# Rubber-stained wood



## spiragui (Mar 6, 2012)

Hi All,

First time posting here, bt I've posted a fair few times in the DIY Chatroom, so 'Hello'!

Anyway, I have a store-bought dresser which we had a widescreen TV sat on for a while, and the rubber feet from the TV have stained the finish on top of the dresser. :thumbdown:

Does anyone have any bright ideas on how to remove these stains without having to refinish the whole top of the dresser?

Cheers
Chris


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## chemmy (Dec 13, 2011)

spiragui said:


> Hi All,
> 
> First time posting here, bt I've posted a fair few times in the DIY Chatroom, so 'Hello'!
> 
> ...


Very common problem that's been around for decades, it referred to as "plasticizer migration" the material that the feet are made of contains a plasticizer [a resin/solvent like meleac anhydride that keeps the material both softer and or pliable than it would be without] that migrates into lacquer finishes very easily and carries the color from the substance with it, first seen it on old telephones in the 60's, must be a wide-screen from overseas only because i don't see that in USA feet happening any more. 

Now as to fixing. The lightest ones may be able to be sanded out with fine paper [400-600 wet or dry or finer] only make 4-5 swipes with the paper at a time before removing the dust or slurry if you wet sand and checking the removal process. if you see any lightning beyond the surrounding color you have most likely went to far and sanded through the finish/toner/glaze color etc. - stop!! The darker ones most likely will not be save-able by the sanding process, but if my thoughts are correct and this is a lacquer finish [test with a drop or two of lacquer thinner in an unconspicious area leave for 2 min and wipe with cloth to see if the finish comes off or not] , then an amalgamator can be used to possibly soften the finish and move it around to lessen the darkness. If it's WCS, [worst case scenario] then yes, it will have to be stripped and the finish and color re-applied, which is what we had to do most often, so don't get your hopes up very high with the others i mentioned, they may or may not be successful but worth trying at least OK? Sometimes the color would even be in the wood, but you won't really know unless you do have to strip it and redo, if so, then make sure to pull the plasticizer out by using a fast dry solvent like alcohol or acetone etc., and wiping with clean cloths or paper towels, if you dont, sanding it out alone may leave traces still in the wood and could affect your new coatings if lacquer/shellac or acrylic ok?

Chemmy


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## bentwood (Jan 26, 2012)

Hopfuly the stain doesn't go into the wood.
I would identify the topcoat before doing anything. It's likly poly but if it is lacquer,shellac or natural varnish based and the stain didn't reach the wood,you can easily remove and replace the topcoat on just those spots.
If you are unable to identify the topcoat,you can sand one of the stains with 320 or preferly finer to see if the stain sits on the surface and disappears.
If the stain penatrated the wood,it will be labor intensive at best and next to impossiable at worst to return it to origional apperance.
Depending on what the one stain reveals,you might consider inlaying all the spots because that is undoubtedly veneer which may sand through. 
Take it one step at a time and post your findings if you are that patient.


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## spiragui (Mar 6, 2012)

Awesome, thanks for the suggestions guys! I will try some stuff out when I get a chance and let you know how it goes.

Cheers
Chris


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