How can I clean a dirty oily cement garage floor?

Andrea Ruch
by Andrea Ruch
The seller left the garage cement floor filthy with mud and oil.
I want to get it clean and then epoxy the floor.
What cleaning process works best on oil and dirt?
Products?

  7 answers
  • Kelli Kelli on May 23, 2018

    Cat litter will soak up the oil.

  • William William on May 23, 2018

    WD-40. Did a leaky oil pan leave a big ugly spot in the middle of your concrete driveway? To get rid of an unsightly oil spot, just spray it with a generous amount of WD-40 and then hose it down with water.


    Soda (Coca Cola). Here’s how to remove oil stains from concrete drive-ways and garage floors: Gather up a small bag of cat litter, a few cans of cola, a stiff bristle broom, bucket, laundry detergent, bleach, eye protection, and rubber gloves. Cover the stain with a thin layer of cat litter and brush it in. Sweep up the litter and pour cola to cover the area. Work the cola in with a bristle broom, and leave the cola for about twenty minutes. Mix 1/4 cup laundry detergent with 1/4 cup bleach in 1 gallon (3.7 liters) warm water and use it to mop up the mess.


    Oven Cleaner. Get those unsightly grease, oil, and transmission fluid stains off your concrete driveway or garage floor. Spray them with Easy Off No Fume Oven Cleaner in the BLUE can. Let it settle for 5-10 minutes, then scrub with a stiff brush and rinse it off with your garden hose at its highest pressure. Severe stains may require a second application.


    Kool-Aid. Nasty rust stains on your concrete? Mix unsweetened lemonade Kool-Aid with hot water. Scrub and the rust stain should come right out.


    Baking Soda. Salt and commercial ice-melt formulations can stain — or actually eat away — the concrete around your house. For an effective, but completely innocuous, way to melt the ice on your steps and walkways during those cold winter months, try sprinkling them with generous amounts of baking soda. Add some sand for improved traction.


    Ammonia. Tired of those annoying discolorations on your concrete work? To get rid of them, scrub with 1 cup ammonia diluted in 1 gallon (3.7 liters) water. Hose it down well when you’re done.

  • Nancy Turner Nancy Turner on May 23, 2018

    Floor dry or the old fashioned clay litter for the oil and grease. Press it in good to try to soak it up. leave it for a while, then sweep it up. Try tide or dawn soak on the greasy stuff after than scrub it in good and let it sit to soak into the cement. Rinse it off, it may take more than one try to get it out. I would use a pressure washer to get the floor clean of the grime.

  • Mar33482700 Mar33482700 on May 23, 2018

    kitty litter to treat heavy spots then orange solution

  • Mar33482700 Mar33482700 on May 23, 2018

    try to put all left over used cleaning products into environment safe trash only hose down when safe to do so. the water run off goes into your water supply and is very harmful

  • Erinaiston Erinaiston on May 24, 2018

    1.Picking up Your Garage

    • Clear the floor
    • Cover drywall and outlets
    • Sweep the floor

    2.Removing Stains

    • Mop up spills right away
    • Use lemon juice or vinegar on a rust stain
    • Sprinkle cat litter over oil stains
    • Apply a store-bought grease remover as an alternative
    • Scrub tough stains with detergent and water

    3.Scrubbing Concrete Floors

    • Mix a cleaning solution
    • Scrub the floor
    • Run a buffer over the floor for best results

    4.Mopping Epoxy Floors

    • Sweep with a dust mop weekly
    • Wash the floor
    • Remove residue and stains with hot water