cleaning paint brushes

[Andrea R]

After working with enamel what will clean but not ruin the brushes. I have used soap and water but they need a really good clean :/
Thanks
Andrea

[Don Burt]

DIdja let some paint dry in the ferrule or something? What kind of brushes...synthetic hair or animal? What kind of material/medium is stuck in the brushes that they now need cleaning?

I've gotten some nasty brushes clean with Krud Cutter degreaser in the past. And then there's always 'Brush Cleaner' that comes in a metal pour can and pretty much burns its way through dried paint, fingernails, skin, sinus membranes...

[Andrea R]

Yes I did ...sorry about that now!! Some synthetic and some animal the medium I use is clove oil.
Boy that bruch cleaner sounds pretty bad for just about everything but brushes

[Buttercup]

Andrea, try vegetable oil or rice bran oil, soaking if necessary. It's gentle and it worked for me in the past when I accidentally let paint dry on a brush. I always use it regularly to clean non-glass natural bristle brushes, too, that have been used with oil-based paint. If that won't work try mineral turps (paint thinners). When you do get it clean rehabilitate it with hair conditioner.

I've had my badger blender since 1983 and, risking the wrath of the glass gods, have used it for decorative painting as well as glass.The bristles are as good as new though the paint is flaking off the handle. Baby shampoo followed by hair conditioner is all I use on it. Good luck. Jen

[Bert Weiss]

Clean clove oil with mineral spirits. It is oil paint.