Most of us have dealt with oil stains in the concrete of our garage’s floor or our driveway. They’re unsightly, but seemingly impossible to remove. But they’re not! With a little elbow grease and some easy-to-find items, you can remove even old oil stains from your concrete surfaces. Let’s look at a few methods of cleaning your garage floor so the next time a leaky car tries to mar your concrete, you’ll know exactly what to do.

Using Cat Litter to Clean up Set-In Oil Stains

Clay cat litter is best for this job, as clay loves to attract and hold any type of moisture. Cover the entire stain with clay cat litter, and generously. Then leave it to sit for at least a few hours, or even overnight for really set-in stains. This is going to encourage the grease to come to the surface. After it’s sat long enough, clean up the cat litter and douse that stain in a degreaser like dish soap. Leave it to sit another hour or two. Then scrub the stain with a brush; this is going to break up the oils. Rinse, leave to dry, and you should see a stain-free concrete floor. You can also do this same procedure but use baking soda or sawdust instead.

Restoring Your Garage’s Floor with TSP or Acid Etching

Most concrete paints and sealants will recommend TSP or acid etching before applying the paint or sealant. That’s because these products break up and “eat” the oil. Make a solution of the TSP with water at about a 1% ratio. Pour over the stain, let it sit for a half hour or so, then scrub vigorously. If necessary, repeat this process until you can’t see the stain anymore. Rinse and let dry.

Using WD-40 to Get Oil out of Your Concrete Garage Floor

You can use grease to get grease out of concrete? Surprisingly, yes. If you cover the oil stain with WD-40 thoroughly and let it sit for a few minutes, some scrubbing with dish soap and rinsing with water should do it. And it all takes less than a half hour.

Consider Sealing Your Garage Floor with an Epoxy or Concrete Sealer

Once you’ve restored your garage floor to its former glory, think about preventing the possibility of another ugly stain by sealing the concrete. Sealing concrete means all the pours are filled and covered, making a surface that can’t be penetrated by water or oil. If you used the TSP or acid etching method to get those stains out, you’ve already prepped your floor for sealing!