Whether you’re trying to change the color of wood or match an existing piece, wood bleach is a game-changer that every DIYer should know about. In this post, I’ll share the three different methods to lighten wood, a before + after test on six common species, and how I bleached our butcher block countertops!
If you’ve had experience staining wood, you probably already know that wood stain only enhances the color of the wood, it doesn’t completely change it. Even semi-solid stains allow the underlying wood tone to show through. Bleaching wood is the only way to remove the color, giving you much more control over the desired outcome.
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There are three ways to lighten wood quickly:
- Household bleach: Laundry (chlorine) bleach is commonly used to lighten wood, as it is inexpensive and readily available. This method is effective at removing stains and dyes, however it will not change the natural color of the wood.
- Oxalic Acid: Sometimes labeled as “wood bleach”, oxalic acid is a cleaning agent used to remove iron and rust stains. Like chlorine bleach, oxalic acid may be able to lighten certain species of wood, but it won’t truly remove the pigment. It is also a toxic substance and must be used with caution.
- Two-part bleach: Also known as A/B bleach, this solution is made with sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide. When combined, they cause a chemical reaction specifically designed to alter the color of the wood. This is the only true “wood bleach”, and fortunately it’s inexpensive and easy to get!
Wood Bleach Test
I thought it would be a fun experiment to test the bleach on six common species of wood: whitewood, yellow pine, poplar, red oak, cedar and mahogany. Let’s see the results!
Bleached Whitewood
This is the cheapest lumber commonly found at Lowe’s and Home Depot. It’s already quite light in color as the name suggests, so the effects aren’t dramatic, but there is still a noticeable difference. You can see how the orange tone is completely removed after two coats.
I used whitewood often back in the day when the budget was tight, but due to the knots and overall quality, it’s not a species I’d recommend for staining.
Bleached Yellow Pine
Pine is another commonly used wood as it’s affordable and easily accessible. Yellow pine has a strong yellow/orange tone naturally, and it was quite stubborn to remove, even after two treatments of wood bleach. Still, it lightened significantly after one coat!
Bleached Poplar
Poplar is a step above pine in terms of price and quality, thanks to its smooth texture and lack of knots. While it does react to wood bleach, the drastic color variation and unpredictable green-yellow-orange tones make it a better candidate for painting than staining (IMO).
Bleached Red Oak
The most exciting of them all—I’ve discovered a secret hack for white oak! All traces of pink were immediately removed from this board after the first coat, leaving just the beautiful oak grain. This trick is the perfect alternative to red oak’s highly desirable, more expensive and harder to find cousin, white oak.
Bleached Cedar
Cedar is a common species in furniture, but often has strong orange/red tones that you may want to alter. Fortunately, the piece I tested reacted very well to the wood bleach, taking on a neutral white pine appearance after two treatments.
Bleached Mahogany
Mahogany is a rich, dark reddish-brown wood and I wasn’t sure how well it would lighten. I was pleasantly surprised to find how easily the color lifted, and would likely continue to lift with additional coats.
How to Bleach Wood
Bleaching wood is a very simple, practically fool-proof process. Here’s what you’ll need:
Supplies
- Two-part Wood Bleach
- Sponges or brushes
- Gloves
- Safety glasses
- Sandpaper
- Floor protection
For this tutorial, I bleached the butcher block countertops for our laundry room. A while ago I shared a whitewashing butcher block tutorial, but this time I wanted to try removing the color from the wood first.
Butcher block appears to be a relatively light wood naturally, but as soon as you apply any stain, oil or poly, it becomes much darker and orange-yellow toned. I was very curious to see if bleaching would eliminate this.
Pour solution A into a container…
Then saturated the wood with a sponge (you can also use a brush, but I found the sponge to be easiest). Notice how vibrant the color is when the wood becomes wet!
After letting solution A sit for 5 minutes, I followed up with a coat of solution B (using a new container and sponge).
You’ll notice that it slowly begins to lighten in color almost immediately. It takes several hours to fully process.
(left) a few minutes after applying Part A, (right) a few minutes after applying Part B.
Bleaching raises the grain of the wood, requiring a light sanding to smooth it out afterwards. And that’s it! Here’s the bleached butcher block next to the original (again, the difference isn’t huge untreated, but it’s very noticeable once any stain/sealer is applied).
I finished the counters with a custom stain blend of Minwax Simply White and Special Walnut (~1:3 ratio) and love the way they turned out. No trace of orange and much less color variation than traditional butcher block.
Wood Bleaching Q&A
Wood bleach is designed for use on bare wood. Any stain, sealer, oil or wax must be stripped/ sanded off first.
After both parts are applied, you’ll notice the wood start to lighten almost immediately. It is recommended to dry overnight, though the final color is typically reached after a few hours. You can repeat the bleaching process as many times as needed to achieve your desired look.
Two-part wood bleach contains the chemicals sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide. Gloves and eye protection should be worn to prevent skin or eye contact. The solution is odorless, and can be used indoors safely.
Chlorine bleach can remove stains or dyes from wood, but it will not alter the wood’s natural pigment. It can be effective at lightening the appearance of some species of wood (especially when combined with sunlight) but it won’t truly remove the color.
Oxalic acid is a cleaning agent used to remove iron and rust stains. Like chlorine bleach, oxalic acid may be able to lighten certain species of wood, but it won’t remove the natural coloring.
Wood bleach is very cost effective and easy to find these days. Zinsser makes the most widely used and inexpensive wood bleach. I order mine here on Amazon for under $12.
I hope this post was helpful! It was certainly eye opening for me, and you can bet wood bleach will be a regular part of our woodworking projects from now on. Have you ever used wood bleach, or any other method to lighten wood? Any other tips or tricks to share? Let me know in the comments!
Haley says
Do you need to seal the counters with anything after the stain or are they protected after these steps?
Jenna Sue says
Yes, a sealer is always necessary to protect furniture!
Laura Conway says
Great post! So helpful!!!!
I am refinishing some
outdoor, wood, chaise lounge chairs. I followed this post and am now ready to apply the stain. It says you used a 1:3 ratio of simply white and special walnut. Does that mean you mixed the 2 stains and just brushed it on? Did you wipe it off? Or did you use the same method (used on your butcher block) applying simply walnut, letting it dry and then applying simply white and wiping it off? Thanks for getting back to me. So excited to finish this project in time for warmer weather!
Jenna Sue says
Glad it’s helpful, Laura! I mixed the stains together first, then applied as instructed (wipe on, wait, wipe off).
Stacey Simpson says
Im so excited to try this! Will the outer finish of my hardwood floor effect the process? Will they need a sealant coat of something afterwards?
I have partial wood floors (top coat is actual hardwood and allows for one sanding).
Thank you!
Stacey
Jenna Sue says
I’m not sure how far down the bleach penetrates the wood, but I would guess you’ll see a change with a thin outer layer. I would always recommend sealing wood floors for protection!
Orjof says
This is a very helpful post! We have dark stained wood ceilings and I would love to lighten them. Since it’s a large area and a cathedral ceiling, I think sanding or stripping would be too complicated. Do you know if we can apply household bleach directly to the stained wood to lighten the color of the stain?
Jenna Sue says
Hi, no you need to sand off any stain first. Bleach works on bare wood.
Sally says
I am remodeling a master bath and my cabinet guy is using red oak so that I can save money but want the look of white oak with a light stain – I am not sure how much money this process would save me vs just having him use white oak for the 60” and 48” vanities . Can you weigh in ?
Jenna Sue says
It would save a ton. I’m not sure how much he charges for white oak, but it could be double the price of red oak. The bleach is only $12. Worth it to me!
Christine says
When you say “one coat” versus “two”, was that of just solution A being used twice and then once with B? Or two rounds of A/B? Thanks!
Jenna Sue says
One coat = one full treatment with both solutions! 🙂
Christy says
Hi there, I would like to use this product to lighten some cabinets. Do you know approximately how much surface area is covered with 1 kit?
Jenna Sue says
Hi Christy, I’m not sure of the exact square footage, but I used the whole box for our butcher block counters. I’d order more than you think you need to be on the safe side.
Peggy says
I have a very orange oak table that I’ve been chomping at the bit to do something to! I’m just wondering if there would be a difference in the effectiveness of the bleach on vertical vs horizontal surfaces.
Thanks for this information!
Jenna Sue says
As long as the surface is saturated, it will work! People use it all the time on furniture.
Donna says
Thank you for all of the good information. I am new to your post. Do you have a post or any hints about removing stain from wood. Also, I’m looking to lighten the wood on some chairs. Any help would be appreciated.
Jenna Sue says
You can use a paint stripper (I like Citri-strip) to remove varnish/stain, or an electric sander if it’s just stain to get to the bare wood. Then the bleach should work to lighten the wood itself. Hope this helps!
Sherri Robinson says
I have just “easy offed” some chairs and they are several colors…I think most of the stain and varnish are gone. do you think this process would blend them better?Thank you
Jenna Sue says
As long as it’s bare wood, then yes, the bleach should remove the color!
Tatyana Avramenko says
This is such a cool find! I was looking for a wood bleach myself. I will check it out.
Jenna Sue says
This stuff is amazing, you’ll love it!
Kristin Vanhoozer says
Amazing tip! Would it work well on reclaimed wood?
Jenna Sue says
It should work on any bare wood!
Jamie says
Great tutorial Jenna! Thank you. Your laundry room looks like another stunner!