You take all the right precautions when you are painting a room, laying down drop cloths, covering all furniture. Yet somehow a few drops of brightly colored paint are on your hardwood floor. You are now on the verge of tears, afraid that your much loved flooring is damaged for good.However a little spilled paint on a hardwood floor does not have to be a complete tragedy. There are several effective ways that you can remove the paint from your hardwood floors as long as you are careful and you know what you are doing.Removing a Wet Paint Stain from a Hardwood FloorIf the paint drips are fresh you are in a good position to fix the damage to your hardwood floors fairly easily. If you notice the paint drip right away the only sensible reaction is to wipe it off before it dries. After wiping it all up with a clean cloth the use of a mild wood cleanser afterwards should be all that is needed to get your hardwood floors looking great again. There are those who would advise that fresh stains be removed from a hardwood floor by using either rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover. Although this method does work the alcohol or acetone can discolor the hardwood, making a big problem even bigger.Getting Dried Paint Off Hardwood FloorsEffectively removing oilier and dried paint stains from a hardwood floor is a little harder but it is perfectly possible.First of all do not be tempted to use putty knives or scrapers to get the paint stains off your hardwood floors as you are likely to scratch them while you do so, only making a bad situation worse. Instead remove as much of the paint as you can by rubbing it off gently ' by hand ' with a piece of fine grain sandpaper. Gently is the key word here though. You want to sand away the paint, not the finish from your hardwood floor.After you have removed as much of the paint stain as you can with the sandpaper, take a tiny drop of rubbing alcohol and apply it directly to the stain. Using a clean cotton ball gently rub the rest of the paint off the floor. Finish the job up by using your cloth and a mild wood cleanser to wash away whatever is left.These methods should work surface wipes Suppliers for a few spilled drops of paint on hardwood floors. To remove larger areas of paint is a bigger undertaking though and the best course of action would be to contact a flooring professional for advice before you attempt such a job.To learn more about caring for hardwood floors please visit Aladdin Carpet and Floors . Also published at The Right Way to remove Paint form Hardwood Floors.