The Fastest Fix For Scuffed Paint In Your Home

Unsightly scuff marks take only seconds to mark up walls and can seem like a pain to remove. Luckily, you can clean these marks off your walls with supplies you already likely have in your home. There are various methods to remove scuffed paint on walls, including erasers, magic eraser sponges, soap and water, and painting over the marks.

Scuff marks appear on walls when objects are rubbed against them and the force of the friction leaves a mark, according to All American Painting Plus. Rubber, for example, is a common cause of scuff marks on painted walls.

Scuff marks can happen when items like shoes or children's toys are thrown and quickly brush against the wall's surface. Furniture is also a big culprit of wall scuff marks, which can often happen when you push furniture all the way up against a wall. (Tip: Installing wall bumpers can help create space between furniture and a wall and lessen the odds of furniture scuff marks.)

Given all the ways scuff marks can mar a painted wall, it can be hard to prevent them; however, when they do happen, here's a quick way you can remove them.

Getting rid of scuffed paint marks in your home can be easier than you'd think. The fastest — and easiest — method is to use an eraser (like from a pencil) or a Magic Eraser sponge to rub out the mark from the wall. If you don't have either of those already in your home, another fast fix is to wash the scuff mark off with a homemade cleaning solution.

For this method, you'll need a sponge or cloth, water, and baking soda or liquid detergent. One solution uses 4 tablespoons of baking soda and 1 quart of water, according to Home Painters Toronto. Another variation, per All American Painting Plus, uses warm water with a few drops of liquid detergent.

Once you've your chosen solution mixed, submerge your sponge or cloth in the solution and squeeze out excess water. Then scrub the scuff mark off of the wall, being sure not to rub hard enough to remove any paint.

If you have a tough scuff that won't come off with an eraser or a cleaning solution, you can always paint over the scuff mark. For the fastest way, touch-up paint pens will work best, for a few reasons: One, they're airtight, and two, they're handy and can keep your original paint ready to use at a moment's notice.

However, you could also go the regular painting route, using a roller or brush. As for the original paint, don't worry if you don't have any around the house or apartment. These days, paint stores can color-match a swatch of paint off your wall or from a photo taken with their app.

Once you have a matching paint color, you can prep the wall for a touch-up. First you should sand the wall around the scuff mark. Then clean the wall with soap and water and dry it. Five Star Painting recommends painting a layer of primer before the color to help the new paint blend in with the original. After the primer is dry, you can do paint over the scuff mark.