How to Remove Stains from Wood Surfaces

This happens every now and then: Someone puts a glass of water on a wooden table, and before you can put the coaster underneath, a circle appears on the table. Before you spend a ton of money on refinishing your countertop, try these inexpensive tips for cleaning wood surface stains.

Table of Contents

Clean the white circle

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Use an iron to iron the stain. Pour out all the water in the table. Spread a towel, t-shirt, or cloth over the stain to separate the countertop from the iron. Turn the iron on low and slowly iron the fabric briefly, then lift the cloth to see if the stain is gone. If not, spread the fabric and iron again. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Make sure the iron is not on steam mode.
Act as quickly as possible. Dry the countertop as much as possible before starting treatment.
Dry off any water or moisture on the countertop each time you lift the iron. ^{[2] X Research Source}
White circles appear due to condensation of water vapor or liquid. White indicates that stains have only penetrated the wax or finish, which means they will be much easier to remove than darker stains. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

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Scrub steel and lemon oil. Buy a fine steel pad and dip it in lemon oil and rub it gently on the white circle, then rub the stain with a denatured alcohol rag. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Lemon oil is a lubricant that helps prevent wood surfaces from scratching.

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Try using toothpaste. Squeeze the toothpaste onto your finger or rag and rub along the wood grain until the wood is warm. Dab the rag with water to moisten and wipe off the toothpaste, then dry. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Remember to use a white toothpaste and not a gel cream. ^{[6] X Research Sources}
You don’t need to use a lot of toothpaste. Just a little cream is effective enough.
Do not scrub for too long. Try not to rub the outside of the stain to avoid wearing down the finish and top wood. ^{[7] X Research Sources}
Repeat until the stain is completely clean.

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Use a hair dryer to dry. Turn on the hair dryer on high heat and let it get close to the stain. It will gradually disappear as the moisture dries. Remember to move the hair dryer back and forth across the wooden surface. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

The drying process may take 10-30 minutes.
Rub a little olive oil on the wood after drying to keep it moist.

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Apply oil-based products. Oil-based products such as mayonnaise, butter, and waxes can soak into the wood and break down moisture. ^{[9] X Research Source} Rub some mayonnaise or petroleum jelly on the stain. Leave it like this for 1 hour or overnight.

Apply more mayonnaise to the stain if it dries out.
To increase the strength of stain removal, you can mix cigarette butts with mayonnaise or wax. ^{[10] X Research Source}

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Use baking soda. Mix baking soda with toothpaste or water to remove stains. If using water, mix 2 parts baking soda with 1 part water. Use a rag to gently rub the stain. ^{[11] X Research Source}

If you’re using baking soda and toothpaste, mix equal parts each and rub the mixture over the stain with a rag, then wipe it off with a damp rag. ^{[12] X Research Source}

Clean other stains

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Use baking soda to remove stains. Baking soda is a great cleanser. To remove stains, you can mix baking soda with distilled vinegar or lemon juice to make a paste-like consistency and spread it over the stain. Use a sponge to gently scrub the wood surface. Use a rag and water to wipe it off after scrubbing. ^{[13] X Research Source}

You can use your hands to scrub instead of a sponge.
Add more vinegar or water if the stain is still not clean.
Repeat this process until the stain is gone.
You can also try using a magic eraser to remove stains.

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Use dish soap to clean grease-free stains. For stains caused by food and nail polish, try using dishwashing liquid. Mix soap with warm water, dip a rag in the solution and scrub the stain.

This method works best for non-greasy stains.

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Scrub off grease stains with ammonia. For grease stains on wood, try scrubbing with a solution of ammonia mixed with cold water. Dip the rag in the solution and gently rub the stain. ^{[14] X Research Source}

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Clean stains caused by pets with a disinfectant solution. You need to get rid of bacteria when your pet soils wooden floors. Bacteria are the cause of stains and odors. To clean stains and kill bacteria, you can use a 5% phenp solution available at home improvement stores. Use a soft damp cloth to wipe the dirty area.

If the floor has a wax finish, use a fine steel bar and white gasoline to scrub in a circular motion to clean the dirt. Re-wax after wiping. ^{[15] X Research Source}

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Use isopropyl alcohol to remove indelible brush marks. Pour some rubbing alcohol on the rag and rub it over the stain. Use a damp cloth to wipe clean.

Test it on the underside of the table first to make sure it doesn’t damage the top.
Try using toothpaste to clean brush marks. ^{[16] X Research Source}

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Use bleach to clean the black spots. Use powdered oxalic acid, commonly found in wood bleaching chemicals and some household cleaning products. You can buy oxalic acid at home improvement stores. First, you need to peel off the finish before cleaning the stain. ^{[17] X Research Source}

Mix oxalic acid powder with water to make a paste. Do not mix in a metal bowl, as oxalic acid can discolor the metal. Use a rag or disposable paint brush to apply to the stain and let it dry. Spray so many times. ^{[18] X Research Source} Rinse thoroughly after each application of the mixture to the stain. ^{[19] X Research Source}
If bleach doesn’t remove the stain, it’s probably left behind by food or wine. You can try using hydrogen peroxide or household bleach to remove the stain.
Apply a coat of finish to the area just cleaned. You don’t have to refinish the entire item if you don’t need it.
Black marks are water stains deep in the wood. They will be much more difficult to remove. ^{[20] X Research Sources}

Advice

Test on hidden areas of wood before removing stains. Depending on the type of wood, cleaning agents can further damage the wood surface.
If the stain has penetrated deep into the wood, you may need to peel off the finish from the wood surface to treat the stain, then refinish.

Warning

Make sure the room is well ventilated when using any chemicals.

Steps

Clean the white circle

Clean other stains

Advice

Warning

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