How to Remove Oil Stains on Driveways
Oil stains on driveways look bad, and ruin your home exterior, even if the oil stains are still relatively new. Avoid oil stains on your driveway, sidewalks and in your garage when possible, and try to eliminate those stains right away, before they really set in.
If the oil stain has been there for a while, like from before purchasing the house, you might need the help of a local driveway cleaning service in Lake Forest that is able to eliminate the most set-in oil stains on concrete.
Where Do Concrete Oil Stains Come From?
Mostly, oil from cars is the cause for stains on concrete. This could be oil, gas or transmission fluid – or a combination of engine fluids. Some of the typical ways concrete gets stained are from:
- Fixing your own car
- Filling up the gas in a lawn mower
- A leak that needs to be checked out by a auto mechanic
But, of course, there are countless other things that can cause an ugly oil stain on concrete. So let’s explore some of the best DIY tips 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 stains where there is a lot of oil that needs to be cleaned up.
Sprinkle cat litter over the oil stain, really getting it down into the stain by stomping on it with your feet. It’s recommended to leave the litter on the oil stain overnight so it can absorb as much as possible. Scoop it up or sweep it off the next day and repeat if necessary.
Get rid of used litter so pets and wildlife don’t eat it and get sick.
Next you can proceed with one of the following do-it-yourself concrete cleaning methods.
COCA-COLA FOR OIL STAINS
You might have heard urban legends about accident clean-up crews using Coke to clean the roads, but, rest assured, that is not true. However, Coke does have strong cleaning properties when it comes to greasy stains, in part due to its carbonated bubbles, but mostly because of the phosphoric acid in the soda.
Pour a generous amount of Coke on the oil stain, then cover it with dishwashing soap (Blue Dawn is widely accepted as the most effective). Scrub with a stiff brush, using circular motions throughout.
Rinse and repeat if necessary.
BAKING SODA FOR OIL STAINS
Baking soda is another popular home cleaning remedy ingredient.
To eliminate an oil stain on a driveway, you’ll first want to coat the stain with baking soda and then let it sit for a little bit, anywhere from 15 minutes to two or three hours. This should absorb a lot of the oil and allow the baking soda to penetrate the porous concrete.
Next, add that famous blue dishwashing detergent and water and scrub until there is a thick paste. Again, let this sit for optimal penetration, or continue to scrub in a circular motion, then rinse.
Just like with the Coke method, you might need to repeat the process.
LAUNDRY DETERGENT FOR OIL STAINS
Most homeowners already use this to wash off tough stains on clothes. It’s also a great product for removing tough oil stains on concrete too!
Combine powdered laundry detergent and borax in equal parts based on the size of the oil stain. You will want to cover it entirely. Let this dry mixture sit on the oil stain for an hour or longer, then add water to make a paste, scrub and then rinse.
This is more of a gentle cleaning method, 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 Lake Forest
Some concrete oil stains on a driveway are just too tough for home remedies. That’s when it is time to call a professional pressure washing company to clean your concrete surfaces.
We don’t recommend pressure washing your driveway yourself to save a few dollars. You can cause significant harm that is extremely difficult to repair if you don’t know how to properly pressure wash concrete. The high pressure water stream can break and loosen concrete, and it can create streaks on a driveway that look almost as bad as the oil stains.
Calling Lake Forest Pressure Washing is definitely the safe choice. Our technicians know the best ways to clean concrete without harming it, such as:
- The right PSI and GPM settings to use
- Which nozzle tip will penetrate concrete without damaging it
- The optimal distance to spray the concrete from
- Solutions that can help lighten stains
Lake Forest Pressure Washing also follows all of the steps to clean the concrete little by little – the most effective method. Most homeowners and other companies don’t have the patience to do it correctly. They want fast results.
A professional pressure washing company can also provide protective sealing services for driveway so oil stains are less likely to happen again.