DIY Airbrush Cleaner: A Simple Recipe for Acrylic Paints

Airbrush cleaner is one of those products miniature painters go through surprisingly quickly. A few drops to flush between colors, considerably more after a painting session, and even more when something starts drying inside the airbrush.

Commercial cleaners work well, but for everyday cleaning of water-based acrylic paints, you don't necessarily need to use an expensive specialized product every time.

After experimenting with different proportions, this is the homemade cleaner we settled on for regular airbrush maintenance.

Our Airbrush Cleaner Recipe

For 500 ml of cleaner, you'll need:

• 365 ml distilled water
• 125 ml 99% isopropyl alcohol
• 5 ml dishwashing liquid — we use Fairy
• 5 ml glycerin

This gives the mixture roughly 25% isopropyl alcohol, which makes it considerably more effective against acrylic residue than a simple water-and-soap solution while still being suitable for routine cleaning.

Why These Ingredients?

Distilled water makes up the bulk of the cleaner. Unlike tap water, it doesn't introduce minerals or deposits into the tiny passages of the airbrush.

Isopropyl alcohol does most of the heavy lifting. It helps loosen and dissolve acrylic paint residue, particularly paint that has already begun drying. We use approximately 25% rather than making an extremely alcohol-heavy mixture: the goal is an effective everyday cleaner, not an aggressive stripping solution.

Dishwashing liquid acts as a surfactant. It reduces surface tension and helps the liquid get underneath paint residue. You only need a very small amount — adding more mostly creates foam rather than improving cleaning performance.

Glycerin is included at approximately 1%. In our mixture, we use a small amount to make the cleaner less quick-drying during routine cleaning. We keep the concentration low because too much glycerin can leave residue inside the airbrush.

How to Mix It

Start with the distilled water and gently mix in the dishwashing liquid and glycerin.

Once they're dispersed, add the isopropyl alcohol.

Avoid vigorously shaking the bottle. With dishwashing liquid in the mixture, you'll mostly accomplish one thing: creating an impressive amount of foam.

Label the bottle clearly as AIRBRUSH CLEANER and keep it closed when not in use.

How We Use It

For a normal color change, empty the remaining paint from the cup and rinse away most of it first. Add a small amount of cleaner, gently clean the cup with a soft brush if necessary, then spray the cleaner through the airbrush.

For the final cleaning after a painting session, repeat the process until the liquid leaving the airbrush is clear.

We also like to finish with a small amount of clean distilled water. The cleaner contains both detergent and glycerin, so there's little benefit in deliberately leaving those ingredients inside the airbrush until the next painting session.

What Is It Good For?

This recipe is intended primarily for the water-based acrylic paints commonly used for miniature and figure painting, including the types of acrylics we regularly spray through an airbrush.

It works particularly well as an inexpensive everyday cleaner:

• when changing colors;
• after normal acrylic painting sessions;
• for removing fresh paint from the cup;
• for flushing light acrylic residue from the nozzle and paint channel.
• It isn't a magic solution for every material you can put through an airbrush.

What We Wouldn't Use It For

There is an important distinction between everyday cleaning and deep cleaning.

If acrylic paint has completely cured inside the nozzle or around the needle, a stronger dedicated cleaner may still be necessary. Mechanical cleaning may also be required.

The same applies after certain primers and varnishes. These materials can be considerably more stubborn than ordinary acrylic paint, so we prefer using an appropriate dedicated cleaner rather than assuming the homemade mixture will remove everything.

And don't automatically use this recipe for alcohol-based or solvent-based paints. Cleaning chemistry should always match the material you've sprayed.

Is 25% Isopropyl Alcohol Too Much?

We specifically wanted something between a very mild rinse and an aggressive cleaner.

A mixture containing around 10% isopropyl alcohol works for fresh acrylic paint, but its advantage over a basic rinse becomes relatively small when paint begins accumulating.

At the other extreme, there's little reason to routinely flush an airbrush with very high concentrations of alcohol if a weaker solution already does the job.

For us, approximately 25% isopropyl alcohol became the practical middle ground.

It is strong enough to make the mixture genuinely useful as a cleaner while remaining an everyday workshop solution rather than something reserved only for deep cleaning.

A Note About Airbrush Seals

Not every airbrush is constructed identically. Many modern airbrushes use solvent-resistant materials in the paint path, but seals, lubricants and coatings vary between manufacturers and models.

If you're unsure about your particular airbrush, check the manufacturer's recommendations before regularly using alcohol-containing cleaners.

Also remember that cleaner is meant to flush the paint path. Soaking an entire assembled airbrush in homemade cleaner is unnecessary and can expose components to chemicals they were never intended to sit in.

The Final Recipe

If you just want to save the formula:

1. 500 ml DIY Acrylic Airbrush Cleaner
2. 365 ml distilled water
3. 125 ml 99% isopropyl alcohol
4. 5 ml dishwashing liquid
5. 5 ml glycerin

It's inexpensive, takes a couple of minutes to make, and one 500 ml bottle lasts considerably longer than constantly buying small bottles of branded cleaner.

Most importantly, it does exactly what we wanted from it: a practical everyday cleaner for acrylic miniature painting without wasting expensive hobby products on routine flushing.

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Workshop note: This recipe is intended for routine cleaning after water-based acrylic paints. Always follow the paint and airbrush manufacturer's instructions where they specify a particular cleaning product or prohibit certain solvents.