How to repair this stain
by
Catherine
+17
Over the Christmas holiday a tray was placed on this cabinet and apparently the bottom of the tray had something wet on it. It looked nice there so I didn't move it for a few days and when I removed it the finish was damaged. The finish is dull with almost a white cast. The cabinet is from the 60 or 70's? and I don't know what the finish is. It is very glossy and is so smooth it almost looks artificial, but is the actual wood - not some sort of laminate. Could it be shellac? I've seen a product called "Rejuvenate" advertised on TV but thought I'd ask here first to see if there is some home made remedy that will fix the problem. Thanks you in advance!
16 answers
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mayo rub into stain should remove, I have used it several times. worked everytime
Devery Little
on Feb 01, 2014
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Thank you so much for the advice. I'll try it today.
Catherine
on Feb 01, 2014
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one quick question - do I leave it on for few minutes after I rub the mayo on the stain?
Catherine
on Feb 01, 2014
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I have never had to do this because most of my furniture is painted or poly'd but everything I have read says leave the mayo on overnight (or minimally 1 hour). You may have to repeat the process and if you can still see the ring after trying mayo a couple times, add baking soda or ashes to some mayonnaise. Use a damp cloth to gently rub the ash and mayo mixture onto the water rings. Let stand for several hours and then wipe away. Supposedly it does matter if it is cigarette, cigar or fireplace ashes. The ashes add a touch of grit to the mayo to help buff out the moisture spot.
Shari
on Feb 01, 2014
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I had this happen to my antique dresser. I cried thinking it was ruined and I thought about painting it. But, I decided to try stripping it instead. I am so happy I didn't paint this beautiful antique! I sanded down to the wood and stained it and in several steps removed the water damage! Good luck!
Betty Johnson
on Feb 01, 2014
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I should have noted that I tried a suggested water mark removal and it damaged it further, down through the shellac(?) and the stain to the bare wood.
Betty Johnson
on Feb 01, 2014
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You might give this a try. I think everybody need to have some of this stuff just in case this happens to them. This man tries everything and it must work or he doesn't carry it in his store. Good luck. http://happyhandyman.com/store/furniture-white-ring-remover/
Wanda.ll
on Feb 03, 2014
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I put mayonnaise on an old water damaged table that had shellac on it. It pulled the finish right off. So I still had to strip it down and refinish it. I'd go with a product made for water spots first, as Wanda suggested, or possibly the hair dryer method, but realize you may have to refinish anyway. Try to figure out what the existing finish is on the table now.
Gretchen
on Feb 03, 2014
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I have water stains my wood floors. When I took my live christmas tree down. What is best to remove the water stain from the wood floors? The house was build back in the fifthy.
Candice
on Feb 03, 2014
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ist thing to do would be to make sure it was shellac-shellac dissolves with denatured alcohol. It does not hold up well to water and has not been used for a furniture finish for well over 65 years except in some imports from Malaysia like pieces purchased from Home Decorators Collection and then mostly in the smaller accent pieces.for floors- use deck brightener-oxyalic acid.
Melinda Lockwood
on Feb 07, 2014
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DO NOT USE MAYO!!! A great product is New Life Furniture Masque!!! It takes water rings off in 5 minutes. Also, NEVER use furniture wax (sorry Pledge). I am an antique dealer and New Life is the ONLY thing we use!!!
Debi McCoy
on Feb 07, 2014
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I'm honestly not sure what the top finish on this piece is. It is a high gloss finish that would have been typically found on good quality maple dining room furniture that would probably have been in perhaps the 70's - my mother-in-law had some Cushman Colonial furniture that I think had a similar finish.
Catherine
on Feb 07, 2014
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New Life works on a lot of surfaces. Just give it a try. If you are interested in purchasing just let me know.
Debi McCoy
on Feb 08, 2014
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My mom bought a hard-rock maple table in the 60's and had the top custom-laminated so it would hold up to six kids! It looked very much like yours - the beveled sides were not laminated. After inheriting it I found that nothing cleaned or shined it better than Endust. Never had a water stain misadventure, but if nothing else works, you might try that. Good luck!
Mar
on Feb 08, 2014
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Here is a video made by a furniture restoration expert on removing water marks from furniture finishes. His skills are sought after by museums seeking to restore high dollar antiques. That said, you might think he is crazy... until you try it: http://www.iplayerhd.com/playerframe/share/96f7b953-c343-4592-a586-9eabcc8bf375
Brian Campbell, Basswood Artisan Carpentry
on Feb 09, 2014
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I used a product by Howard - Restore-A-Finish. Used as directed it took care of a stain left from plastic. http://www.howardproducts.com/
Judy Parkey
on Feb 09, 2014
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