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Home Ā» DIY & Tutorials Ā» Painting Ā» How to Remove Primer from Skin-Without Chemicals!! {Painting Tip}

How to Remove Primer from Skin-Without Chemicals!! {Painting Tip}

February 24, 2011 by Kara Cook 37 Comments

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If you do any amount of painting, it’s almost guaranteed that you will end up with paint or primer on your hands. I finally discovered the best and safest way to get primer off skin!

The best part is that you don’t have to use harsh chemicals, and I bet you already have what you need right in your kitchen!

Warning: This post contains photos of short stubby hands that have never seen a professional manicure. Those of you with a heightened sense of fashion may find them disturbing. Proceed at your own risk. 😉

I am a messy painter. I’m a messy cook too for that matter. I am pretty much always wearing an apron so I don’t ruin all of my clothes. Because there are not very many days in my existence that I am not cooking or painting, or working on some other craft project.

I am always getting paint on my hands. Latex based paint is not hard to get off, it washes right off with some soap and water. But primer? That is an entirely different story my friends. It is a challenge to remove. When I painted my kitchen last month, I got primer all over my hands.   

Could.  Not.  Get.  It. Off.  I asked my twitter buddies if they had any clever ideas for removing primer from skin. I got replies from everything to nail polish remover and GooGone, to using a belt sander. (Um, thanks Char.)

I tried the nail polish remover and the GooGone. Not the belt sander. They worked, but I still had to do a fair amount of skin scraping. And deal with the nasty chemical smell. Then last week I had to go back and paint my window frame because I missed it the first time around. When I was finished, my hands looked something like this:
diy-painting-trickdiy-painting-trick

HOW TO GET PRIMER OFF SKIN WITHOUT CHEMICALS

I’m not a huge fan of using chemicals on my skin, so I wanted to use something else. I remembered that the oil in peanut butter can remove gum. I wondered if oil would help remove primer. So I poured about a teaspoon of vegetable oil in my hands and rubbed it around. Then I added a squirt of soap and some water and lathered up. And guess what?

The oil and soap mixture removed the primer better than any of the chemicals I tried!!!

I had to do a fair amount of rubbing, but I did not have to scrape the primer off. And every drop came off:
diy-painting-trickdiy-painting-trick Is that awesome or what?!!

Disclaimer: The makers of vegetable oil did not compensate me in any way for recommending their product as a paint remover. In fact, they are still under the assumption that I am buying their product to actually make food.

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Filed Under: DIY Tips, Painting Tagged With: painting

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Becky Rodgers

    August 28, 2022 at 12:10 pm

    Works for Purple PVC primer too. I spilled some on me while doing a plumbing project. And let me tell you, that stuff BURNS. (it is used to soften plastic after all) . Came across this article since soap and water stopped the burning but didn’t take the purple stain away. Gave the oil and soap a try and IT WORKED. Came right off.

    Reply
  2. Kristina

    February 20, 2021 at 2:46 pm

    I have always been a very messy painter and I was shocked and dismayed when the primer didn’t wash off like paint normally does. You are a life saver!!!

    Reply
    • Kara Cook

      March 20, 2021 at 12:34 pm

      Glad that it was helpful for you! It’s crazy how hard primer is to get off. But I guess that means it’s doing its job. šŸ™‚

      Reply
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  4. Tosca

    June 23, 2018 at 6:42 pm

    I read every other suggestion, but the naturals of oil and soap and the abrasive side of a kitchen sponge worked like magic. My hands are soft and very clean. Your suggestion is a lifesaver. Thank you so much

    Reply
  5. niky

    February 15, 2018 at 3:02 am

    thanx a bunch
    i did a job with latex mixed with primer and it wont come of with any thing and like u i hate chamicals
    so this is a great tip thanx again

    Reply
    • Kara Cook

      February 15, 2018 at 4:19 pm

      You are so welcome, glad it was helpful!

      Reply
  6. Katrina

    January 7, 2018 at 4:49 pm

    Thank you!! My husband dipped his hands in to pick out a latex layer that had formed over old paint, and thought it would wash off with water.
    To his horror it is both gunky and sticky and wouldn’t come off even after i got him acetone.
    I googled and this came up.
    Needless to say, we are very grateful.
    Little tip, but so good!

    Reply
    • Kara Cook

      January 8, 2018 at 9:46 am

      So glad you found the tip and that your husband was able to get the paint off his hands! šŸ™‚

      Reply
  7. Nicscrappy

    June 3, 2017 at 7:32 am

    Let’s just say you SAVED my 2 girls & my lives. We had just bought a leather couch Saturday and my 11yr old had oil-based primer on her shorts (painting an Ikea unit in the garage). She got several spots on the new couch! The 9yr old said something and I heard it upstairs (my husband in the same room!). I had read your article & the 9yr old had already scrubbed off paint using your idea, so we each grabbed a paper towel, dipped a lil in vegetable oil & rubbed away. It took some elbow grease, but it’s gone!!! And husband won’t know the difference!!! This article was a God send, so THANK YOU!!

    Reply
    • Kara Cook

      June 27, 2017 at 9:03 am

      Sorry about your paint mishap, but I am so glad to hear that this worked for you. Yay!

      Reply
  8. Kathie

    May 27, 2017 at 6:56 pm

    From one messy painter to another baby oil works well too. And it smells better!

    Reply
  9. Vicki

    May 23, 2017 at 7:32 am

    THANK YOU! I didn’t want to go to store to buy mineral spirits.

    Reply
    • Nicscrappy

      June 3, 2017 at 7:34 am

      I am the same! I don’t want extra cans of schtuff sitting around if I can use something I already have.

      Reply
  10. Colette

    May 7, 2017 at 10:52 am

    Wow, this is a great trick! I used vegetable oil and sensitive skin soap, rubbed with the abrasive side of the sponge, and–like magic–the oil based primer all over my hands is gone.Thank you.

    Reply
  11. Lauren

    February 1, 2016 at 12:35 pm

    I am so glad I found this. I stupidly forgot that the primer we bought was latex based and got it all over my hands, I started breaking out in hives before I realize what was happening. This got it off quick! Thank you times a million!

    Reply
  12. Angelina Wright

    June 29, 2015 at 5:53 pm

    You are too cute! And I think your hands are adorable in fact. Thanks for the helpful tip!

    Reply
    • Kara

      June 29, 2015 at 9:24 pm

      Aw, thanks so much Angelina! šŸ™‚

      Reply
  13. Melissa

    January 17, 2015 at 3:31 pm

    This worked on black primer that I had all over my hands. Thanks so much! The plus side is my cuticles are now moisturized as well.

    Reply
    • Kara

      January 21, 2015 at 10:21 pm

      Glad you tried it and had success with black primer! And softer hands are always a bonus!

      Reply
  14. Christine

    July 22, 2014 at 2:17 pm

    Just did this. I scrubbed with a washcloth because my hands were totally covered in primer. It worked great! Thanks!

    Reply
    • Kara

      July 22, 2014 at 5:48 pm

      So glad to hear it Christine!

      Reply
  15. alyssa

    February 12, 2014 at 1:39 pm

    Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. I am allergic to just about everything and was very worried that I would have to put acetone or mineral spirits on my hands to get the primer off, which gives me terrible rashes. I’m so glad I found this when I googled

    Reply
  16. CJ

    October 21, 2013 at 10:43 am

    I love your “short stubby hands” because they are perfectly clean and now mine are too! Decided to prime my bathroom cabinets today half way. Flip and do the rest tomorrow. Usually I am scraping my hands for a week. I have a piano lesson today and needed clean hands hick and pain free. Genius!

    Reply
  17. Sara

    September 17, 2013 at 1:08 pm

    Thank you so much for this tip!! I have sensitive skin and allergies and was really wondering how I’d get this primer off of myself. You really save me! Thanks!

    Reply
    • Kara

      September 18, 2013 at 7:01 am

      So glad to hear it helped! šŸ™‚

      Reply
  18. Lynne

    October 23, 2012 at 12:15 pm

    Sheer genius! After having a scoop of peanut butter (it was mentioned and I was hungry), I used canola oil, soap and water…it saved my hands! Now, all I need is a manicure. Thank you for the tip!

    Reply
  19. Anonymous

    June 28, 2012 at 12:52 am

    it really does work i used olive oil and liquid dishsoap, rub oil in then rub soap in works best, have to rinse and repeat and scrub, but it is the only thing ive found that works. thanks, I thought i was stuck with white hands till it wore off, yikes. thanks

    Reply
  20. Crystal

    February 28, 2011 at 12:09 pm

    Veggie oil also take pine gum out of hair really well…probably off skin as well.

    Reply
  21. Robin

    February 26, 2011 at 9:59 am

    Kara,
    Thank you for sharing this! I have a bit o’ painting in my future and I am always interested in finding alternatives to using harmful chemicals. Awesome. BTW I have been a silent admirer or your creativity for a while now, I figured I should introduce myself!
    Robin

    Reply
  22. Brickell

    February 24, 2011 at 8:55 pm

    That is a great trick. I used it while painting with oil based paints but added some salt so that it would scrub any tough areas.

    Reply
  23. April

    February 24, 2011 at 8:40 pm

    That is hilarious! I loved the warning and disclaimer! Ha!

    Reply
  24. Peggy

    February 24, 2011 at 8:04 pm

    this is awesome!
    I’m totally going to try this!

    Reply
  25. Char

    February 24, 2011 at 1:30 pm

    I had totally forgotten about that conversation. And I just laughed right out loud remembering it. You need better friends than me. šŸ˜‰

    Reply
  26. Tai

    February 24, 2011 at 11:29 am

    Good idea! We primed our bathroom recently and I was able to get the primer off my skin with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. Amazing! It worked especially well on my nails. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  27. Heidi N

    February 24, 2011 at 10:32 am

    Too bad I can’t put vegetable oil on my couch that has a little paint smeared on it thanks to some little grubby “helpful” hands šŸ™

    Reply
  28. April

    February 24, 2011 at 9:37 am

    Good to know! I am also a messy painter and a messy cook!

    Reply

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Hi. I’m Kara, and I love to create! I share recipes, DIY tutorials, craft projects, and thrifty home decor. I hope that I can inspire you to create something!
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