bleach stain on beech worktop

[dannyboy]

Fitted new kitchen with beech block worktop which has had 3 applications of danish oil. It now has a horrible stain (2cm x 4cm) where a splash of bleach was left for about 30-60 mins. It looks like the picture below.

I'd be very grateful for any advice on the best way to repair the damage and make the stain look as good as possible.

thanks,
dan


If for any reason you cannot see the image I attached, then you can also find a photo at:
http://les.man.ac.uk/ses/rigby/damage.htm

[Tonyz]

Bugga

[glenn k]

You could bleach the rest

[journeyman Mick]

While at first glance Glenn's suggestion may sound silly it may be the only way. If no one else comes up with something you may need to bleach the whole top to strip all the colour out and then stain and refinish it. I'd be experimenting with offcuts of beech that have been bleached to the same extent. I can't think of anything to try on it just now but maybe there's some budding chemists out there.

Mick

[PAH1]

Oh dear as my two year old says. The only way your going to get rid of that is to remove enough of the wood to get below the damage, I realise that this is not what you want to hear. Was it undiluted bleach? If so the damage underneath will be considerable, bleach is highly alkaline and that is what the paper pulp mills use to remove lignin from wood pulp so they can make paper. The oxidation caused by the bleach will also have damaged the wood structure to some extent. Check to see if the surface is damaged and soft. You may be able to stain that small portion to match the rest but it would be a calculated gamble.

[Rocker]

dannyboy,

I had a similar problem with my maple workbench, when I spilt some battery acid on it. I repaired it by cutting away a rectangular area of the damaged wood to a depth of about 10 mm by template routing it, and then gluing in a piece of matching wood with epoxy. If you are careful, you may well be able to make it look quite acceptable.

Rocker

[bitingmidge]

I'm going for the optomistic solution!

If it was just a "splash" of bleach, and the three coats of Danish oil were generously applied, there is a fair chance (note: "chance") that the damage is skin-deep.

If you have a cabinet scraper, give the surface a bit of a going over and see if there is any end to it...if we all close our eyes, cross our fingers and say the magic words together.....

Well it was worth a suggestion wasn't it?

If that doesn't work, go with Rockers' suggestion!

Good Luck,

P

[echnidna]

The only way to fix it is to bleach the whole top, apply some stain then refinish it.
Sanding it off is probably not an option unless you take a lot of wood off as the bleach has probably soaked in rather deep.

[dannyboy]

Many thanks for the expressions of sympathy and suggestions.

I can't face bleaching and staining the whole thing yet. So when I have finished disposing of the body of the bleach spiller, I will do some tests on an offcut to see how deep the damage is (the structure of the wood seems ok, so hopefully it was diluted bleach) and what can be achieved by some staining.

I will post results in a few weeks as I am away for a while now.

thanks,
dan