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Forest floors and furniture look neat, simply they're unfortunately vulnerable to all types of stains. While removing water stains is 1 thing, getting rid of dark, black stains is a little harder. These stains are soaked into the woods and demand some special tricks to get them out. Luckily, there are a few means to successfully clean dark stains on wood. If yous'd like to, yous could too lighten wood with a dark stain finish on it. These tips are ranked from the easiest to well-nigh involved, so y'all tin piece of work your fashion downward the list to see what works all-time. With the right methods, you can lift dark stains off in no fourth dimension!

  1. 1

    Soak a cloth in 3% hydrogen peroxide. This is a standard hydrogen peroxide type. You can get it at any drugstore or chemist's. Take a clean rag and soak it with the peroxide.[1]

    • Don't use a stronger concentration of peroxide. This might discolor the wood or lighten it too much.
    • Peroxide shouldn't irritate your pare, simply wash your easily afterward yous handle it. Don't bear on your eyes or face before you launder your easily.
    • This fob works on finished and unfinished wood. Information technology shouldn't discolor the finish.

  2. ii

    Press the cloth onto the stain. Take the rag and rub information technology a chip over the stain to wet the woods. Then lay information technology down directly over the stain and press information technology a bit so the peroxide soaks into the forest.[2]

    • Make certain you comprehend the whole stain. If it'southward a very large stain, yous may need some other rag.

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  3. 3

    Leave the cloth over the stain overnight. This isn't a quick treatment. The peroxide needs a few hours to elevator and soak upwards the stain. Allow it sit over night for the best results.[3]

    • If y'all do this in the morn, then let the rag sit down for 4-6 hours instead of waiting until the adjacent morn.

  4. 4

    Remove the rag and wipe up any remaining peroxide. After a few hours pass, you tin pick upward the rag. Wipe it around to pick up whatsoever excess peroxide. If the treatment worked, the stain should exist significantly lighter or gone completely.[four]

  5. 5

    Wipe the wood before applying peroxide once more. Information technology'due south normal if the stain isn't completely gone, and you might need 1 or 2 more peroxide applications. Before using boosted treatments, have a wet sponge and wipe the wood to remove any stale peroxide. Let information technology dry, and so effort some other peroxide treatment.[v]

    • If you've tried this 2 or 3 times and don't see whatever comeback in the stain, then it probably won't piece of work. Yous need a stronger treatment like bleach or sanding.

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  1. 1

    Get a wood bleach that contains oxalic acrid. There are a few types of wood bleach and they all work differently. Oxalic acrid is best for spot-treating woods to remove set-in stains. Yous can find it at most hardware stores.[6]

    • Oxalic acid ordinarily comes in powder form, which you can mix in with water when you're ready to use it.
    • This method as well works for finished and unfinished wood.

  2. ii

    Put on safe gloves and goggles. Bleach is irritating if you get it on your skin or in your optics. E'er protect yourself by wearing goggles and condom gloves whenever you handle it.[vii]

    • If you get any bleach in your eye, flush it for 15 minutes with cool water. Just let the h2o menstruation over your middle and don't rub it at all. After that, call poison control for further instructions.[8]

  3. 3

    Mix i oz (28 k) of oxalic acid with 1 pint (473 ml) of warm water. Since oxalic acid comes in pulverisation form, you need to mix it with water before using it. Mensurate out one oz (28 g) of oxalic acid and pour it into a container with 1 pint (473 ml) of warm water. Stir the mixture until the powder entirely dissolves.[9]

    • Always cheque the instructions to confirm the mixing instructions. They may be different for dissimilar brands.
    • Don't mix the bleach ahead of time and endeavour to employ it later on. Information technology doesn't terminal very long in storage.

  4. four

    Scrub the bleach into the stain with a toothbrush. Dip a clean toothbrush into the bleach and swirl it effectually. And then scrub it into the stain using a circular motion.[10]

    • Make sure the toothbrush is clean and unused and so y'all don't get any stains on the forest.
    • Don't rub the bleach on unstained spots or you might discolor the wood. If you want to protect the unstained areas, you can record off the stain with masking or painter'southward tape.[11]

  5. five

    Allow the bleach sit until the wood dries. The bleach needs a few hours to soak in and lift the stain. Get out it alone for a few hours and let the area dry completely.[12]

    • Keep kids or pets away from the area. Bleach is toxic and they might impact information technology.

  6. 6

    Wipe the area with a wet sponge. Once the bleach is dry, wet a clean sponge with plain water. Wipe the spot to soak upwards any bleach balance. If the handling was successful, the stain should be significantly lighter.[13]

    • You can repeat this 1 or 2 more times if the stain isn't completely gone. If it still isn't gone after this, then you lot may need to sand the wood.

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  1. one

    Launder the wood if y'all've used whatever chemic treatments on the stain. If you lot've already tried to bleach or clean the stain, there could be chemical residue on the wood. Animate this in could irritate your lungs, so make certain to launder it abroad before you start. Use a wet sponge and dish soap to scrub the area around the stain. Then rinse and dry the wood.[14]

    • Fifty-fifty if you haven't tried to clean the stain with chemicals, information technology's a good idea to launder the surface area first to get rid of any dirt.

  2. 2

    Put on goggles and a grit mask so y'all don't breathe in whatever sawdust. Sanding tin can kicking up sawdust, which could irritate your eyes or airways. Ever put on goggles and a dust mask to protect yourself before starting.

  3. iii

    Remove the wood end over the stain with 100-grit sandpaper. Fibroid sandpaper is best for stripping away the woods terminate. Take 100-grit sandpaper and sand the finish above the stain. Work along with the grain of the woods. Continue sanding until yous reach the bare wood.[15]

    • If the stain is merely in a pocket-size spot, then you probably don't need an electric or chugalug sander. If you're removing a lot of stains, like on an unabridged floor, so an electric sander might help.
    • Effort to limit your sanding to the small area higher up the stain. If you sand likewise much, you'll have more to refinish later.

  4. 4

    Sand away the stain with 150-grit sandpaper. Switch to a finer sandpaper in one case you reach the bare woods. Accept 150-grit sandpaper and sand the stain direct, once again along the grain of the wood. Continue sanding until you remove the whole stain.[16]

    • For very severe stains, sanding won't even go them out. In this example, yous'll have to supercede the wood panels or floorboards.[17]
    • Try to collect some of the sawdust while you're sanding. Yous tin mix this with woods putty to match information technology to the wood color if you lot need to set up any holes.

  5. 5

    Wipe the area with a tack cloth. A tack cloth picks up any leftover sawdust.[18] Requite the area a adept wipe before moving on.[xix]

    • If you don't have a tack cloth, a wet sponge or rag usually picks up a adept corporeality of sawdust also.

  6. 6

    Refinish the wood in that spot. If yous removed the stain from a finished piece of wood, then you'll accept to repair the spot that you sanded. Since it'south but a small spot, this isn't a big job. Beginning by filling any holes or cracks with wood putty. When the putty dries, sand it down with fine-grit sandpaper until the surface is polish. Then vacuum the area to get rid of dust from sanding. Brush the terminate onto the area and let information technology dry to consummate the job.[20]

    • Try to match the finish that you employ with the original end on the wood. Otherwise, the colors will be unlike. If you aren't sure what that color was, try using a finisher's color bike from a hardware store to match colors and discover the right end type.[21]
    • If you accept to plug any holes with putty, try mixing some sawdust from when you sanded the floor with the putty. This matches its colour to the forest for a less noticeable repair.

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Things You'll Need

  • 3% hydrogen peroxide
  • Rags
  • Water
  • Sponge
  • Cup
  • Warm water
  • Oxalic acrid
  • Gloves
  • Goggles
  • Rag
  • Toothbrush
  • Sandpaper (100- and 150-grit)
  • Goggles
  • Grit mask
  • Rags
  • H2o
  • Wood finish
  • Tack fabric

References

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