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oil stains on concrete

C

cdv

Member
anyone know the best way to clean oil and grease stains off concrete want to seal the floor to help prevent future stains floor is 2year old also the best sealer to use thanks cdv
 
Once the oil has been sitting on the floor for awhile it will be a a tough job to get completely clean with no residue. You can get a heavy detergent for this purpose at walmart or an auto supply store. Pour it on and start scrubbing. It doesnt hurt to use a power washer with hot water and rotary nozzle too. I cleaned up our garage floor that was poured in 1967 with the heavy detergent and a 4000psi pressure washer with hot water and rotary nozzle. It took three hours for a double sized garage floor but when i was finished it was clean with no stains. Most of the garage was wet from the steam but nothing was damaged that I can tell.
 
I was in a shop recently that had a dirt floor. At least that?s what the new owners thought. After 2 loader buckets of caked on grease, oil, and dirt were scraped off the floor looked 70 years old.
 
Simple green full strenght,or new DAWN 4x concentrate , let soak use power washer.might take 2 or 3 times
 
I use the fine dirt that falls off my tractor tires as oil dry. I leave some dirt on floor and push it around to the next new oil spot. Eventually, I'll put a scoop of oily dirt in front bucket and dump it on brush pile. Hot ashes with help clean up the dirt.

Why fight oil on concrete floors?

Almost like fighting grass and weeds in gravel drive. You'll never win.
 
leaving oil dry down on the floor works. Walking on it and driving on it crushes the stuff down and it really does a good job.
 
You're gonna have to do an exceptional job of cleaning to start, and then some kind of miracle sealer (if one even exists) to prevent future staining. You must have a good amount of oil stains or a good reason to be so concerned with them, good luck with your project.
 
I pour gasoline on the bad spots,,then use a medium size broom (dedicated for this),,swish it around a bit,,scoop up what juice I can then put floor dry down,,does a great job..
 

To cut grease like that you need a heavy duty cleaner, not something that is made to immerse your hands in. What you need is heavy duty corrosive caustic, which just happens to be sold as oven cleaner. don't spend a lot of $! The dollar store stuff in gallons works just as well as Easy Off. If you want to go at it big time I can ship you some very strong stuff but the minimum order is 96 4x1 gal. cases. Just mix it 50-50 with water, let it sit for a half hour, brush with a stiff bristle rush, let it sit for another half hour then rinse it off. This will work better at higher temps.
 
you are spot on, cheapest and easiest way ? put some down to soak up the liquid, let it do its work, sweep it up, sprinkle a light coat on the stain and walk around on it dragging your feet grinding it up, let sit over night, then sweep it up, floor will be cleaner than any other way. Most people are just impatient
 
My garage floor is only a year old and already looks like heck.
My plan is to keep working on old tractors till the entire floor is stained. Then you wont notice a few spots.
 
Whatever happened to good ol' "Gunk"?
Besides cleaning engines, it was also for cleaning oil from concrete floors.
 
It's going to be hard to get all the stains up.

Something that might work would be a dark stain, maybe a multi color pattern that could blend and cover the stains.

Then seal it.

The sealer can be either water or solvent base. One problem with the solvent base, gasoline, carb cleaner, etc. will soften it, make it sticky and trackable until it dries again.

The water base will probably need to be refreshed periodically depending on the traffic.
 
Lots of good ideas below. One method I have used is to pour some sort of solvent like lacquer thinner or mineral spirits on it then give a good scrub with a brush and then while it is still wet put some floor dry or cat litter on it and let it soak it up. Works good most times. Take a look at Sika or Masterseal for a sealer that will fit your application. I?m in the waterproofing and traffic coating business and can help you choose a product if you want.

Greg F.
 
Gas and oil dry works great. Big warning! Do Not use anything flamabal if you have any gas appliances like a water heater on stove in the garage. The pilot light will cause you to need a new garage. :)
 

First thing don't make a mess to start off with... Second invest in a mop and bucket, third use varsol to clean wipe up your mess...

I pride myself in keeping a clean floor I do not use oil dry but do keep some around just encase I have a large spill then stop get it up wipe down with varsol and mop the floor...

If you work in a mess you will get run off here there is absolutely no reason for it other than you are lazy and don't take pride in your work environment.. It takes time to learn how to work clean once you work clean you will never work dirty again.. You don't have to work knee deep in oil dry if you do oil dry is abrasive in the end it will make keeping your floor clean harder... If you use oil dry invest in a floor scraper you gonna need it then when it comes time to clean your floor its gonna be a P.I.T.A...
 
The old fellow that started me millwrighting was very particular about his work area, he would put some floot-dry on the spill and grind it in with a brick, worked well.
 
I buy me a large bag of the cheapest cat litter I can find. Pour it completely around the stain to form a dam. I then flood it with paint thinner-does not take a huge amount usually. Scrub it a little then sweep the cat litter into the paint thinner. Scoop it up and dispose of!
 
If you want to have a nice floor that is easy to clean in the future consider doing and epoxy sealer over the entire floor. The grey color looks very nice in my opinion.
 
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