Cleaning concrete driveway

[kenleyfred]

We hopefully pick up our new SVX next weekend. Our old Disco has been gone for well over a month but it's memories live on . Two very large oil stains in the carport. one from me reversing in and the other spot where the wife drove straight in.

I would like to clean them off so any new drips ( I'm hoping there won't be any) will be noticable.
It's an old concrete driveway, the type with the little pebbles on top.
Any ideas on how to get rid of them please.
Cheers
Kenley

[agrojnr]

You really need to hit with a high pressure steam cleaner and alot of degreaser or truck wash.

A normal high pressure cleaner will work but no where near as good as a steam cleaner

Adam

[glenn82]

also u could use diluted(with water) hydrocloric acid, you can get it from bunnings or pool shop. but u will have to do whole driveway. dont get it on your skin or eyes, it stings

[Bigbjorn]

Straight liquid pool chlorine. Cheap and nasty, don't get any on you. works a treat. Spray or brush it on, leave for half hour, hose off with a vigorous stream or pressure cleaner, repeat as necessary.

[p38arover]

I use Portland cement on freshly dropped oil. I also works on old stuff but not as well.

Sprinkle, brush in, and leave it for a few days.

[Russ]

By saying "the type with the little pebbles on top", do you mean Exposed Agg? Like this:

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d99/rookskickz/ExposedAggsmall.jpg


If so, be mindful of using Acids etc. When a driveway with this type of finish is being done, Acid is what is used to give it this effect, as it eats away & washes the top of the concrete off, giving it its "exposed" look.

If you use acids on it, there's a chance that you could eat away more of it, and end up completely loosening the stones, creating a small crater in your driveway. This will all depend on how old the drive is, and whether or not the coat of sealer has worn away or not - but if you're worried about the finish of your drive, it might be something you'd want to avoid.


Best bet, for starters, is Degreaser & a Pressure Cleaner. Spray, allow it to penetrate, then pressure clean it off. Wait for the effected area to dry, and repeat if necessary. A machine with a bit of oomph behind it would be preferable over a little plastic $30 cleaner - but I suppose whatever you can get your hands on will have to do.

No need for over-priced whiz-bang degreaser either. $2 cans of export stuff is all you'll need (buy a few cans while you're at it - always handy to have)


If that doesn't work, then trying methods others have mentioned may get the stains off, but there's a chance some of the driveway could go with it. Just depends on how picky you are about how your drive looks.



As a side note, Driveways, like anything else - carpets, clothes, couches etc - can stain. If you don't get junk of them lickety split, they can become very hard to impossible to remove. Especially 5 years down the track. Getting oil off - the next day - is as easy as a quick squirt of degreaser, and a quick squirt with the hose.

Good luck!

[PhilipA]

Straight liquid pool chlorine. Cheap and nasty, don't get any on you. works a treat. Spray or brush it on, leave for half hour, hose off with a vigorous stream or pressure cleaner, repeat as necessary.

Hmm chlorine and diesel. Where have I heard of that before?
Suggest no fireworks.
Regards Philip A

[rovercare]

Hmm chlorine and diesel. Where have I heard of that before?
Suggest no fireworks.
Regards Philip A

Chlorine and milk, give it a shake, stick in a letter box and:twisted:

:D

[Blknight.aus]

mix up a thick paste of powdered laundry powder to the constianxy of clag, paste it on and wait then wash it off while scrubbing with a bristle brush.
.

[paulthepilot_5]

or just live with the fact that you landy likes to mark its territory :D