Acrylic paint is in every classroom, craft room, and hobby shop, and it gets used near heat guns, candles, and hair dryers all the time. Whether it's a fire risk depends on which form of acrylic you have in your hand.
Wet acrylic paint from a tube or bottle is not flammable. It is water-based, and until the water evaporates it cannot ignite. Once dry, acrylic paint becomes a thin plastic (polymer) film that will burn and melt in a fire, though it won't start one. Acrylic spray paint is a different product entirely and is highly flammable because of its solvents and propellant.
Wet Acrylic Paint
Craft and artist acrylics are pigment suspended in an acrylic polymer emulsion, and the carrier is water. There is no solvent to give off flammable vapor. You can use it next to a candle, dry it with a hair dryer, and store it in a hot garage without a fire risk. The only cautions are the usual ones for any plastic-based product: don't heat it on a stove, and don't leave it near a heat gun on high.
Dried Acrylic Paint
Dry acrylic is essentially a sheet of soft plastic. Like polyester, nylon, or any other polymer, it is combustible. A painted canvas in a house fire will burn and give off dark smoke, and a thick build-up of dried acrylic on a surface will melt and drip. That is true of almost every paint and finish, so it's not a reason to avoid acrylics. It is a reason not to hang paintings directly over a fireplace or wood stove.
Acrylic Spray Paint
This is the one to respect. Acrylic spray paint uses solvents like acetone and toluene plus a propane or butane propellant, and the mist coming out of the nozzle ignites instantly from a flame or spark. Heating the can can rupture it. We cover it fully in is spray paint flammable.
Acrylic Enamel and Automotive Acrylics
Solvent-based acrylic enamels and acrylic lacquers used on cars and furniture are flammable while wet, with flash points similar to other oil-based paints. If the label says to clean up with mineral spirits or lacquer thinner, treat it like a fuel: ventilate, keep it away from heat, and dry rags flat outdoors.
Quick Reference
| Product | Flammable while wet? | Burns when dry? |
|---|---|---|
| Craft / artist acrylic (water-based) | No | Yes, like any plastic |
| Acrylic latex house paint | No | Yes, slowly |
| Acrylic spray paint | Yes, highly | Yes |
| Acrylic enamel / lacquer (solvent-based) | Yes | Yes |
Related reading: is paint flammable and is latex paint flammable.
