How to Remove Oil Stains on Driveways
Oil stains on driveways look awful, and ruin your home exterior, even if the stains are still relatively new. Try to avoid oil stains on your driveway, sidewalks and in your garage if possible, and try to remove those stains fast, before they really set in.
If the 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 Fontana that has the ability to remove the most set-in stains on concrete surfaces.
Where Do Concrete Oil Stains Come From?
Mostly, oil from vehicles is the cause for oil-stained concrete. This might be oil, gas or transmission fluids – or a combination. Some of the typical ways your concrete gets stained are from:
- Fixing your own car
- Filling up the lawn mower
- A leak that should be checked out by a mechanic
But, of course, there are a lot of other things that can leave an unsightly oil stain on your concrete. So let’s look at a few of the best DIY methods to remove those stains!
DIY Oil Stain Removal Tips
CAT LITTER FOR OIL STAINS
Cat litter is a simple first step for new oil stains where there is a lot of oil that has to be dried up.
Sprinkle the cat litter all over the oil, really getting it down into the stain by crushing it with your feet. It’s recommended to leave the litter on the stain overnight so it can absorb as much as possible. Scoop it up or sweep it off of the driveway the following day and repeat if necessary.
Get rid of used litter so your pets and wildlife don’t eat it and get sick.
Then you can proceed with one of the following do-it-yourself concrete cleaning methods.
COCA-COLA FOR OIL STAINS
You’ve probably heard urban legends about accident clean-up crews using Coke to clean up the roads, but, rest assured, that is a myth. But, Coke does have strong cleaning properties for oily stains, in part due to its carbonated bubbles, but mostly from the phosphoric acid in the soda.
Pour a generous amount of Coke on the oil stain, then cover it with dishwashing detergent (Blue Dawn is widely accepted as the most effective). Scrub hard with a stiff brush, using circular motions.
Rinse and repeat if you have to.
BAKING SODA FOR OIL STAINS
Baking soda is a popular home cleaning remedy product.
To remove an oil stain on a driveway, you’ll first want to coat the stain with the baking soda and let it sit for a while, anywhere from 15 minutes to two or three hours. This should absorb most of the oil and allow the baking soda to penetrate the porous surface.
Next, add blue dishwashing liquid and some water and scrub hard until you have created a thick paste. Again, you can let this sit for optimal penetration, or you can continue to scrub in a circular pattern, then rinse.
Just like the Coke method, you might have to repeat the process.
LAUNDRY DETERGENT FOR OIL STAINS
Most homeowners already use this to clean off dirty stains on clothes. It’s actually a great product for getting rid of tough oil stains from concrete as well!
Mix powdered laundry detergent and borax in equal parts based on the size of the stain. You will want to cover it entirely. Let this dry mixture stay on the oil stain for an hour or more, then add some water to create a paste, scrub and then rinse.
This is more of a gentle cleaning method, so it might be necessary to repeat the process two or three times. But there is a possibility it will work!
DRIVEWAY CLEANING IN Fontana
Some concrete oil stains on a driveway are just too tough for home remedies to remove. That’s when it may be time to call a professional pressure washing company to thoroughly clean your concrete surfaces.
We don’t recommend pressure washing your driveway on your own to save a few dollars. You can cause major harm that is extremely difficult to repair if you don’t know what you’re doing. The high pressure water stream can break and loosen concrete, and it can create streaks on a driveway that look just as bad as the oil stains.
Hiring Fontana Pressure Washing is definitely the best choice. Our technicians know the best ways to clean concrete without ruining it, including:
- The right PSI and GPM levels to use
- Which nozzle tip will penetrate concrete without chipping it
- The correct distance to spray the concrete from
- Solutions that can help lighten stains
Fontana Pressure Washing also follows all of the steps to clean the concrete little by little – the most effective method. Most homeownersdon’t have enough patience to do it correctly. They want immediate results.
A professional pressure washing company in Fontana can also offer protective sealing services for your driveway so oil stains are less likely in the future.