How to Remove Oil Stains on Driveways
Oil stains on driveways look awful, and ruin your home exterior, even if the oil stains are fairly new. Try to avoid oil stains on your home’s driveway and in your garage whenever possible, and attempt to eliminate those stains right away, before they 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 Oceanside that can eliminate the most set-in oil stains.
Where Do Concrete Oil Stains Come From?
Mostly, oil from cars is the reason for stains on concrete. This might be oil, gasoline or transmission fluid – or a combination. Some of the most common ways your concrete gets stained are from:
- Servicing your own car
- Filling up the gas in a lawn mower
- A leak that needs to be checked out by a mechanic
But, of course, there are a lot of other things that can cause an unsightly oil spot on your concrete. So let’s consider some 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 over the oil, getting it down into the stain by stomping on it with your feet. It’s a good idea to leave the litter on the oil stain overnight so it will 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 nearby wildlife don’t eat it and get sick.
Next you can proceed with one of the following do-it-yourself cleaning processes.
COCA-COLA FOR OIL STAINS
You might have heard urban legends about accident clean-up crews using Coke to clean up the roads, but, rest assured, that is not true. However, Coke 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 generous amount of Coke on top of 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 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 need to coat the stain with the baking soda and then let it sit for a little bit, somewhere from 30 minutes to a few hours. This should absorb some of the oil and allow the baking soda to penetrate the porous concrete.
Next, add blue dishwashing detergent and some water and scrub hard until there is a thick paste. Again, you can let this sit for maximum penetration, or you can continue to scrub in a circular pattern, then rinse.
Just like with the Coke method, you might have to repeat the process.
LAUNDRY DETERGENT FOR OIL STAINS
Many homeowners already use this to clean off dirty stains on clothes. It’s actually a great product for removing bad oil stains from concrete too!
Mix powdered laundry detergent and borax in equal parts according to the size of the oil stain. You will want to cover it entirely. Let this mixture sit on the oil stain for an hour or longer, then add some water to create a paste, scrub and rinse.
This is more of a gentle cleaning method, so it might be necessary to repeat the process one or two times. But there is a possibility it will work!
DRIVEWAY CLEANING IN Oceanside
Some oil stains on a driveway are too tough for DIY home remedies to remove. That’s when it is time to call a professional pressure washing company to thoroughly clean your home’s concrete surfaces.
We don’t recommend pressure washing your driveway yourself to save a few dollars. You can cause major damage that is extremely complicated to repair if you don’t know what you’re doing. The high pressure water can break and loosen concrete, and it can leave streaks on a driveway that look just as bad as the oil stains.
Calling Oceanside Pressure Washing is definitely the safe choice. We know the best methods to clean concrete without damaging it, including:
- The right PSI and GPM levels to use to remove stains
- Which nozzle will penetrate concrete without damaging it
- The optimal distance to spray the concrete from
- Solutions that can help lighten stains
Oceanside Pressure Washing also follows all of the steps to clean the concrete little by little – the most effective method. Most homeowners don’t have the patience to do it correctly. They want quick results.
A professional pressure washing company can also offer protective sealing services for your driveway so oil stains are less likely to happen again.