Q–Our living-room table has a highly polished mahogany or walnut finish (I’m not sure which) and, due to someone’s carelessness, there is a whitish stain in the form of a ring where a damp flower pot was left standing on the surface for a couple of days.
The stain is in one corner and thus not very prominent, but it still is noticeable enough to bother my wife and me.
Is there any way you know of to remove this stain, short of having the entire table top refinished?
A–Depending on the type of finish, and on how old or deep the stain is, you may be able to remove it by simply rubbing over the stain with a little toothpaste–preferably one of those that claim to have “extra whiteners” in it (this is actually a very mild abrasive).
Wrap a cloth over one finger, then squeeze a small amount of the toothpaste onto the cloth and rub gently in a circular motion until the stain disappears or lightens considerably.
If this doesn’t do the job, you can try rubbing with a little salt mixed with a little lemon oil.
Another method that works on some finishes is to rub with denatured alcohol or camphorated oil or even with a very small amount of turpentine.
Q–I have painted the concrete floor in my basement several times with a well known brand of oil-based floor paint, but the paint has become a little sticky so that the throw rugs tend to stick to it in places.
There does not seem to be any water leakage through the walls or floor — at least none that I can see.
What do you think I can do about the apparent breakdown of this floor paint?
A–Dampness or moisture is apparently getting trapped under the rugs, causing the paint to fail or break down. This means that either a slight amount of moisture is seeping up through the floor, or there is condensation forming under the rugs.
Make sure there is no leakage or seepage coming up through the floor, then use a paint remover to strip off all the paint.
Then scrub the floor thoroughly and treat the concrete with a mild solution of muriatic acid (one part acid to five parts water).
Rinse thoroughly and repaint with two coats of a latex-base concrete-floor paint.
Q–On rainy or very humid days there is a smoky, burnt odor that comes from the chimney of our fireplace, even though we keep the damper closed. We had the chimney cleaned, but this did not help much. Have you any suggestions?
A–I suggest you first call the chimney cleaner back to see what he can do (maybe he did not do as good a job as he should have).
It is also possible that the clean-out chamber under the fireplace hearth still contains ashes or coals that get damp in rainy weather.
Or it could be that the chimney flue or its tiles, in need of repair or replacement, are allowing smoke and soot to seep into the chimney bricks.
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Have a question about home repair problems? Write to Bernard Gladstone in care of Your Place, Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611. Questions of general interest will be answered in future columns. Sorry, letters cannot be answered personally.
