk surface. For all printer inks, however, the faster you react, the greater the chance that the ink stains can be removed without leaving any residue. Let's take a look at the different tricks and means for removing printer ink!

Hand printed? How to remove printer ink on the skin.

Not only users who refill ink cartridges themselves are often annoyed with ink stains on their palms. Even with the regular replacement of printer cartridges often occurs residual color that has collected at the opening or on the bottom of the cartridge. Once the color has hit the skin, simply washing your hands with soap is not enough. Instead, try using:

  • Washing powder: the classic. Put it in a bowl of hot water and lay hands for a few minutes to soak in the detergent solution. It is important that the pores open, because the printer ink sits deep in the skin surface! Then you can rinse off the remains - if necessary, using a small brush.

  • Corneal File or Scouring Milk: For hardship. These measures are effective if the paint can not be removed with washing powder at all. You can carefully rub off the ink stains by rubbing with a file / pumice stone, and it makes sense to soak the skin in the washing powder solution. Or scrub your palms clean with scouring cream and a hand brush / scouring pad!

  • Baking soda and lemon: The gentle home remedy. Just mix a sachet of baking soda with some lemon juice, rub well into your hands and then rinse with warm water.

Do not forget to thoroughly cream your skin after the procedure: cleansers will attack and dry out your skin surface. Does the ink jam in the office happen to you, and our emergency resources are not available? Replace the washing powder with a crumbled dishwasher tab! They are usually also in the office at hand.

Remove printer ink on clothing: first aid with hair spray, detergent & Co.

Even if printer ink gets on clothing, fast action is the order of the day. If there are no tools at hand - for example, if the mishap happens in the office - it's best to put the fabric in water immediately and try to gently remove the paint with a small brush. For all washable garments otherwise a treatment in two steps has proven:

  • First: hairspray! The ingredients of the hair spray solve by their chemical properties, the color particles of the printer ink from the fabric. Simply spray the affected area carefully.

  • Second: warm water, some detergent and vinegar. Soak the clothes in warm water for at least half an hour, adding a little detergent and a dash of vinegar. Then rinse only cold! If there are still traces of paint left, repeat the treatment. If the stains are particularly stubborn, they can also be rubbed with a sponge soaked in rubbing alcohol. Then put the clothes that have been freed of printer ink into the washing machine.

Get away with it before it dries! Remove printer ink from the desk.

If you are fast, you have the best chance here as well: If printer ink has hit the table, it must not be allowed to dry. So first grab anything that's available - whether it's a handkerchief or toilet paper - and soak up the liquid paint. If it has dried, but not yet completely dry, the leaked printer ink can be removed with all-purpose cleaner. Completely dried ink stains are unfortunately hard to remove! Although wood surfaces can be saved by careful sanding, on most other materials there is a residue of ink.

Ink stains on the floor? Home remedies and cleaners help.

If paint spills from the print cartridge land on the floor, you should not lose your nerve - and possibly even distribute the paint on the floor by stepping on. Instead, you can clean the floor according to its material:

  • Printer ink on carpets: Here as well, as explained above with regard to clothing, you can work with hair spray and then vinegar water. It is of course a little more complicated because the color water has to be absorbed and removed from the fibers!

  • Printer ink on wipeable floors: absorb quickly, as long as the paint is liquid! In any case, you can clean the surface with commercial all-purpose cleaner. For particularly stubborn stains, ammonia is recommended: soak a cloth over it, cover the soiled area and then wash it with soapy water.

At the end of the treatment, wipe with clear water - done!

Cleaning is good, prevention is better!

Most ink spills can be avoided. Of course, in order to keep the printer ink where it belongs, you should concentrate and be attentive to the handling of ink and ink cartridges. But there are also a few things you can do to minimize the risk of permanent printer stains:

  • Placing the Printer Correctly: Even if you do not have your own space for your printer, such as offices with multiple devices, you should position it so that there are no sensitive surfaces or carpets in the immediate vicinity.

  • Protecting sensitive surfaces: If the printer is on the desk, you can place it on a protective surface, for example a plastic placemat.

  • Wear disposable gloves: disposable gloves protect hands reliably when changing cartridges. However, rubber gloves, such as those used for cleaning, are too crude: There are suitable gloves in the drugstore and in the pharmacy, usually equal to 10, 50 or 100 pieces in the package.