How To Get Marker Off Plastic

If you accidentally grabbed your permanent marker when writing on your white board, don't worry! There are several quick, easy solutions that will allow you to remove the permanent ink with little or no damage to your board.

1
Use a dry-erase marker to draw over the permanent ink. Cover the marks as completely as you can, and be sure there the dry-erase marker isn't dried out and has plenty of ink.^[1]
- It doesn't matter what color dry erase marker you use.
2

Wipe off the ink with a clean wipe board eraser or a soft rag. Both the permanent and dry-erase marker should come off easily. This occurs because permanent and dry-erase markers contain a non-polar solvent. The solvent in the dry-erase marker will dissolve the permanent marker, detaching it from the surface of the board.^[2]
3

Repeat the process if the board isn't entirely free of markings. It may take multiple attempts to get the marker off completely. You may want to try a dry-erase cleaning solution, but they contain similar, some times weaker, solvents as the dry erase marker, so the marker is actually more effective.^[3]

1
Pour a small amount of hand sanitizer, rubbing alcohol or non-acetone nail polish remover onto a clean, soft rag or paper towel. Do not use any type of abrasive cleanser, such as Clorox or something with grit, as this will damage the surface of your board and it will stain permanently.^[4]
- Wipe away the permanent ink with the wet cloth.
- Wipe the board with a wet cloth to remove any remnants of the solvent, otherwise it may interfere with the dry erase marker when you try to write on the board.
- Dry the board completely before use.
2

Use a pencil eraser and rub the mark well. Only try this if the other methods don't work, as scrubbing the board with the eraser could potentially damage the surface.

Add New Question

Question

How do I remove permanent marker on plastic?

The steps on method 1 should work on plastic. I would not recommend using the eraser method, as I don't think that will work.
Question

What chemical is used in permanent markers?

In a permanent marker like a Sharpie, the nasty smell is organic chemicals, such as xylene, and the solvent of their choice, such as alcohol, ethanol or isopropanol, ethylene glycol monobutyl. There is at least propanol, butanol, and diacetone. Resin or polymer is added as a "binder" that promotes adhesion.
Question

How do I get old eraser marks off a whiteboard completely?

Using glass cleaner and wiping it away with a soft rag gets rid of old and new dry erase marker spots.
Question

How can I erase permanent marker from a certificate without damaging it?

I'm pretty sure you can't, as most methods use liquids and this would damage the paper.
Question

How do I remove permanent marker from a shirt?

Use expo marker on it once by covering the mark and then erasing it, then loop the process until it goes away.
Question

How do I get permanent marker off of a white board with no smears?

Ethanol works great! Spray a little on and watch the permanent marker dissolve. Wipe off immediately with a paper towel or cloth.
Question

How do I remove permanent marker from a calculator case?

You could use the dry-erase over permanent marker method. The calculator surface is similar to the whiteboard surface.

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Some have reported better results when letting the marks sit no longer than 30 seconds - not 5 to 10 minutes.
Or, you could use some perfume if you have any.^[5]

The marker board will be permanently damaged if you use anything that changes the surface of the board.

Things You'll Need

A dry-erase white board marker
A white board eraser

A pencil eraser
Rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover
Paper towel or soft rag

About this article

Article SummaryX

To remove permanent marker from a white board, use a rag to rub the permanent marker with rubbing alcohol, hand sanitizer, or acetone. You can also try coloring over the permanent marker with a dry-erase marker and then wiping it all off with a white board eraser. If the permanent marker is still there, scrub the marker with a pencil eraser until it comes off of the board. If you want to learn how to clean off any solvent you used on your whiteboard, keep reading the article!

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