Wood bleach and Holly

[Stacey S]

I have a holly vessel that I have turned that had already stained before I turned it. If I use wood bleach on it will it bleach the holly back to the typical white color of holly? Or would I be better off leaving it as is.

Stacey

 

[MichaelMouse]

Stained with what? If it's mildew, bleach should take care of it. Works less well with stains from spalting fungi. The sugar (caramel?) stains that come out when green wood is spun are best washed, sanded and washed, in my experience.

 

[Stacey S]

I'm not sure. I would guess that it might be spalting. Everything that I have is usually splated by the time I get to turning it.
Stacey

 

[Brian McInturff]

If it's a bluish Green then it's probably from high sap and or mineral. I haven't done it myself but I'm told it bleaches out pretty easy. Brian

 

[ScottH]

I recently bleached a holly vase that had turned blue/green, and it came out several shades lighter - almost pure white. I used the Kleen-Strip 2-part bleach, and gave it 2 treatments. I'm very happy with the results. It did raise the grain, so it's a good idea to raise the grain first and resand before bleaching. The bleaching doesn't go too deep, so be careful when you're sanding.

Scott