There is an older technique for fading a tattoo that is still fairly popular and also easily available to anyone who wants to get online and order it. This technique is known as TCA tattoo removal, and it’s been in use for at least 30 years.

Initially, the use of TCA (which is an abbreviation for the much harder to pronounce term of Trichloracetic Acid) chemical was primarily focused around targeting common skin ailments. This included using TCA to remove such skin conditions as warts and wrinkles. Shortly thereafter, it was discovered that TCA was also quite effective in removing or at least fading tattoo ink from the skin.

TCA is commonly sold over the counter for all these purposes still in 2010, although it’s been largely displaced by the popularity of other over the counter tattoo removal products such as the tattoo removal cream that’s very popular, yet the effectiveness of which is dubious, at best. Anyhow, TCA still is available even though tattoo removal cream and more effective and more expensive techniques such as laser removal have become widespread.

Why do people still use TCA then?

Primarily because it’s cheap, to be honest. A bottle of TCA tattoo removal solution costs around $50. TCA is actually the main active ingredient in products such as Dermasal tattoo removal cream, one of the more popular “creams” on the market but one of the only ones whose active ingredient is TCA.

A word of warning to those interested in pursuing TCA for removing a tattoo: be careful and don’t try and mix the solution yourself. Buy a TCA solution prepared specifically for targetting tattoo ink. If the wrong proportions are used, it can burn the skin and scar it. For this reason, many shy away from TCA – yet those who are smart about it find it to be a reasonably effective, cheap solution for fading a tattoo.