Minimizing Color Variations in Old Oak Table with Discolorations

[Tom Grice]

I'm in the process of refinishing the top on a unique old oak kitchen table I found. The design and detail on the legs is really cool, which is what sold me on it. But there are some spots on the table top where the wood was discolored and is somewhat darker than the surrounding wood. Some of these spots are as large as a dinner plate - but they are irregular, not solid. I was hopeful that they would sand out, but no luck. I could try a thickness planer, but there's no telling how deep they go.

The rest of the table is finished in a natural oak color. So I can't go with a darker stain in an attempt to cover the discoloration. I'd used wood dyes before when doing the base coat on a mission finish and thought that might be the answer, but that's just wild guessing on my part. Then I though about gel stains as a better cover-up, but I'm concerned about how muddy they might make the rest of the top look. Part of me says to just finish the top normally and call it character, but I'd really like to find a way to minimize the discoloration because it would make the table look that much nicer.

I've not really dealt with this sort of thing before, so would really appreciate ideas on approaches I could take.

[Scott Holmes]

Have you tried wood bleach? It will remove black stains caused by tannin/iron which is the oak wood.

[Tom Grice]

I have not. I was eyeing it in the wood finishing section and wondering if it would be worth a try, but I'd never used it before and didn't want to risk creating new issues. I could try a small spot and see what happens.

[Tom Grice]

Scott - Good advice. I bleached it over the weekend and the table top looked 100% better. I've since filled the grain, and stained it yesterday. The color is quite uniform and I can't see any residual from the marks that were there. I'm going to start applying some Arm R Seal this week. Since this is a tabletop that will get use, I'm thinking 10-12 coats or so.