How to Get Stain Out of Hardwood Floor

As much as we may try, some accidents are unavoidable. And when dealing with stains on a hardwood floor, they can be a bit more challenging than other surfaces, such as carpets.

When stains do occur, it is important to know exactly how to get a stain out of a hardwood floor. You’ll need to follow specific methods since hardwood floors are sensitive to moisture and some chemicals. And if you don’t use the correct cleaning techniques, you could end up doing more harm than good.

In this article, we will be explaining how to get different stains out of hardwood floors and the steps you’ll need to follow to get the job done. 

What this article covers:

• How to Remove Stains from Hardwood Floors Without Sanding
• How to Remove Tough Stains from Wood Floors

How To Remove Stains From Hardwood Floors Without Sanding 

When you’re tasked with cleaning a stain out of a hardwood floor, there are two things that you need to consider: the type of finishing your floor has, and the type of stain. 

If you have an unfinished floor, you have to be a lot more careful with water. This is because unfinished hardwood floors are more absorbent than finished floors, so you’ll need to be more careful with the amount of water you use. 

Assessing what type of stain it is is also important because it dictates what cleaning products and methods you should use. For example, hydrogen peroxide works best for liquid spills and should be used if you want to remove pen ink from wood floors. 

And, if you have an oil spill, or want to remove grease from wood floors, warm water will do a better job than cold water. 

For the sake of this article, we are going to be focusing on urine and oil stains. 

How To Remove Urine Stains From A Hardwood Floor

Although we are focusing on urine stains, this process should work on most liquid stains.

Step 1: Gather Your Equipment

There are a few things that you will need before you attempt to remove the urine stain from your hardwood floors. 

Hydrogen peroxide is one of the best chemicals to rid hardwood floors of urine stains. It is safe to use, and will not damage them either. 

You can use any hydrogen peroxide of your choice, or you could opt for our Urine Stain and Odor Remover (USOR) Unchained with Ecocide. It is a very effective hydrogen peroxide solution, and although it is largely used to clean carpets, it will do the job here too. 

The great thing about our USOR is that it doesn’t need to be completely rinsed off, so it’ll work perfectly for hardwood floors. 

Here is everything that you will need:

• USOR Unchained with Ecocide
• Water
• Spray bottle 
• Rubber gloves 
• Our Flat Mop 
• A bucket 
• Our Orbot Vibe 
• A dry microfiber cloth 

Step 2: Dilute Your Hydrogen Peroxide

This step is only applicable if the hydrogen peroxide you get has more than 5% concentration. If it does, it needs to be diluted before you apply it so it doesn’t completely bleach your hardwood floors.

For every 2-6 ounces of hydrogen peroxide you use, you should dilute it with a gallon of water.

This can be mixed in a bucket, but we would recommend putting on protective rubber gloves first before you do this. 

Step 3: Spray The Hydrogen Peroxide Onto The Stain 

Put the diluted hydrogen peroxide into a spray bottle. Before you spray it on the stain, though, we would recommend spraying it on a small, fairly concealed, part of your floor. This way you can assess if it will cause any discoloration.

Once you have confirmed that it does not, spray it directly onto the stain and let it sit on the stain for approximately 5-10 minutes. The hydrogen peroxide will disintegrate the stain and draw it out of the floor.

Step 4: Wipe Off Excess Liquid

Once the time has passed, use the Flat Mop to wipe down the area of the stain. Dampen the mop, but ensure that it is not completely saturated. 

Even though prefinished hardwood floors are more resistant to water, they can still be affected by it if large bodies of water sit on them for some time. 

Step 5: Use Our Orbot Vibe To Go Over The Stain And Clean The Rest Of The Floor

Now that your floor has been rid of the urine stain, we would recommend cleaning the entire floor with your hydrogen peroxide solution. This is because you can target any smaller stains that might’ve been missed, and just go over the original stains again to ensure you have eliminated them properly.

This step will be done slightly differently than previously. For this step, you will use our Orbot Vibe to clean the floors. Place the hydrogen peroxide solution into the tank, and run the Orbot Vibe over your hardwood floors. 

How To Remove Oil Stains From A Hardwood Floor

Nothing is worse than dropping some oil on the floor when you are cooking, as it can easily stain hardwood floors. Luckily there is a solution to remove oil stains from unfinished wood floors safely and effectively. 

Step 1: Gather Your Equipment

There are certain things that you will need for this process. We have listed them below: 

• Clean paper towels
• Dishwashing detergent 
• Water 
• Our flat mop 
• Our Orbot Vibe 

Step 2: Remove Any Excess Oil 

If there is any excess oil on the surface of the floor that has not been absorbed into the floor, use clean paper towels to remove it. 

Make sure you dab the oil and do not rub it. Rubbing it will only soak it further into the wood and increase the intensity of the stain.  

Step 3: Mix Your Cleaning Mixture

Mix the dishwashing detergent and water. Because it is an oil stain, we would recommend using warm water instead of cold water. This will help to break it down. 

Mix the dishwashing detergent and the warm water in a ratio of 1 tablespoon of dishwashing detergent for every cup of water. If the stain is stubborn, you can add more dishwashing detergent to the mixture. 

Step 4: Apply The Mixture To The Stain 

Use a microfiber cloth to apply the mixture to the stain. 

It is important to remember that hardwood floors are porous, and easily absorb water. So, for this reason, you never want to saturate the stain. 

Rather, ensure that you wring the microfiber cloth out before you rub it onto the stain so that it does not contain too much water.

Step 5: Gently Rub The Stain 

Gently rub the damp cloth with the dishwashing detergent mixture over the stain. This may need to be done a few times to lift the stain. 

Keep in mind the amount of water you are putting onto the stain, and try and keep it minimal. It is much harder to remove moisture from hardwood floors than it is to remove oil.

Step 6: Use Our Flat Mop To Get Rid Of Any Residue

Lastly, use our flat mop and clean water to rid the floor of any residue and soap that may be left over. 

How To Remove Tough Stains From Wood Floors

Sometimes stains are more persistent and tough than you would think, and it makes removing them a lot harder. This is often the case when trying to remove dark water spots from hardwood floors or you are trying to get red wine out of your wood floors and it just won’t budge.

If this is the case, and you have tried all of the above methods, then you may have to resort to sanding the stain away. 

This should be used as a last resort. Sanding works better for unfinished wood floors, as it will take away some of the finishing, too.

All you need for this step is some light sandpaper and a soft-bristled broom.

Step 1: Sand The Stain 

Lightly sand the stain until it has disappeared. 

Don’t press too hard, as this could cause damage to the wood and make it look worse than the stain. 

Step 2: Sweep Up The Excess Dust

When you are satisfied that the stain has been removed, sweep up the excess dust that has formed. 

Conclusion

Even though we have just touched on a few types of stains, it is possible to get almost any type of stain out of hardwood floors. 

Whether you are trying to get sharpie out of your wood floors, or you want to get nail polish out of hardwood floors, one of these methods will likely work for you. 

As we mentioned, try to keep sanding as a last resort. While it is sometimes necessary, you want to try and avoid it as much as possible.

Did you find our blog helpful? Then consider checking other guides:

• How to Remove Dark Stains from Hardwood Floors
• How to Remove Glue from Wooden Floor
• How to Remove Sticky Residue from Hardwood Floors
• How to Remove Haze from Engineered Hardwood Floors
• How to Get Rid of Slick Spot on Hardwood Floor
• How to Remove Hair Dye from Wooden Floor
• How to Clean Subfloor After Removing Carpet
• Best Mop to Clean Hardwood Floors
• How to Clean Old Hardwood Floors Without Sanding
• How to Get Smells Out of Wood Floors
• How to Remove Urine Odor from Wood Floors
• How to Remove Dog Poop Stains from Hardwood Floors
• How to Get Cat Pee Out of Wood
• How to Get Cat Pee Smell Out of Wood
• How to Get Cat Urine Out of Wood Subfloor