How to Get Polyurethane Off of a Shirt

Polyurethane Paint or Stain

• 1

  Remove excess stain using a rubber scraper. Scrape towards the center of the stain, lift the scraper away, and wipe it. Rotate and repeat. Do not scrape entirely across the stain as this may spread it.

• 2

  Use the blade of a sharp knife to scrape off the top-most layer of fabric, provided that the stain is only on the surface of the fabric and that it has not soaked through. If, after a handful of scrapes, the stain is unchanged, stop this process and proceed to the next step.

• 3

  Apply acetone directly to the stain, scrub, and then let sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Rinse thoroughly with water.

• 4

  Soak the stain in paint thinner for 10 to 20 minutes, provided that the stain persists, then scrape the strain off the surface and thoroughly rinse.

• 5

  Soak the shirt in a bleach solution of one part bleach, ten parts water for 30 minutes, provided that the stain persists and that the shirt can be bleached,

Melted Polyurethane

• 6

  Apply any common stain remover and run it through the wash and let air-dry. This is to prepare the clothing by removing any adhesives, coloring agents, or other such materials that got onto the shirt at the same time but which are not polyurethane.

• 7

  Pry under one edge of the plastic carefully using a sharp knife, provided that the plastic obscures the weave of the fabric. Do not press through the fabric. Once an edge of it has been lifted free of the shirt, the rest will peel off like strong tape.

• 8

  Scrape the blade of a sharp knife across the stain, gently removing the top layer of the fabric, provided that the melted plastic does not obscure the weave of the fabric. Repeat until either individual pieces of the plastic can be picked off, or until the plastic is removed.