How to Remove Oil Stains on Driveways
Oil stains on driveways look bad, and tarnish your home exterior, even if the oil spots are still fairly new. Avoid oil spots on your home’s driveway and in your garage whenever possible, and attempt to get rid of those stains quickly, before they set in.
If the oil stain has been there for a while, like from before you purchased the house, you might need the help of a local driveway cleaning service in Gresham that is able to get rid of the most set-in oil stains.
Where Do Concrete Oil Stains Come From?
Mostly, oil from automobiles is the reason for stains on concrete. This might be oil, gasoline or transmission fluids – or a combination of fluids. Some of the typical ways your concrete gets stained are from:
- Fixing your own car
- Filling up the gas in a lawn mower
- A leak that should be checked out by a mechanic
But, of course, there are countless other things that can create an ugly oil spot on your concrete. So let’s explore some of the best DIY methods to remove those oil stains!
DIY Oil Stain Removal Tips
CAT LITTER FOR OIL STAINS
Cat litter is a easy first step for new oil spots where there is a lot of oil that needs to be dried up.
Sprinkle cat litter all over the oil, getting it down into the stain by crushing it with your feet. It’s best to leave the litter on the oil stain for 24 hours so it can absorb as much as possible. Scrape it up or sweep it off the next day and repeat as necessary.
Throw away used litter so your pets and nearby wildlife don’t eat it and get sick from it.
Next you can follow up with one of the following do-it-yourself cleaning methods.
COCA-COLA FOR OIL STAINS
You might have heard urban legends about accident clean-up crews using Coca-Cola to clean up the roads, but, rest assured, that is not true. But, Coca-Cola does have strong cleaning properties when it comes to greasy stains, partly because of its carbonated bubbles, but mostly because of the phosphoric acid in the soda.
Pour a good amount of Coca-Cola on the oil stain, then cover it with dishwashing soap (Blue Dawn is widely accepted as the most effective). Scrub hard with a stiff brush, using circular motions throughout.
Rinse and repeat if needed.
BAKING SODA FOR OIL STAINS
Baking soda is another popular home cleaning remedy ingredient.
To get rid of an oil stain on a driveway, you’ll first need to cover the stain with baking soda and let it sit for a while, somewhere from 30 minutes to two or three hours. This should absorb some of the oil and allow the baking soda to penetrate the porous surface.
Next, add blue dishwashing liquid and water and scrub hard until there is a thick paste. Again, let this sit for maximum penetration, or continue to scrub in a circular pattern, then rinse.
Just like with the Coca-Cola method, you might have to repeat the process.
LAUNDRY DETERGENT FOR OIL STAINS
Many homeowners already use this to get rid of bad stains on clothing. It’s also a great product for removing bad oil stains from concrete too!
Stir powdered laundry detergent and borax in equal parts according to the size of the oil stain. You want to cover it completely. Let this dry mixture sit on the oil stain for an hour or longer, then add water to create a paste, scrub and rinse.
This is a gentle cleaning process, so it may be necessary to repeat the process one or two times. But there is a good chance it will work!
DRIVEWAY CLEANING IN Gresham
Some oil stains on a driveway are too tough for home remedies to remove. That’s when it may be time to call a professional pressure washing company to clean your home’s concrete surfaces.
We don’t recommend pressure washing your driveway yourself to save a little money. You can cause major harm that is difficult to fix if you don’t know how to properly pressure wash concrete. The high pressure water can break and loosen concrete, and it can leave streaks on a driveway that look almost as bad as the oil stains.
Calling Gresham Pressure Washing is definitely the safe choice. We know the best methods to clean concrete without harming it, such as:
- The right PSI and GPM settings to use to remove stains
- Which nozzle will penetrate concrete without chipping it
- The best distance to spray the concrete from
- Solutions that can help lighten stains
Gresham Pressure Washing also follows all of the steps to clean the concrete– the most effective process. Most homeowners and other companies don’t have the patience to do it right. They want fast results.
A professional pressure washing company in Gresham can also provide protective sealing services for your driveway so oil stains are less likely in the future.