We’re in the process of refinishing our red oak hardwood floors. There are some pretty serious pet urine stains that are about 10 years old. They were masterfully covered by area rugs and may return to that state if a solution for removal is not successful. We sanded down a section to see how deep the stain runs and weren’t surprised to see just how bad it really is.
I’ve read online that household bleach may work. Wood bleach is recommended if the former doesn’t work. Because they will most likely be covered with rugs, we will not go so far as to replace the affected boards.
Any tips, advice, sucess stories to share?
Thank you!
Replies
Pet stains WILL NOT come out of the floor. Urine reacts with wood tannin to create dark, sometimes black mineral streaking. I have seen the staining so severe that they penetrated to the bottom of the board. Removing and replacing the boards was for many years the only repair.
I started using another method (from Europe) about 10 years ago however. Faux paint over them using acrylic paints. Any art store carries them.
Buy a variety of yellows, browns and reds. Mix the paints on some paper plates to match the grain colors and repaint the grain.
Faux the stains AFTER your 1st coat of sealer and before the last 2 finish coats. Be carefull when abrading between coats so you don't sand the faux off.
This technique takes a little practice, be patient.
Did you ever try oxalic acid on the stains?Andy
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." Robert A. Heinlein
"Get off your dead #### and on your dying feet." Mom
Andy, I haven't tried anything yet for fear of getting it all wrong. I googled oxalic acid and it seems to be quite useful in a lot of household applications. I will try locating some and spot test. It just might be the remedy.
Have you used oxalic acid in removing pet stains from wood floors before?
Well, thanks for the info!
Never used, just heard that it can work. See Ditch's response as he's used the stuff.
Seems to me that if the floor is trashed anyway, what's to lose? Oxalic acid can be bought at good paint stores.Andy
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." Robert A. Heinlein
"Get off your dead #### and on your dying feet." Mom
Someone pull the stake from my heart.....TRASHED? I never saw a wood floor I couldn't love:)
OK, I was projecting. I'm with you. What others view as damage, I see as scenes in a story. But I realize that not a lot of people take that view.Andy
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." Robert A. Heinlein
"Get off your dead #### and on your dying feet." Mom
...my favorite floor story:
I was inspecting a floor to prepare for refinish, an old farmhouse in N.W. Pa. The granddaughter and her family inhertited it and were going to use it as a summer home.
One of the bedrooms upstairs (Heart Pine) had 4 divits worn past the tongue, she wanted the boards replaced. I told her this was the room her grandparents used and she was shocked that I knew that.
Earlier she said that her grandparents, who were married more than 60 years used to sit on the porch, hold hands, and watch the sun go down over the corn fields.
I told her that they may have held hands on the porch, but they were getting down to serious bitness after the sun set...."those divits are bed post grooves...and they're stayin...gotta celebrate these things...not fix 'em."
I carefully hand sanded the bottom of the valleys smooth...grandma and grandpa would've been proud.
Edited 8/2/2006 1:39 pm ET by ditch
Great story.Andy
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." Robert A. Heinlein
"Get off your dead #### and on your dying feet." Mom
I really don't see why patching is out of the question. I could patch a LOT flooring in one day, and with red oak, it's only a trip to Home Despot away. If you are refinishing, why not? I guarantee that 20 square feet you pay $40 for will be MORE than paid for when you go to sell that house.
I have similar problems with the previously rented house that I am trying to prep to sell. The additional problem is that the 2 1/2" x 3/8" oak strips are severely cupped from the moisture. Two problems:I had to replace a few boards earlier and found that they were a couple of shades lighter in color. I think both the old and new boards were white oak. What is the best technique to slightly darken the white oak - dye or stain or ? Does anyone know a place to get the 2 1/2" x 3/8" white oak strips in the Bay Area for less than a small fortune. Truitt and White in Berkeley had some 2 1/2" strips but they were 5/16" rather than 3/8" and they were pricey. If I can get some strips for a decent price, I will probably replace a much larger area of flooring.If I have to go with the thinner strips, what is the best material to pad underneath them to make the new strips the same level with the old. With that little wood to work with, I really don't want to sand the existing down to match the new. Before I shimmed with some cardboard from some shoe boxes but would prefer something better.
Jesse,
After discovering faux graining I never went back to patching...and I patched pet stains for 25 years....I was one of the first owners of a Fein Multi-Master (Super-cut) plunge saw which I bought solely for patch work.
I had to 'tone' a lot of floor patches with stain recipes over the years to get new wood to match the patina of old wood, especially old floors originally finished with shellac or sub-shellac.
Like I said, I could faux a pet stain in about 10 mins. with $2.00 worth of acrylic paint. The repairs were truly invisible. Plain sawn red oak is the easiest...1/4 sawn white oak is the funnest.
Jesse, we may explore replacing some boards if stain removal is impossible. I don't believe that cost is an issue as my DH has quite the inventory of red oak in his shop. I'm sure he could rip and mill them to the original specs. We have quite a few spots, so we'll have to see just what kind of area we're talking about before we commit to the project.
Thanks for your input.
Andy,
I've had some success with Ox. acid on minor water stains...but it is very unforgiving if mixed too strong or left on too long before nuetralizing. Ox. acid can turn oak green....is corrosive and poisonous. :{
Pet stains tend to be really dark because Fido or the cat usually mark the same spots continuosly.
I usually charged between $20 and $40 per stain and could faux a pet stain in about 10 mins.
Edited 8/2/2006 10:48 am ET by ditch
I've tried Ox acid on urine stains with no luck (many attempts). Same with bleach, as ditch said, some of these stains run deep.
I too agree with the sentiment that most any old wood floor is beautiful, stains and wear and such become part of its character.
Wow! Faux painting. I never would have thought. I just may have to try that. Once the rooms are completely bare, I will have to see just how much there is to do and go from there.
Thanks for the idea!
The stains may disappear or fade after sanding, but they will reappear after the first coat of sealer.
I've had pretty good luck with oxacilic acid. Sand the area, mask off the area of the stain with tape, and mix & apply the acid. I use a toothbrush to brush it in. Repeat until you get it right. Make sure you sand the floor before you do this, because you are pretty much bleaching the surface. and you don't want to sand off the bleached wood and expose more stain. The result is not perfect but you can do it well enough that the stain won't be noticed.
Billy