Posted by: Jeff Blume, Building Maintenance Contractors on November 20, 2000 at 21:01:41:

In Reply to: Re: Black Stains in hardwood Posted by: Chris on August 10, 1999 at 17:55:26:

: : We recently purchased a home. It is an older home with hardwood floors. Unfortuneately the floors were covered with carpet. We tore up the carpet in one of the bedrooms. Underneath the carpet and the carpet padding was a thin (1/8") black foam-like covering. We used an adhesive remover to remove it. However, it left black stains (trowel marks) in the wood. I tried renting a floor sander (orbital-type)and sanding it out, but I couldn't get it out. Is there anything that I can do to remove the stains -- bleach, or TSP, anything?

: Jeremy,
: Definitely not TSP.. not something that can be cleaned off. I doubt bleach would work because it will tend to lighten everything.. but you might try it.
: Really I think the only answer is sanding.. unfortunately you will have to sand deeper..
: Try it in a corner.. or under something.. see how far down you need to sand and decide if it is worth the time and effort to remove that much wood. And try the bleach under there too.. who knows..

: Chris

If you decide to bleach the floor try an Oxygen Bleach product. That would be much safer and give you better results. Also be very careful how much water you put onto the floor. If you have sanded off all of the floor finish an have only bare exposed wood you could raise the grain on the wood or worse yet warp the floor. Wood will absorb moisture from the air in your house so watch the humidity. If you decide to bleach and clean the stains on the floor you can look at www.Clean-n-Brite.com

• http://www.cleannbrite.econgo.com

Followups::

: : : : We recently purchased a home. It is an older home with hardwood floors. Unfortuneately the floors were covered with carpet. We tore up the carpet in one of the bedrooms. Underneath the carpet and the carpet padding was a thin (1/8") black foam-like covering. We used an adhesive remover to remove it. However, it left black stains (trowel marks) in the wood. I tried renting a floor sander (orbital-type)and sanding it out, but I couldn't get it out. Is there anything that I can do to remove the stains -- bleach, or TSP, anything? : : Jeremy, : : Definitely not TSP.. not something that can be cleaned off. I doubt bleach would work because it will tend to lighten everything.. but you might try it. : : Really I think the only answer is sanding.. unfortunately you will have to sand deeper.. : : Try it in a corner.. or under something.. see how far down you need to sand and decide if it is worth the time and effort to remove that much wood. And try the bleach under there too.. who knows.. : : Chris : If you decide to bleach the floor try an Oxygen Bleach product. That would be much safer and give you better results. Also be very careful how much water you put onto the floor. If you have sanded off all of the floor finish an have only bare exposed wood you could raise the grain on the wood or worse yet warp the floor. Wood will absorb moisture from the air in your house so watch the humidity. If you decide to bleach and clean the stains on the floor you can look at www.Clean-n-Brite.com

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