Another stain removal technique? Hydrogen peroxide. It works wonders on red wine stains. Take your cleaning rag (with the dish soap solution) and dab a little hydrogen peroxide onto it. Gently press it into the red wine stain for five minutes to lift it.
For grease stains on kitchen walls, there’s also an unusual but effective technique that involves your iron: Place a paper towel on top of the grease stain and then press your iron (set on low heat) on top of the paper towels for one minute. The hot paper towels should absorb the grease, revealing a clean wall beneath.
People with kids may also want to keep a stain removal pen on hand for errant crayons and art projects gone awry. For smaller stubborn stains, you can simply whip out your magic eraser for smudges tiny enough for a spot clean. “I use magic erasers all the time,” Day says. “They’re a game changer for those tough little spots. That magic eraser and your cleaning solution saves the day!”
Though these stain cleaning methods are great for painted walls, proceed with more caution if you have wallpaper. If your wallpaper requires more than a light cleaning, consult the manufacturer’s instructions to find the best way to remove stains.
Step 7: Rinse the solution off
After going over the entire wall with the cleaning solution, you have to rinse away the solution (and the grime it’s lifted off). Besides that, you also want to avoid excess water at all costs, as you don’t want to create water stains. Soak a cloth in the bucket of clean water and wring it out well. Wipe the wall with the cloth to rinse.
Step 8: Dry the walls
Gently run a clean, dry cloth over the surface. You can also keep your windows open to help air-dry the walls as you go. Give the walls enough time to dry completely before you replace wall hangings or furniture that normally sits closely to them.
How long does it take to clean walls?
There are too many variables to peg a specific length of time to cleaning walls. These could include—but aren’t restricted to—your own skill and level of perfectionism, whether you’ve secured help from other family members, how many walls you have, and how large they are, how much furniture you’ve got to move out of the way, and any protuberances or unusual features that are part of what make your home unique, but can make cleaning more difficult.