A practical guide to caring for painted walls

Cleaning too hard is how a washable finish stops being washable. The gentler method that actually works.

By The Sandtex Team · · 1 min read

Bathroom in warm stone tones with a twin vanity

"Washable" means a finish tolerates cleaning. It does not mean it tolerates scouring.

Work from the bottom up

Counter-intuitive, but it stops dirty water running down dry wall and leaving streaks that are harder to shift than the original mark.

Use the mildest thing that works

Warm water with a little washing-up liquid handles most marks. Escalate only if that fails, and test anything stronger somewhere hidden first.

Blot, do not scrub

Pressure is what burnishes a matt finish into a shiny patch. Let the water do the work and give it time to.

Know when to touch up instead

Biro, permanent marker and soot will not come out of a matt finish. Touching up from the original batch is faster than ruining a wider area trying.