Repair Almond Extract Spill
May 1, 2024 10:59 AM Subscribe
While baking, we recently spilled some almond extract on our kitchen island countertop. The countertop is finished wood, and now there's a big white splash where the spill happened. Wiping with water (which we did right after the spill) makes the white spot go away for a few minutes, but that's all. Help us fix it!
I'd prefer a cleaning product if there's something will work (vinegar, soap, etc).
But we could also handle sanding and refinishing, particularly if we can do just the spot in question (c 6" in diameter), and if there's no other way. I'd just need to know what the refinish should be and how to blend with the surrounding area (I'm not up for doing the entire island).
Advice on how to the handle the spill quickly in the future is useful too, but this was 12 hours ago so that will be mostly for posteirity.
Also the raspberry macaroons in question (I'm sure I found the recipe on metafilter) are quite tasty.
I'd prefer a cleaning product if there's something will work (vinegar, soap, etc).
But we could also handle sanding and refinishing, particularly if we can do just the spot in question (c 6" in diameter), and if there's no other way. I'd just need to know what the refinish should be and how to blend with the surrounding area (I'm not up for doing the entire island).
Advice on how to the handle the spill quickly in the future is useful too, but this was 12 hours ago so that will be mostly for posteirity.
Also the raspberry macaroons in question (I'm sure I found the recipe on metafilter) are quite tasty.
The mayo is worth a shot. The sticking point may be that it's for water marks more than alcohol, which is also in the extract. I'm afraid I haven't found anything that's fully fixed the rubbing alcohol marks from a spill on my desk, but mayo did at least lighten it up some.
posted by EvaDestruction at 12:09 PM on May 1 [1 favorite]
posted by EvaDestruction at 12:09 PM on May 1 [1 favorite]
Best answer: You can use mayo, but really you just want to rub it with oil, which is all the mayo is doing.
The reason for the stain is the alcohol in the extract has messed up the surface of the wood finish. If oil doesn't work, then you could try sanding lightly with a fine sandpaper, 320 grit or so, but that can leave an uneven level of sheen across the whole counter. You could also sand the whole countertop lightly and apply a coat of finish across the whole thing.
posted by ssg at 12:11 PM on May 1 [3 favorites]
The reason for the stain is the alcohol in the extract has messed up the surface of the wood finish. If oil doesn't work, then you could try sanding lightly with a fine sandpaper, 320 grit or so, but that can leave an uneven level of sheen across the whole counter. You could also sand the whole countertop lightly and apply a coat of finish across the whole thing.
posted by ssg at 12:11 PM on May 1 [3 favorites]
Best answer: i fixed one of these spots by oiling it heavily and then applying heat using a low ish iron through a tea towel.
posted by euphoria066 at 12:24 PM on May 1 [1 favorite]
posted by euphoria066 at 12:24 PM on May 1 [1 favorite]
It seems odd to me that a kitchen countertop would have a finish that can be damaged by alcohol and/or water. This is one reason why wood countertops are often oiled rather than having a hard finish. Anyway, assuming you've had water on the countertop before, it was alcohol that damaged the finish. Figuring out how to fix it will necessitate figuring out what sort of finish it is. If it's a modern finish, the answer is probably polyurethane that was partially melted away by the alcohol in the extract. Most likely you'll need to sand down until the white spot disappears and reapply the same finish.
posted by slkinsey at 1:04 PM on May 1 [3 favorites]
posted by slkinsey at 1:04 PM on May 1 [3 favorites]
We really need to know what the current finish on the timber is.
posted by deadwax at 7:38 PM on May 1
posted by deadwax at 7:38 PM on May 1
Response by poster: It’s something like a polyurethane, but I can’t say for sure. It’s not just an oil finish, it’s shiny. (If you need to know more, let me know how I can test).
For what it’s worth I tried some oil meant for protecting wooden cutting boards— maybe it made it a bit lighter, hard to tell. Haven’t tried heat or anything else yet.
posted by nat at 11:48 PM on May 1
For what it’s worth I tried some oil meant for protecting wooden cutting boards— maybe it made it a bit lighter, hard to tell. Haven’t tried heat or anything else yet.
posted by nat at 11:48 PM on May 1
Response by poster: So I tried a little more of the wood oil, and some heat (low iron through a cloth).
It worked well enough that it’s no longer the most visible stain on the wood. So, imperfect, but fine. Thanks all for the help!
posted by nat at 4:35 PM on May 9 [1 favorite]
It worked well enough that it’s no longer the most visible stain on the wood. So, imperfect, but fine. Thanks all for the help!
posted by nat at 4:35 PM on May 9 [1 favorite]
You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments
I received a lovely serving board from a MeFite via the holiday gift exchange one year that promptly got a white spot and mayonnaise did indeed take it off.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 11:05 AM on May 1