I have had a table top disaster

[scottbr]

There was a box sitting on the table and my children's cat in it. It was there for a few days before anybody noticed it. Is there any way I can get the stain out?
It's a Herman Miller table. Rosewood. We've had it and used it daily for 30 years and this has been the first disaster.
Scott

[woodPixel]

Was the cat leaking?

[Arron]

I don't get the cat thing at all. Is it a typo?
Anyway, I'd probably give it a light sand then use deck cleaner, which is basically oxalic acid. My experience is that it works on about 80% of stains but try it somewhere discrete first.

As the top is veneer, don't sand hard.

[Xanthorrhoeas]

Hi Scott. Are you saying that the stain is cat urine?

Or dead cat "leakage"? I prefer to think "live cat!

Cat urine is very acidic (concentrated uric acid) so, if it is that, then Arron's suggestion of oxalic acid may not work. Arron's suggestion is actually great for lots of dark stains, but mostly those are caused by the chemicals (lignin) in the timber itself. I will be AFK and won't be able to give any comments for the next 10 days, but, if you look up urine stains (Google or DuckDuckGo - which does not keep your details for commercial mis-use like Google) you will probably find that a mild alkali is in order. Mild alkalis commonly available include bicarb soda - readily available and a good first step for any acidic stain.

After neutralisation then repair/restoration will be required.

Good luck

David

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Is it a veneer? Hard to tell.

How much wood thickness do you have to work with?

If you know, what is the finish? Has it been polished/waxed regularly at some point of time in your stewardship and if so, with what?

What is the stain? Urine, body fluids or a spilled food/water tray? Hopefully it's the latter; many a tabletop has been fully saved from a forgotten damp sponge or plant pot.

These are some of the fiddly detail that make it easier for us to suggest possible solutions. Just sayin'. ;)

[Arron]

Is it a veneer? Hard to tell.

How much wood thickness do you have to work with?

Slip-matched veneer. See the knots are in a repeating pattern about 100mm apart. The knots grow a bit bigger with each leaf.
Most commercial veneers are 0.64 mm.

Cheers
Arron