How I Removed Stubborn Water Stains From a Wall

Unsightly water stains ruin the ambiance of even the most beautiful bathroom , not to mention they ruin the look of other parts of your home. These stains can have a variety of causes, from moisture in the shower to internal leaks and ventilation problems. But once you’ve determined what left the mark on your wall in the first place, you still need to remove it without making the problem worse.

Water stains do not usually appear on tiles; they need a more absorbent surface, so they appear on bare walls. Since your walls are likely painted, the problem arises: how can you clean the wall without damaging it and risking repainting the entire room? A few days ago I ran into this very problem when I noticed a watermark on my walls. How did it get there? Damn if I know; there is always something here. As a tenant, I wanted to remove it without causing more damage.

Method #1: Soap and water

Before trying anything more complex, experiment with a simple solution of about one to two dish soap and warm water. Use a cloth soaked in the mixture to apply the soapy water to the stain. Rub gently from top to bottom, then rinse with clean water and dry thoroughly with a hairdryer on cool temperature.

I tried it by scrubbing half the stain with a soapy water mixture. The stain faded a bit, but it wasn’t really magic and took a lot of effort on my part. I don’t own this house, so I resent having to sweat here. I moved on to the next step.

Method #2: Lemon juice, vinegar and baking soda.

If that didn’t work—as it didn’t for me—I tried a mixture of vinegar, lemon juice, and baking soda. This is a classic solution that goes something like this: shake and spray onto the stain. Leave for about an hour, then wipe with a damp cloth. You may have to repeat this process several times to completely remove the stain, so do this when you have time for several hour-long soaking intervals.

So it worked, but it came at a cost. As I filled the container, I forgot all the lessons I learned in third grade science class. It bubbled and leaked out of the bottle all over my table. My dining room now smells like vinegar.

Eventually the reaction subsided and I was able to begin cleaning the walls. And it worked: the friction required was also significantly less than when I used soap and water. I easily cleaned half the stain assigned for this test and then used the excess rag to go over the other side again. The stain was gone and I wiped everything down again with a dry rag to make sure I didn’t leave any moisture behind and create more problems on an already problematic day.

Method number 3: lemon juice and water.

However, after I completed this method, I found a lot of talk online about how vinegar and baking soda neutralize each other since baking soda is a base and vinegar is an acid. It makes sense. (Again, I forgot my elementary school science lessons.) So, my conclusion: lemon juice helped me. If soap and water don’t work for you, try adding four tablespoons of lemon to a cup of water and using that first.

Here’s a triptych of my progress, although the spots were light enough that this image won’t win any awards for contrast. However, you can see that the middle photo, which shows my attempt to clean the left side of the stain with soap and water, is not nearly as streak-free as the right photo, which shows what I achieved using the bubble liquid. a mixture of lemon juice, vinegar and baking soda.

How to remove water stains from wood

If you have wood paneling or cabinets that also have water stains, you have several options to remove the marks from the wood surfaces.

• You can cover the stain with mayonnaise and leave it overnight, then wipe it off in the morning and polish the wood.

• You can also mix equal parts vinegar and olive oil and apply it to the stain with a cloth, wiping in the direction of the grain until the stain disappears. After this, wipe the surface with a clean, dry cloth.

• Try setting your iron to low heat over the fabric over the stain. Press it on for a few seconds and remove to see if the stain goes away, then try again until you’re satisfied. (Keep in mind that this is best for stains that are still damp.)

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