Things You'll Need

Instructions

1

Mix 3/4 cup bleach and 1 gallon water in a bucket.
2

Scrub the stained area with a scrub brush moistened with the bleach and water solution.
3

Dry the area immediately with a towel so no standing water remains on the wood. The bleach scrub may remove the mold on its own. If it does not, move onto step four.
4

Remove the finish on the stained area with a chemical stripper, which is available at most hardware stores. Paint the remover on with a paintbrush, allow it to sit for the recommended amount of time on the label.
5

Scrape the loosened finish with a plastic paint scraper or putty knife. You may find that the mold stain did not penetrate through the finish and into the wood. If so, skip to the last step and re-apply the finish.
6

Re-scrub the stained area and wipe up quickly as before. If the stain still remains, the Wood Floor Doctor recommends scrubbing with a solution of swimming pool bleach and hot water. Add a quart or so of water to a clean bucket. Then add in the swimming pool bleach until the solution is saturated. Wipe the solution off immediately with a dry rag. Then wipe a few times with a rag saturated with distilled water to clean away the bleach.
7

Dry the area with a towel. Leave the wood to dry overnight to see if the stain is gone. If not, move onto step eight.
8

Sand the area gently with 180 grit sand paper. Sand with gentle pressure in the direction of the wood grain. The idea is to remove the thin top layer of wood through which the mold has penetrated. Wipe the area frequently as you sand to gauge your progress. Stop when the mold stain is gone.
9

Sand the area again, with 250 grit sandpaper to smooth out the scratches from the 180 grit sandpaper. Again, sand with gentle pressure in the direction of the wood grain. Feel the sanded area frequently with your hand to gauge your progress. When the scratches are smoothed out, stop.
10

Apply finish that matches the rest of the wood to the cleaned and sanded spot. Follow the manufacturer's instructions on the package. If you are working with unfinished wood, skip this step.