I know your reading this because chances are you’ve already cleaned paint brushes in the kitchen sink or another sink in your home. It’s a great question and probably an important question to have answered. Based on my knowledge of paints and the fact that I was a plumber in the 1980’s. I can give you a solid answer.
It’s safe to clean a paint brush in the kitchen sink if it’s an acrylic paint. The paint brush should have been wiped off as best as possible before attempting to rinse it. Don’t attempt to clean an oil-based paint in the kitchen sink as water alone will not clean the brush. You will need to use mineral spirits and it’s not environmentally friendly to clean with mineral spirits in a sink.
This article can go in numerous directions as we talk about cleaning brushes that have either acrylic or oil-based paints on them. I’ll try not to go too much into the atmospheric damage you can cause by cleaning oil paints in the sink and whether acrylic affects the environment as much. I don’t want this to be an ethical article, I would prefer it was just an informative one – me giving you details on what happens when cleaning brushes in the sink.
So, if you’re ready to learn more, then let’s begin!
Can You Wash Acrylic Paint Brushes in the Sink?
There are two things I want you to consider when it comes to washing acrylic paint brushes in the sink. Firstly, certain types of paint are toxic and can lead to environmental issues after it’s washed away and secondly, paint will cause issues with drain lines. Let’s go over both of these.
- Acrylic paint is non-toxic therefore shouldn’t cause any problems once you wash it off the brush and down the drain. Everything in moderation though, if you poured a 5-gallon pail of acrylic down the drain then yes, it might be a problem.
- Acrylic paint is less likely to stick to the inner fitting connections of your home’s sewer lines. As acrylic is water-based, it shouldn’t really attach to anything as it will be washed away by the running water.
- Acrylic should be broken down enough to dissipate so you can’t really detect it with the naked eye if you could look into your sewer lines.
So, the answer is yes, go ahead and wash those acrylic paint brushes in the kitchen sink if you choose too. That, being said, you should be trying to wipe off as much paint as possible from the brush before cleaning it in the sink.
Even though acrylic is water-based, if you pour enough of it down your drain, it can get ‘gunked up’ and caught on other substances that might already be stuck in the drain such as different greases, hair, food, and so on.
That’s how drains get clogged up slowly – through the slow accumulation of those things like bacon grease, paint, tiny bits of food, etc.
Can You Wash Oil Paint Brushes in the Kitchen Sink?
The problem you run into with oil-based paints is you can’t just use tap water to get them clean. It doesn’t work. The water won’t mix with the oil paint very well, if at all.
You’ll end up with paint all over your sink.
You need mineral spirits or paint thinner to clean off the brush when using oil-based paints.
Mineral spirits and paint thinner are toxic products that shouldn’t be washed down the kitchen sink, even in small amounts – just don’t do it, period.
How to Clean Paint Brushes Without Using a Kitchen Sink?
Ideally, if you’re disposing of paint from brushes and even rollers you don’t want to put paint down your drain.
If you don’t need the brush anymore and it’s just a cheap one you picked up at the dollar store, consider wrapping it in a plastic bag and throw it in the trash.
If you are wanting to reuse the brush, here is what you can do.
Take your brush and find yourself an old 5-gallon (or smaller) pail. Using water or mineral spirits, depending on what type of paint is on the brush, pour it on the brush.
Dab the brush on the sides on bottom until the brush appears to be clean of the paint.
If you want to do what painters do and clean the brush like a pro, you should invest in a cleaning tool called a “Brush and Roller Spinner.”
They are extremely easy to use.
Attach your brush to the end of the spinner and while holding onto the body of the spinner with one hand, use the other hand to pull the handle back and forth.
Holding the end of the spinner that the brush is attached to inside of a 5-gallon pail will ensure the paint doesn’t spray everywhere.
Dip the brush in water in the pail and keep spinning the brush until it’s clean.
If you have a roller you need cleaned, it works the same way. Just slide the roller up onto the cleaning tool. Dip the roller in water then pull it out and spin it around in the 5-gallon pail until free of paint.
Check out this Brush and Roller Spinning Tool over on Amazon.
Can You Wash Paint Trays in the Sink?
If you get most of the paint out of the paint tray, you could wipe it out in the sink – assuming it’s acrylic paint in the tray, that is.
I would recommend you don’t though. There are other ways to keep your trays clean so they can be reused over and over.
There are two easy ways to keep your paint trays as clean as possible.
- Paint tray inserts can be purchased at your local building or paint store. Make sure to purchase the right size as there are different dimensions for paint trays and inserts. These tray inserts are just thin plastic that lay inside your paint tray and when done, you empty out the contents and pull the insert before throwing it away.
- Lately, I’ve been using plastic grocery bags. They don’t quite fit the whole length of the tray, but enough that you can pour some paint on the bag and use a roller to retrieve the paint for use.
- I place the whole end of the tray into the bag. If you just lay the bag in the tray when you roll the roller, it’ll pull the bag with it. This means the paint will pour into the open tray, which is what you want to avoid.
- When done painting, simply dump out the excess paint into the paint can then slide the bag off, flipping it inside out and before throwing it in the trash.
Can You Put Paint Brushes in the Washing Machine?
I saw this question online and felt it needed to be addressed.
You shouldn’t put paint brushes with wooden handles into a washing machine. The wood handle will eventually be ruined from being soaked in water.
If, however, you have paint brushes with plastic handles, you could wash them in a washing machine without having to worry about ruining the handles.
If you try to wash paint brushes in a washing machine, I would put the paint brush in an old sock or pillow case and tie off the end so it doesn’t come out while being washed.
How to Clean Paint Brushes Environmentally Friendly
Cleaning paint brushes in an environmentally friendly manner means not allowing paint to be washed down a drain or throwing the cleaning water into the backyard.
My recommendation to accomplish this is to follow my instructions above regarding how to clean brushes in a 5-gallon pail and then afterwards, pour that cleaning water into a paint can and seal it with the original lid.
For disposal, you have a couple of options.
- Contact the store that sold you the paint to see if they have a recycle program or know of one locally. Quite often your city or town will have a time of the year where you can drop off paints and solvents for them to dispose of.
- The other option is to allow the cleaning paint water to dry in the can and then throw in your trash. This obviously takes some time and might not be ideal for you.
- You can speed up the process by adding cat litter to the dirty water. Cat litter is made to absorb liquid, so this is an excellent idea. Just add enough so all the water is soaked up. It’ll dry quickly and afterwards, you can throw the whole thing in the trash.
Can You Clean Paint Brushes in the Sink if You Have a Septic Tank?
Technically, you can clean your paint brushes if you have a septic tank however, I wouldn’t recommend it.
Since a septic tank is a closed system and once water enters the tank, it sits until emptied. This allows time for the paint to stick to the tank and accumulate with other organic compounds.
The water that gets washed down a kitchen sink in a home with a town or city sewer system gets flushed through the pipes and straight out of the homes sewer lines into the towns or cities sewer system.
What Happens if You Leave Paint Brushes in Water?
If you soak paint brushes in water for long periods of time, you risk of ruining the handle and brush, especially if the brush itself is made of natural materials.
If, by chance, it’s a synthetic material, it’ll last longer.
I have left brushes of all types in water (by accident) and over time, the wood handle is ruined or the brush just doesn’t hold up.
Conclusion
To conclude this article, I want to reiterate a couple of things.
Paint brushes with acrylic paint on them can be cleaned in a kitchen sink if need be. There is the possibility the paint might stick to grease stuck on inside joints of the drain lines however, if it’s acrylic paint, you should be okay.
I would never recommend cleaning oil-based paint of brushes into any sink. It’s not environmentally friendly and we need to start taking better care of our planet.
At the end of the day, the quality of the brush affects the quality of the work you end up with. So, take good care of them.
Lastly, taking proper care of your brushes is important to end up with a good, finished product and disposing of the cleaning materials properly will help the environment, making you feel better as well.
Thanks for reading. Good luck!
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