How to Remove Oil Stains From Concrete
If the concrete that surrounds your home,
or especially the one in your driveway and garage - is full of unsightly
oil stains - there's no need to despair! This is because getting rid of
them for good is actually a lot easier than many people typically
expect. Want to learn how the cleaning process works? Keep scrolling
down this page, and find out for yourself.
How to Remove Oil Stains from Concrete
Garage Floor
You only need a few simple ingredients to get oil stains off the
concrete on your garage floor:
• Powdered laundry detergent
• Hot water
• Scrub brush
• Bucket
• Garden hosepipe
Start by blotting up any heavy oil residue which could be on the surface
with paper towels. Pre-wet the stain and the area surrounding it. This
is very important since oil that is released during the whole processes
may move to other areas of the garage floor.
Use your bucket to mix detergent with the
hot water, and stir to combine fully. Pour it all directly onto the
affected area and then sprinkle more detergent onto the stain. Using a
stiff bristled brush, begin to scrub the area thoroughly. Allow it all
to sit for several minutes to make sure that it penetrates all of the
pores of the concrete. Finally, use the garden hosepipe fitted with a
high-pressure nozzle to rinse away the whole mess.
How to Remove Very Stubborn Oil Stains from Concrete
If you have a tougher stain that has been sitting for a long time, we'd
recommend buying a robust, commercial concrete degreaser. Degreasers
work by penetrating the stain in order to break down the oil and bring
it out of the concrete. You can use the degreaser along with an
absorbent material such as cat litter.
First of all, wet the affected area with warm water. Then, mix a
solution of the degreaser according to the manufacturer’s instructions,
before pouring it directly on top of the stain. Scrub the area
thoroughly and let it stand for a quarter of an hour. While the area is
still moist, scrape off any standing water and suds with a towel, before
pouring a liberal amount of litter onto the stain and stomping it into
the concrete. Let it all sit overnight, and sweep it all up the
following day.
How to Remove Oil Stains from Concrete Driveway
You'll need some extra ingredients to clean up a driveway that has been stained with oil. These are:
One-gallon warm water
• One tablespoon liquid dish soap
• Scrub brush
• Water hose
• Rubber gloves
• Large bucket
• One cup hydrated lime powder
• ½ cup turpentine
• Paint scraper
• Plastic wrap
• Tape
Start off by mixing the hydrated lime
powder and turpentine together in order to make a thick paste. Using the
paint scraper, spread it all over the stain and a few inches around the
outside of the stain's edge. Put the plastic wrap over the paste and
secure the borders using some tape. Allow it all to sit for around 24
hours. Then, simply take off the plastic wrap and scrape off the paste
using the paint scraper.
You'll then need to mix the water and liquid dish soap in a large
bucket. Dip the scrub brush into the mixture and use it to scrub the
stain. Afterward, make sure to rinse the entire area clean with the
water hosepipe. You might need to repeat this process a number of times
to fully eliminate the stain.