Remedies for Nail Polish Stains on Painted Wood Cabinets

Nail Polish Description

• Though coloring the nails is not a new concept, as the ancient Egyptian upper classes used to dye their nails with henna, nail polish is a 20th century invention. Polishes come in small bottles with small brushes attached to the bottle caps. After about five minutes, the polish dries and hardens on the nails. The polish remains on the nails for a few weeks, after which time it begins to chip off the nails. The ingredients in most commercial nail polishes consist of solvents, film forming agents, plasticizers and resins and coloring agents.

Plastic Putty Knife Method

• Use a plastic putty knife to gently scrape the nail polish from the cabinet's surface. The polish should come off the wood fairly easily, particularly if it is a newer stain you are dealing with. Older stains might require the application of a dampened hot water cloth to loosen the stain before working on it with the putty knife. Do not use metal knives to remove the stain from the wood, which could potentially injure the wood itself.

Denatured Alcohol Method

• Denatured alcohol, or ethanol with chemical additives, is often used to remove stains from polyurethane-treated wood, and can also be used to remove nail polish from wooden surfaces. Gently rub a clean cloth treated with denatured alcohol to remove the stain, but take care not to rub the stain too hard or for too long. While denatured alcohol is gentler on wooden surfaces than mineral spirits, using denatured alcohol for too long on painted wooden cabinets will remove the paint as well as the polish.

Stainless Steel Wool Method

• Gently sand away nail polish stains on wooden cabinets with a 0000-grade fine steel wool pad. This grade is is made of very fine wool that is effective in removing nail polish stains without damaging the wood surface. Should you remove part of the cabinet's finish when taking off the polish, use a wood touch-up product on the affected area.