Oxalic Acid
A third main type of bleach is oxalic acid. This is great because it’s very selective in the colors it removes. For example, it does an excellent job at cleaning up iron-based stains, such as those that occur around nail holes.

It also does a very good job removing dark water stains and other stains, but does not alter the natural color of the wood itself. Oxalic acid is usually found as a dry powder. It can then be mixed with water and applied to wood.

After you have bleached your wood, you need to neutralize the bleach when the cleansing or color removal is complete. There are different neutralizing processes depending on the type of bleach you’ve used. For example, with an alkali peroxide bleach, you’ll want to rinse with water and then white vinegar. You need one part vinegar to two parts water.

For chlorine bleach, rinse with two to three applications of distilled water. If you’ve used oxalic acid, use two to three applications of distilled water and then a solution of baking soda and hot water. The baking soda solution should be comprised of two tablespoon baking soda to one half pint of hot water.

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