Some pieces of furniture look rustic and even attractive with a few water stains. I’ve seen pieces that haven’t lost a touch of their original beauty, despite the water ring left behind by someone’s Scotch. However, most furniture looks quite unkempt with water stains, and those pieces need someone who knows how to repair water stains on furniture.
When I was a child, I left my glass of orange juice on the piano while I practiced. The circle left behind upset my mother terribly, especially since the piano was a hand-me-down from her mother. She called everyone she knew and asked what to do. She finally decided to have the entire piano refinished, which, even at the age of ten, I thought was a bit drastic. Nevertheless, after my month of grounding was over, the piano was returned to our home looking pristine and completely devoid of the evidence a ten-year-old can leave behind.
I didn’t understand why she didn’t ground herself, however, when her antique baking table ended up with watermarks from a party she threw during the holidays. I guess it’s just different when adults do things, even when they leave behind the same result. This time, though, she had a friend who promised he could repair the stain without the expense and hassle of moving the furniture for refinishing. He showed up two days later with a tube of toothpaste. I thought for sure that if adults could ground other adults, this would be the time. My mother stood there, arms crossed in fervent denial, while her friend worked the toothpaste into the stain. He told her to let it dry overnight, and he would return in the morning. Of course, the toothpaste smeared on the baking table became a conversation piece for the rest of the evening, even eliciting a chuckle from my father when he came home.
Alternative Methods for Repairing Water Stains on Furniture
Early the next morning, the toothpaste expert returned with a cloth, some lemon oil, and a bit of furniture polish. He got right to work, removing the toothpaste with a soft damp cloth, then applying a round of lemon oil. For his final step, he pulled out the furniture polish and waxed until the whole tabletop shone with a luster that uncrossed my mother’s arms. Apparently, this trick works on many woods, but not all.
Toothpaste has changed over the years. There are now all kinds of gel-based toothpastes that freshen breath, fight gum disease, and whiten teeth. That’s great for your mouth but not for your furniture. Only use a regular, pasty toothpaste (the kind that tasted horrible when we were kids) when repairing water stains on furniture.
Polishing the water stain with cooled cigarette ashes can also remove the watermark. Cigar ashes work too, but for some reason, cigarette ashes tend to be a bit more effective. Mixing the ashes with a small amount of water results in a messy paste that works well on water stains.
If no smoker is available, you can also make a nearly as effective mixture of baking soda and water. In this case, make a heavy paste—almost the same consistency as toothpaste—and rub it thoroughly into the stain. Make sure the stain is completely coated, then leave it for about 12 hours. When you remove the paste, use a soft dry cloth and be persistent. Once it’s gone, follow up with lemon oil and furniture polish. However, you may need to repeat this process twice for the stain to vanish entirely.
If you’re lucky enough to catch the spill or water mark right away, wipe it up quickly, then use a cool or mildly warm hair dryer to dry the area completely. While some wood furniture will still stain, if you evaporate the droplets fast enough, you may be able to prevent staining altogether.
When my mother’s friend left the house after our little round of education, I reminded her that she had grounded me for the same incident. Turns out, if she’d known how easy and inexpensive it was to repair water stains on furniture, my month of isolation would have never occurred. Either way, it was a long time before I left a glass to sweat all over a piece of furniture, which, in the end, made me a better guest in someone’s home. So, perhaps not all was lost.