Expert: Jamie Yocono - 10/18/2008

Question
I had an ice bucket on my dining room table over night and apparently it had a leak. Now the wood/finish on my table has a lighter, whitish tone where it was exposed to the water. Is there anything I can do without sanding/refinishing it?

Answer
Hi Susan,

I answered a questions similar to this a while ago, but I don't know if it's saved here on All-Experts.  Luckily, I save all my past answers, so I am going to cut and paste that answer below.
_________________________________________________________________

It sounds as if you have water damage to your cabinet. This occurs when moisture enters the wood finish, obscuring the transparency of the film of protection. It's most common of older finishes, where the finish has developed small cracks, thus allowing the moisture to enter. It's difficult to remove the damage on older finishes, so depending on how old the piece is, this remedy may or may not work.

Try rubbing an alcohol dampened cloth over the area. Use denatured alcohol, available at most places that sell paint and painting supplies. Use just enough alcohol on the rag to leave a vapor trail behind the cloth as you gently wipe the piece. Rubbing harder, or applying too much alcohol can damage the rest of the finish, so start out slowly. (This is from my favorite wood finishing book- Understanding Wood Finishes by Bob Flexner.)

Another suggestion is to rub a very fine abrasive on it. You need something extremely fine, like cigarette ash (mixed with a drop of oil, to wet the ashes) or toothpaste. Rub lightly, or you will sand into the finish and it will look bad. If the damage is just on the surface, this may lightly erase the mark.

If it's an oil finish, you might also consider re-oiling the piece, sanding in the oil with wet or dry 400 grit paper. I recommend using Watco Danish Oil. It's pretty widely available, in the paint department of most stores.

OK, I hope these suggestions help. I think the best shot is wiping it lightly with alcohol, but I've included the other suggestions in case the alcohol remedy doesn't work. Good luck, write back if this doesn't work and I'll try to help again.

Jamie Yocono
Wood It Is! Custom Cabinetry
Las Vegas, NV
www.wooditis.com