One of the most common questions associated with acrylic sheet or Perspex sheet is, can scratches be removed or repaired?

The answer depends on how bad the damage is, but in most cases, they can be removed relatively easily. Follow our guide on how to repair visible damage to your acrylic sheets.

The first thing to check is that the material you’re repairing is actually acrylic. Acrylic is a widely used material that’s incredibly versatile, being used in crafts, fashion bags, fish tanks, picture frames, furniture as acrylic table tops and acrylic mirror, to name just a few of the applications. If your scratched plastic is clear, then it’s most likely acrylic or polycarbonate which are the most commonly used plastics.

It’s worth noting that scratches can be removed more easily from acrylic than polycarbonate, so you may not have as much success if the damaged material is a polycarbonate sheet. Naturally, lighter scratches can be buffed out more easily than deeper ones.

For light scratches on acrylic sheets

To remove light scratches in your acrylic sheet, you’ll need an acrylic or plastic polish, 800 and 1200 grit sandpaper and water to soak the sandpaper with.

Wet a piece of the 800 grit sandpaper and run it over the marked area in a circular motion, then repeat with a dry piece of the same grit sandpaper – you’ll need to alternative between these wet and dry sheets for around three minutes. Don’t panic if the acrylic begins to look frosty or have more scratches on it, as this is part of the process. Once you’ve done this, move on to the 1200 grit sandpaper and repeat the same process until all of the scratches have disappeared. Lastly, dry the area with a clean cotton cloth and apply the acrylic polish. The result should be a piece of acrylic that looks as good as new, with no visible marks.