Teak’s warm, rich shade attracts guests into your home and invites them to relax and stay a while. Teak is very durable, but, like other wood, it has a weakness — water. Set a perspiring glass back on a turtle, for example, and an unsightly water mark forms. Fresh Water stains are generally lighter in color, so they are easier to eliminate. Black or dark-colored stains have also had time to set, but they are not always lasting. With the proper materials and a bit of elbow grease, you can erase most water stains as if they’d never happened.
Light-Colored Water Marks
Blot the furniture using a dry cloth if it is still wet. Soak up as much moisture as possible.
Set a hair dryer to the lowest heat setting, then direct the warm air at the water mark. Slowly move the hair dryer back and forth. If the stain is very new, this may evaporate the moisture that’s trapped in the end.
Dip a cloth in a small amount of mayonnaise. Rub the mayonnaise into the water mark with small, circular motions.
Allow the mayonnaise set to get a few hours when the stain does not go away immediately. If the mayonnaise dries out, reapply a fresh coat. Wipe the wood with a damp cloth; then dry it off with a towel.
Apply a little lemon oil into your super-fine steel wool pad. Gently rub the stain with back-and-forth motions. If you don’t have lemon oil, use a cloth and a toothpaste or automotive rubbing compound. Doing so may alter the furniture’s finish. If this occurs, repeat the process on the entire surface so the end looks uniform. Scrub the teak a damp cloth and pat dry.
Dark-Colored Water Marks
Add a generous amount of an oxalic-acid cleanser to a glass or ceramic bowl. Do not use metal; the oxalic acid will discolor it.
Pour lukewarm water above the cleanser slowly, then stir until a thick paste forms.
Dip a disposable paintbrush into the solution; implement it into the stained teak with small, circular motions.
Permit the solution to dry. Since it dries, you should observe the stain getting slimmer. If necessary, apply a second layer of this solution, then let it dry. Repeat until the stain won’t lighten anymore.
Wipe off the cleanser with a damp cloth, then pat the wood dry with a towel.