Staining issue or bigger problem?

10 years ago

Hello - we hired a flooring contractor to refinish our 100 year old wood floors. There was a lot of work that needed to be done (lots of patching, etc.) and for the most part the floors look beautiful. We went through the house last night for the first time since they'd been stained (not poly'd yet) and there are two sections of the flooring where the wood looks almost burned.

A picture is attached - can someone help me out here and let me know what this is? Can it be fixed? One of the spots is a few feet from where you walk into the house and is VERY noticeable.

Thank you!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

PRO
Cancork Floor Inc.
10 years ago
It looks like a 'void' that is rectangular (as if there was a rug sitting there when something was spilled that caused a stain).

Do you remember seeing something like this BEFORE the floor was sanded? After it was sanded (but before the stain)? It looks like the outline of a rug...but the photo doesn't show the full set of dark patches or the full size of the discolouration.

Regardless, this will need to be sanded (possibly bleached) and then stained again. Sorry - but these are the next steps. I'm hoping that only this room (the entire space that is connected to this should be sanded and stained again....other rooms that are away from this area may not need to full monty) will need to be done again.
User
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
That's not a staining issue. It's almost certainly an ammonia stain caused by an animal urinating on the edge of a rug or mat repeatedly. The only sure way to get it out is to replace the wood. I have not had good results trying to bleach these out but some people recommend Oxalic acid. Trying to selectively bleach out a floor stain would be akin to trying to spot bleach a stain on an item of clothing without affecting the rest of the garment.

Will this be covered? It looks like there's also some similar faint stains in the upper left corner of your picture and what looks to be a patch. New wood patched into an old floor will probably turn out lighter.
Related Professionals
Sarasota Flooring Contractors · Evansville Flooring Contractors · Charleston Flooring Contractors · Cleveland Flooring Contractors · Montrose Flooring Contractors · Spanish Fork Flooring Contractors · Cookeville Tile and Stone Contractors · Georgetown Tile and Stone Contractors · Tyler Tile and Stone Contractors · Bemidji Tile and Stone Contractors · Rochester Tile and Stone Contractors · Sacramento Tile and Stone Contractors · Elizabeth City Kitchen Remodelers · Chico Kitchen Remodelers · Leamington Kitchen Remodelers
PRO
Linda
10 years ago
I had surprisingly good luck with high strength hydrogen peroxide bleach on some extremely ugly pet stains. However, any remedy, whether replacement or bleaching, needs to be done before the staining and certainly before any coats of finish are applied.

I've dealt with several older floors with bad stains and my experience has been that a slightly darker floor area is less noticeable than replacement boards which don't match. There's an art to lacing in replacement wood and it starts with finding the correct material to use for patching. If the cut isn't the same as the surrounding material, the wood won't absorb stain the same way and the patch will be obvious. Glaringly obvious pieces of new wood highlight the whole issue of floor condition and repairs. The eye is keyed to look at the floor and notice all the problems which weren't serious enough for a patch.