Motor Oil Removal from Concrete
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Motor Oil Removal from Concrete
A fresh motor oil stain from concrete is easier to remove than an old stain. Squirt some liquid dish detergent (preferably one designed for cutting grease) onto the stain. Add water. Be sure to wet down the area surrounding the stain as well to prevent oil from spreading during the cleaning process and causing a secondary stain. Scrub the stain vigorously with a nylon scrub brush (not a wire brush which can erode or scratch the concrete), adding enough water to make a rich soapy lather. Rinse with clean water. The soap will emulsify the oil and lift it out of the concrete, but it may take several attempts to completely remove all of the oil. When rinsing the area, it is more environmentally responsible to blot the area with a towel to remove the soapy water, since rinsing the mixture with a hose will allow the motor oil in the water to seep into the ecosystem or sewer system. Another way to remove motor oil from concrete is to spread a thick layer of cat litter over the grease to absorb the excess motor oil on the surface. Allow the litter to sit for a day or two, then sweep it away. Pour dry concrete over the dried grease spot. Allow the concrete to sit for a day or two, then sweep away the dirty concrete. Be sure to gather both the cat litter and the dirty concrete in a bag and dispose of it properly so the motor oil doesn't get into the ecosystem or sewer system. Contact your local waste collection service for more information.
Comments
11/5/2006 3:03:25 PMLinda said:
Worked for me on a stain from yesterday. What do I with the soapy oily water?
1/30/2007 7:39:50 AM
Peggy said:
We just had an old furnace removed from the house. Right outside the back door, where, this fall, we installed a new blue stone patio, was an small oil spill (about the size of my palm). I squirted some Dawn detergent on the spill, applied hot water and scrubbed with a scrubbing brush. The spill cleaned up perfectly! I'm thrilled.
11/19/2008 3:34:43 AM
Phisherman said:
Oil on concrete is almost impossible to completely remove. There are special products used by auto mechanics that work well. Dawn dishwashing detergent helps. To protect concrete, use an epoxy finish and use large sheets of cardboard to catch spills.
4/16/2009 11:26:12 PM
line jacques said:
How can I remove an automobile oil stain in the concrete of my driveway. The oil is not fresh on the concrete.
7/27/2011 12:01:08 PM
George said:
I have an old motorcycle that decided to dump its entire reservoir of oil in my garage last month. After soaking it up with kitty litter, this did an OK job removing ~50% of the stain, but I still had a very noticeable stain afterwards. I ended up finding a good solution on another forum, but wanted to come back to post here, since I got my start here. I used a product called Eximo. It looked a lot like the dry concrete I tried earlier, but this product was supposed to have microbes in it to eat the oil. I'm honestly not exactly sure how it works, but you can't see the stain at all now, very pleased! Product website was www.mycaf.com -- they gave me a coupon when i ordered for an addition 10% off, but I won't use it, promo code was FRIEND10 -- not sure how long it will be active for. Good luck!
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