Although a stain on wood can be unsightly and may seem like it’s there forever, there are many different methods of getting one off. From water stains to more stubborn ones that have been there for a long time, all hope is not lost if you accidentally drop something on the wood. So how do you do it?
For newer or less stubborn stains, there are a variety of solutions—for example, vaseline, water, salt, or baking soda. If these solutions don’t work, you can try spraying an all-purpose bleach on the stain. Lastly, you can always sand the wood down using sandpaper.
Let’s take a closer look at the various ways to remove stains from wood, as well as what you can do when these methods fail.
How Do You Remove Stains from Wood?
You can remove stains from wood one of two ways: naturally or using bleach. Natural solutions may include scrubbing the surface with vinegar or mixing bicarbonate of soda and water to get rid of the stain. These will, admittedly, only work on lesser or newer stains.
Older or larger stains may need bleach. Make sure you’re careful with this, as this is a harsh chemical, and you should keep it away from your skin, especially your eyes.
What You’ll Need
What you’ll need to remove stains from wood depends on your chosen method, but if you aren’t sure what’s going to work and intend to try them all, here’s what to gather:
- An old rag
- White vinegar (on Amazon)
- Water
- Baking soda (on Amazon)
- Safety equipment, such as gloves and glasses
- Salt
- Vaseline
- Sandpaper (on Amazon)
- Bleach (on Amazon)
If you’re unsure what kind of stain you have on your hands or what it will take, you can either go straight for the bleach or try a more natural method first. Sometimes it’s best to try the natural solutions and return to the bleach—or sandpaper—later if they aren’t strong enough.
Preparing Your Workspace
The first thing you should do when preparing your workspace is to wipe any residue off the wood. For example, if you dropped a liquid on it that stained the wood, wipe any left up that hasn’t soaked into the wood and concentrate on the stain left behind.
Then clear a workspace, moving everything you wouldn’t want to be damaged by bleach, and you can continue. You might want to lay something down if you don’t want your workspace itself to be stained by the bleach, depending on what kind of material it’s made of.
Lastly, put on your safety equipment. You should at least use rubber gloves, and safety goggles are a good idea too.
How to Remove Stains Using Bleach
You can use a multi-purpose bleach spray (on Amazon) to remove old, dark stains. There are also special wood bleaches available that you can find.
You’ll want to place bleach all over the stain and let it sit for half an hour. Then, keep it (and everyone else) safe by ensuring no kids or pets can get near it, mainly if you’re leaving it alone.
After half an hour, wipe it away with a damp cloth. If the stain is very old, you can leave it on for a little longer, but you shouldn’t leave bleach sitting on wood overnight (or for any longer than that, of course).
How to Remove Stains Using Natural Products
There are a few natural solutions you can try to remove wood stains before going with bleach. Here are some ideas. Some of these are great for water stains, whereas others may be used for more stubborn or darker stains.
Salt and Water
You can get small, mild stains like the white stains from dropping water on wood, mixing equal parts salt and water. You can then wipe firmly at the stain with the solution and keep trying to wipe it away. If it hasn’t been there for too long, it should lift right off.
Vaseline
If you have some vaseline handy, you can also try using this to remove a water stain! First, leave it on the stain and then leave the wood alone for as long as possible—preferably at least overnight, and twenty-four hours is better. Then wipe the vaseline away.
Baking Soda and Water
For slightly more stubborn stains, mixing baking soda and water works well. You can make a paste and then use it to wipe at the stain. For maximum results, let it sit on the stain for a while before wiping it away.
Baking Soda and Vinegar
You can mix baking soda and vinegar for an even better stain cleaner. Mix them until you have a sticky and thick consistency, and then use this to wipe at the stain. Rub it in, wait a few minutes, and wipe it away to see if the stain has improved.
Sandpaper
If none of the natural solutions work and you don’t want to resort to bleach—or already have, and it hasn’t worked—then you can sand the stain away. This takes some elbow grease, but after a few minutes, you should be able to scrub the stain off.
Depending on where the stain was, you may later have to add a fresh coat of paint to the wood.