Show
Love the wind / Shutterstock.com Does your concrete driveway or garage floor have unsightly oil stains? It’s important to remove oil before staining, sealing or resurfacing your concrete. If the oil isn’t removed it will eventually seep back through to the surface and ruin your new decorative treatment. Learn how to avoid this problem by removing the oil stains from your concrete. Find concrete cleaning contractors near me. Some oil stains are just small spills or spots, while other concrete surfaces are more heavily contaminated. The size of the oil stain, as well as its age, will determine how difficult it is to remove. Cleaning oil from concrete may take some trial and error to find the best method for your situation. Here's how to deal with a fresh oil stain:
Ideas for Sprucing Up Your Driveway Once you've tackled the oil stains you can add color or an overlay to make your driveway look amazing! Get ideas from these concrete driveway pictures. These are the four best ways to remove old oil stains from concrete:
There are multiple chemical methods for removing oil or grease (both hydrocarbon-based materials) from concrete. Learn more about each of these approaches below. Featured Cleaning Products Removing Oil With a DetergentSmall spills or spots can sometimes be removed with nothing more than a strong detergent, a scrub brush, and a sponge. Using Concrete Cleaner or DegreaserA more aggressive method is to use a commercial concrete cleaner or degreaser, a concentrated alkaline soap that's scrubbed into the concrete surface. The soap acts like ball bearings, loosening up the oil to permit easier removal. The downside is that typical degreasers don't actually break down the oil, so they won't work well on concrete that is heavily contaminated or has been contaminated for a long time. Also, they are more effective on porous concrete as opposed to concrete with a hard or dense finish.
How to Remove Oil Stains from Concrete to Prepare for Resinous Flooring Cleaning Oil Stains With a PoulticeAnother common treatment for removing oil stains from concrete is a poultice. Used primarily on small, stubborn stains, a poultice is made by saturating an absorptive material (such as kitty litter, pool filter media, or sawdust) with a strong solvent (acetone, xylene, lacquer thinner, or MEK) and then smearing the material over the stain. Cover the poultice with plastic, and let the process of osmosis take over. The solvent will break down the oil, and the absorptive material will suck it out of the concrete. However, this process takes time and may not be cost-effective or practical for removing large stains. See how a poultice can be used to remove oil from a concrete countertop. Use Microorganisms to Get Oil Out of ConcreteThe most recent advancement in the removal of oil stains from concrete involves using special single-celled microorganisms that thrive on crude oil and its derivatives, eating them up like candy. Enzymes and oxygen digest the oil and turn it into carbon dioxide and more microorganisms. When the food source (oil) is gone, the microorganisms die, leaving the concrete clean and oil-free. This is the same technology used to clean beaches and waterways after large oil spills. Two sources for these microbial cleaners are (TERMINATOR-HSD) and ACT Concrete Cleaner and Degreaser) both avalible from Amazon. Find Concrete Cleaning Products Prevent Oil Stains on ConcreteHere are ways to prevent stains from oil leaks:
Related: Author Chris Sullivan, ConcreteNetwork.com technical expert and vice president of sales and marketing for ChemSystems Inc. Will brake cleaner remove oil from concrete?For oil spills in the shop, first remove the oil using an absorbent, then scrub the residue with brake cleaner. Scrubbing with brake cleaner can also remove stains from concrete driveways and patios.
How do you remove old oil stains from concrete?How to Remove Oil Stains from Concrete. Remove excess oil - Wipe up oil with a rag or use kitty liter to absorb it.. Scrub with a paste - Use baking soda or powdered laundry detergent and water to dissolve the oil stain. Rinse with water.. Wash with soap - Dish soap and a scrub brush are often effective on new oil spots.. What is the fastest way to remove oil stains from concrete?Treat the concrete stain with baking soda. Sprinkle a thick layer of baking soda over the oil stain in your driveway.. Let it soak in for thirty minutes.. Clean the stain by scrubbing it with a bristle brush.. Wash away the baking soda with clean water.. Repeat if necessary.. Will brake cleaner remove oil?Brake cleaner is made up of chemical compounds that evaporate as they dry, leaving no residue behind and dissolving grease for perfectly clean brakes. Because of this property however, it's also great for removing grease and oil from other automotive parts too.
|