We all heard stories before that begin with “I only looked away for one second and … “. Well, that happened to me a couple of days ago and the results were several pencil marks on the living room wall. So how do you remove pencil and crayon marks from a wall?
The best way to remove pencil and crayon marks from a wall is by using some water and a rubber eraser. Apply some water to a piece of cloth and then make the marks on the wall wet. Finally, erase the marks with the rubber eraser. After the spots on the wall have dried all of the marks should be gone.
There are several methods to removing crayon and pencil marks from a wall. In the following, I will tell you all of the best methods.
Rubber Eraser
You can use a rubber eraser to remove light pencil marks on your walls.
Simply go over the marks with the eraser in multiple directions until the marks are gone.
This method only works for light pencil marks. Darker pencil marks will become much lighter but you won´t be able to completely remove them with just an eraser.
Rubber Eraser and Water
This is the method that I personally found to be the most effective one without buying any special tools.
All you need is some water, a cleaning cloth, and a rubber eraser.
First, dampen the cleaning cloth and then make the marks wet. This will already remove some of the light marks.
Then use the rubber eraser on the wet spots on the wall to remove the pencil marks completely.
Once the wet spots on the wall have dried all of the marks should be gone and, ideally, the wall should look just like before it was covered in pencil marks.
Kneadable Eraser
A kneadable eraser is a kind of soft eraser that is usually used to lighten or fully erase graphite.
Kneadable erasers work best on walls with a rough surface or for light pencil marks. But you won´t be able to remove dark pencil marks with a kneadable eraser.
Simply press the kneadable eraser on the pencil marks or move the eraser over the marks in multiple directions. The pencil marks should lighten and eventually vanish.
Soap and Water
Graphite can usually be easily removed with some water. But if the pencil mark is applied with a lot of force then water alone is usually not enough to remove the mark.
But mixing water with some soap will go a long way.
Soap will break the surface tension of the water and make it possible to clean graphite much easier. So simply mix some water with a few drops of soap and then remove the pencil marks with a piece of cleaning cloth dipped in the soapy water.
Make sure to move the piece of cloth in a circular motion over the pencil marks to remove them easier.
White Toothpaste
You can use white toothpaste to remove pencil markings on your wall. This method only works with white toothpaste and should only be used on a white wall.
The toothpaste will very slightly bleach the wall, which is why it should only be used on white walls.
Apply the toothpaste with a piece of cloth and let it dry for about 10 minutes. Then remove the toothpaste with a damp cleaning cloth.
The markings should be completely gone.
Magic Eraser
Magic erasers are special cleaning erasers for walls. Depending on the brand you can either use them as they are right away or you need to dampen them before you use them.
Either way, simply rub the eraser over the pencil marks and the marks should be gone pretty quickly.
It is important to note that magic erasers should often only be used on white walls. So read the instructions first if you plan on using them on a colored wall.
Paint Over it
By far the most reliable and fastest method is to simply paint over the marks.
I highly recommend this method if you are dealing with a lot of marks all over the wall as it is much faster to simply paint the whole wall than to painstakingly remove the markings with an eraser or another method mentioned in this article for that matter.
Simply paint over the markings with a small paint roller or a sponge if you are dealing with a small area or use a big paint roller if you need to paint the whole wall new.
Just make sure to cover the floor and any furniture in some painter’s tape and foil before you start painting.
Hi, I am a passionate maker and professional prop maker for the entertainment industry. I use my woodworking, programming, electronics, and illustration know-how to create interactive props and puzzles for Escape Games and marketing agencies. And I share my knowledge and my experience on this blog with you so that you can become a maker yourself.