There is a certain satisfaction taken from getting your car truly clean, leaving it gleaming in the sunlight looking as new as the day it first emerged off the factory assembly line.

The good news is that attaining that level of clean is simple and inexpensive, with some surprisingly everyday items key to completing the job.

In some eyes, it’s urban art, but not everyone who takes a canister of spray paint to a wall, window or fire hydrant is the artist they think they are. And for city officials, there is a clear desire to clean off the unwanted paint work as quickly as possible. But effective graffiti removal and restoration projects require more than simply elbow grease.