Question:
Hey doc I used the Klean strip on my urine spots and it worked great. what type of stain would you recommend for “bringing the color back”? Natural, (would that be too clear?) or would you just use heavier doses of the finish stains?I believe my floor is white oak but the spots that were not touched with bleach look orange now I have minwax and zars available to me and won’t to go with a fruit wood finish.
Thanks for the time and great articles.
Bob.
Answer:
Dear Bob
Although you will find that the small cans of Minwax stains most convenient, you might try the touch up stain pens they sell in the stores. These contain a dye stain, which is a lot easier to blend in. The pens, although expensive, allow you to paint in bleached out grain lines as well as the background color. Start with the lightest background color first then paint in the darker grain lines. Rarely can you just splash on a stain and expect it to blend well.
Also seeing how the surrounding old finish itself has aged you might try adding a pigment to the polyurethane itself. Minwax stains are dye-pigment combos so they might work if added to the poly, but may alter the dry time The pigments though will give you the instant finish aging you want. Pure earth pigments can be ordered from Lee Valley Tools and I’ll give you the URL for the pigments and the touch-up pens, if only just to see a picture of the products I refer to.
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.asp?page=20067x=1,190,42997x=1x=
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.asp?page=20084x=1,190,42996x=1x=1x=
You can also get a paint store to squirt a bit of liquid pigment tint into the can of varnish, but it’s hard to predict what the results will be doing it this way. I will be doing a separate article on doing touch-ups on damaged hardwood floors. Very complex subject in itself. Look for it next year.