by Rachelle de Bretagne

Created on: January 25, 2013   Last Updated: February 03, 2013

There's nothing more annoying than seeing that paintwork looking dirty, and the worst offender is fingerprints. Reaching for a light switch, the hands of those loved ones within the house will leave marks. In fact, there are many areas within the home that suffer from the same grime, but it's never intentional; and if cleaned on a regular basis, it can be kept in check. When you see a small child with grubby hands touching the wall as they come down the stairs, don't grimace. There are ways to stop those marks in their tracks without having to renew all the paintwork. As part of the routine household cleaning, keep these products ready to tackle fingerprints and the home will stay looking good longer.

Around light switches, doors and vulnerable areas

These are the areas which suffer the most but don't have to. A single wipe with a baby wipe may just be sufficient to remove the marks. It's gentle and non abrasive, and the properties of the baby wipe may just save that paintwork from looking shoddy. Gentle enough for use on wallpapers, baby wipes are the perfect day to day solution for fingerprints if they are caught early enough. Rubbed gently onto the surface, as if wiping a baby's skin, the stain is quickly and safely removed.

Try the same treatment on walls in the mud room, or the stairway, and it's likely that this will solve the problem.

Getting more ingrained fingerprints off the walls

These are more stubborn and a baby wipe may not remove them adequately. Dried in fingerprints which have been neglected need tough treatment. On painted walls, the worry is that the paint will be removed, although if the paint has been applied in several coats, this is unlikely with non abrasive cleaning. Try a soft cloth with a little washing up detergent mixed in water, which is lukewarm. The detergent is gentle and also helps to remove any grease. However, the cloth should be rung out so that there isn't excessive water, as it is either abrasion or too much water that is likely to start to shift that paint.

Taking drastic measures

In the case of overly stubborn fingerprints, there is a product called Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. Again, the product is a non abrasive one and works by providing sufficient friction without being enough to damage paintwork. On wallpapers, it's best to try the option of a soft cloth first, though if the stains are stubborn Mr. Clean, used gently, will do the job. Mr. Clean magic erasers are used in a very gentle circular motion, but with wallpapers, it's

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