How to Remove Oil Stains on Driveways
Oil stains on driveways look bad, and ruin your home exterior, even if the oil stains are relatively new. Avoid oil stains on your home’s driveway and in your garage if possible, and attempt to remove those stains fast, before they set in.
If the oil stain has been there for a while, like from before you purchased the home, you may need the help of a local driveway cleaning service in Houston that can remove the most set-in oil stains.
Where Do Concrete Oil Stains Come From?
Mostly, oil from vehicles is the cause for stains on concrete. This might be oil, gas or transmission fluids – or a combination of fluids. Some of the typical ways concrete gets stained are from:
- Fixing your own car
- Filling up the lawn mower
- A leak that needs to be checked out by a mechanic
But, there are many other things that can leave an ugly oil spot on concrete. So let’s review a few of the best DIY ways to remove those oil stains!
DIY Oil Stain Removal Tips
CAT LITTER FOR OIL STAINS
Cat litter is a easy first step for fresh oil stains where there is excess oil that has to be cleaned up.
Sprinkle the cat litter all over the oil stain, getting it down into the stain by crushing it with your feet. It’s best to leave the litter on the oil stain overnight so it absorbs as much as possible. Scrape it up or sweep it off the following day and repeat as necessary.
Get rid of used litter so pets and wildlife don’t eat it and get sick from it.
Then you can proceed with one of the following do-it-yourself concrete cleaning techniques.
COCA-COLA FOR OIL STAINS
You’ve probably heard urban legends about accident clean-up crews using Coca-Cola to clean up the roads, but, be assured, that is a myth. However, Coca-Cola does have strong cleaning properties for oily stains, in part due to 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 with a stiff brush, using circular motions.
Rinse and repeat if you have to.
BAKING SODA FOR OIL STAINS
Baking soda is another popular home cleaning remedy ingredient.
To remove an oil stain on a driveway, you’ll first want to cover the stain with the baking soda and let it sit for a while, anywhere from 30 minutes to a few hours. This should absorb a lot of the oil and allow the baking soda to penetrate the porous surface.
Next, add that famous blue dishwashing detergent and water and scrub until you have created a thick paste. Again, you can let this sit for the best penetration, or you can continue to scrub in a circular pattern, then rinse.
Just like the Coca-Cola method, you might have to repeat the process one or two times.
LAUNDRY DETERGENT FOR OIL STAINS
Many homeowners already use this to clean off bad stains on clothes. It’s also a great product for removing bad oil stains on concrete as well!
Combine 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 stay on the oil stain for an hour or more, then add water to create a paste, scrub and then rinse.
This is more of a gentle cleaning method, so it may be necessary to repeat the process two or three times. But there is a possibility it will work!
DRIVEWAY CLEANING IN Houston
Some concrete oil stains on a driveway are just too tough for home remedies. 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 on your own to save a little money. You can cause major harm that is extremely complicated to fix 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 ACE Houston Pressure Wash is definitely the best choice. We know the best methods to clean concrete without harming it, such as:
- The right PSI and GPM levels 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
ACE Houston Pressure Wash also follows all of the steps it takes to clean the concrete– the most effective method. Most homeowners and other companies don’t have the patience to do it correctly. They want immediate results.
A professional pressure washing company in Houston can also offer protective sealing services for driveway so oil stains are less likely in the future.