So, you've just picked up your pizza from the local takeaway, and slap it down on your beautiful wooden table. After you've finished the pizza, you clean up (if you're that way inclined), and find that putting the box directly on the table was a really, really bad idea.
The oil from the pizza has seeped through the bottom of the pizza box, and the combination of that with the heat has left a sizable cloudy white stain on your (previously) beautiful wooden table.
Here's how to get it out:
Firstly, TOOTHPASTE AND TABLES DON'T MIX. There's some sites out there that suggest toothpaste, or a mixture of toothpaste and baking soda is a great idea for tables. BAD.
Are your teeth in any way similar to your table? No. Toothpaste is an abrasive polish, sort of like cut 'n' polish for cars. That means, you'll get a very shiny spot where you applied the toothpaste on the table. Don't put toothpaste near your table. EVER. If anyone suggests you try toothpaste, smack them REALLY HARD.
Secondly, try cleaning the spot first. Seriously. Clean it with soap and water, get your flatmate to clean it, then make her boyfriend clean it. Go and buy some furniture polish. Follow the procedures below only if you really really can't get the stain out. This has the potential to further damage your table.
Now down to business. You need:
- Flat, clean, white cotton material. Emphasis on clean. I used an old business shirt that doesn't fit anymore.
- A steam iron.
How to do it:
- If you're using something thin like a shirt, fold it twice (i.e., so you have four sheets of material between the iron and the table). Iron only on flat, non-seam sections
- Set the iron to the lowest temperature setting that you can still get it to steam at
- Iron the shirt over half the stain for about 20 seconds
- Wipe the spot down with a clean cloth (or another part of the shirt)
- Go away for 5 minutes.
The last part is important for two reasons: You need to observe whether it's actually doing anything; and you need to observe whether it's doing any damage to the table. Before you can assess the latter, the table needs to cool down. When I ironed on my table, the entire spot I was ironing on went slightly cloudy; but that faded after about 5 minutes.
If you're satisfied with both of the above criteria, repeat the last three steps. Use the steam button on your iron every once in a while.
It took me about two hours to remove most of the stain (it's still slightly visible). At some point, you need to give up because of diminishing returns, and the ever-increasing potential that you will damage the table.