How to Deal with Oil Stains on Concrete Ann Arbor MI

It is a fact that over time oil stains will appear on your driveway or sidewalk. It does not matter how careful you are they will eventually appear. But there are some ways that you can lighten and hide these unattractive stains.

Nowadays there are quite a few products that have been especially designed in order to take grease off concrete floors, driveways and sidewalks. But it is the case that these commercial products contain acid. Having acid in the cleaning product can make the job a little more difficult as you must be extra careful when cleaning the concrete.

If you do not want to deal with commercial products that have acid in them there are some other options you have in order to make the stains lighter and less noticeable. Here a few tips you can follow in order to lighted the oil stains on your concrete.

∗ Try using kitty litter - Kitty litter has many uses besides the obvious ones for cats. If the oil spill is fresh you can sprinkle a good amount of the kitty litter over the stain. You can then let it sit overnight so that the kitty litter will absorb the oil. Then simply brush it away and the stain should be less noticeable. Make sure that you put enough kitty litter over the oil stain. If you do not you will have to repeat the process.

∗ WD-40 - You can spray WD-40 on the oil spill and then immediately get a rag and wipe up the oil. This will break down the oil and make it an easier clean up. After doing this throw away the towel. You can keep doing this process until most of the oil is broken down.

∗ Dishwasher detergent or baking soda - Before you sprinkle the dishwater detergent or baking soda on the oil spill wet the area first. Make sure to sprinkle a good amount on the spill and then let it sit for around 10 minutes. When the detergent or baking soda is sitting boil a pot of water. Once the water is boiling pour it over the area being careful not to burn yourself. When the water has cooled down scrub the area with a brush that has bristles that are firm. You can repeat this process until the stain is as light as possible.

TIPS: You should have some kitty litter available in case an oil spill does happen. The longer that you let the spill sit while running to the store the more it will set into the concrete. Do the same thing with baking soda as it is good to have around if a spill happens. Also make sure that you have some disposable rags available when you wipe up the spills.

Author: Jason Green