Handyman: Get rid of water stains from hardwood floors

Q. When I pulled up my rug for cleaning, I found a nice hardwood floor under it, but the floor had a number of white water stains. How can I clean them off?

A. There are two ways to try. One is to make a mix of 1 part bleach and 3 parts water, and paint it on the whole floor. The other is to rub with Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, and I do mean rub, hard. To prepare, soak the eraser sponge, then squeeze it as dry as possible before rubbing. If the stains are black, the floor must be sanded to the bare wood and refinished.

Q. Years ago, I clipped a column of yours about attic furnaces. Your snarky response was, "A hot-air furnace in the attic is the dumbest thing to foist upon hapless homeowners since vinyl siding." I am a hapless homeowner living in a 1964 brick ranch in the Denver metro area to which some DIYer applied the cruddiest grade of vinyl siding -- with cruddy installation to match -- on the gables, fascia, soffits and under a 12-by-20-foot covered patio. Home Depot reps gave me a replacement estimate of almost $9,000, but I put the project on hold in light of your comment, concerned about paying thousands to do the wrong thing. What's your beef with vinyl siding? Would it be better to remove the siding, roll up my sleeves, and do some caulking and painting? Is there a better solution? Are there problems associated with removing siding, beyond finding a filthy, long-overdue paint job underneath that will need some time and TLC?

A.

But give me cedar any time, with a semitransparent stain that needs redoing every seven years -- not bad! At least the siders had sense enough not to cover brick.

Your best bet is to take off that trash and take your chances on its condition. Painted wood is pretty tough, so bite the bullet and try.

Write to Peter Hotton at photton@globe.com.

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Handyman: Get rid of water stains from hardwood floors