Oil stains can be unsightly marks on your garage floor. If you are planning to seal your garage floor or just want yours to look nicer, you’ll need to work to remove these stains as quickly as possible.
There are many household cleaning products that can remove oil stains from your garage floor. Kitty litter, powder detergent, and baking soda are some of the most effective remedies. If these don’t work, you can also try Coca-Cola or a commercial cleaning product like Oil Eater.
Curious about how each method works and which might be best for you? Let’s look at each method in depth as well as what you should do when the first method you try doesn’t work for you.
Which Household Products Are Best for Concrete Oil Stains?
It’s important to remove oil stains before you plan to refinish or reseal your concrete because if you don’t, these stains will become permanent. The good news is you can use several items around your house to remove oil stains from your garage floor.
You likely have at least one or all of these products somewhere around your home. Just note that some of them may need to be combined with another method in order to be effective.
Kitty Litter
Clay kitty litter is the best at-home remedy for an oil spill. Kitty litter clumps naturally and can help to remove fresh oil stains or spills from your garage floor. Simply pour the kitty litter on the spill, watch it clump, then pick up the clumps and vacuum the remaining litter from the floor.
Even if your oil stain has been in place for a while, it is still worthwhile to put some kitty litter on it to see if it helps. After you vacuum or sweep it up, coat the area with dawn dish soap and use an old rag to scrub. This should take the oil right out!
Baking Soda
If you don’t have a furry friend on hand, then it may be more difficult to find cat litter in your home. When this is the case, baking soda can serve the same purpose, just note that it won’t clump as well as kitty litter.
Apply the baking soda to the oil spill and allow it to soak up the oil. Then vacuum away the chunks of baking soda. Baking soda is also recommended for fresh oil spills but can help with stains as well. When you have a stain, mix baking soda with a little water and rub the paste into the stain.
Wait 30 minutes, then scrub the stain with a scrub brush before rinsing with water. You can repeat this process multiple times, even allowing the baking soda paste to sit on the stain overnight if needed.
Coke
For those with smaller oil stains, coke can actually help to remove the remnants of the stain. All you have to do is pour the coke on the stain, let it soak for at least 8 hours, then rinse it off with a water hose or pressure washer.
The only issue with using coke is that it won’t stay in place well if your garage is built on a slope. When this is the case, we recommend using the baking soda method listed above.
WD-40
One old wives’ tale states that WD-40 can also be used to remove oil stains from your garage floor. While this is a method you can use, most professionals advise against it.
WD-40 has the potential to damage decorative concrete. If your garage floor is nothing fancy, then there is no reason not to give this method a try. Start by testing a small corner of the stain before drenching the entire thing in WD-40.
Use a pressure washer or hose to remove the WD-40, and if the stain has not been removed, consider using another method to clean your oil stains.
Laundry Detergent
Like kitty litter, powder laundry detergent can help with removing oil spills and oil stains. If you just spilled the oil, dump laundry detergent on it, allowing it to clump up a bit. Remove with a vacuum.
Even if the oil stain is old, you can still pour some powder laundry detergent on your oil spill. Use a scrub brush and some warm water to scrub the area. Allow the detergent to sit for 30 minutes, then remove with water. If the stain isn’t gone, this method can be repeated as needed, or you can try a different home remedy.
What Are the Best Commercial Cleaning Products?
Unfortunately, at-home remedies aren’t always going to work with oil stains. Stains that are really deep in the concrete or that have been there for a long time may require a commercial detergent to get them out.
Below are some commercial cleaning products that can help remove oil stains.
Oil Eater (On Amazon)
The number one product that most professionals recommend for getting rid of tough stains is Oil Eater. This heavy-duty cleaner can remove even the most ground in oil stains.
Do note that that product needs to be diluted with water and that it is a strong chemical–so you will want to wear protective gear when you work with it. The best part is you can use it on all kinds of surfaces as it isn’t just restricted to use on concrete.
Chomp! Concrete Oil Stain Remover (On Amazon)
Following Oil Eater, Chomp! Is the next best product for getting oil stains out of your garage floor. Simply pour it on your oil stain, allow it to dry, then brush away the resulting chalk-like substance.
Chomp! Is still a strong cleaning chemical, but it is bleach free. The only reason we like Oil Eater better is because this solution isn’t approved for as many surfaces. But if you have an oil stain on concrete, there is no reason not to use Chomp!
Goof Off (On Amazon)
Goof Off is another product similar to the two listed above. It too, can be poured on oil stains, allowed to dry, and swept away with ease. Like Chomp! Goof Off is only for concrete. It comes in third on our list as it doesn’t quite get out the ground in stains as well as Oil Eater does!
Tips for Removing Old Oil Stains
Removing oil stains isn’t always an easy task. Below are our tips to help you successfully get a ground in oil stain out of your garage floor.
1. Act Fast
The longer an oil stain is allowed to soak in, the more difficult it will be to get out. As soon as you spill oil, try your best to apply one of the household methods to remove the oil as quickly as possible.
Even if you don’t notice the stain until a day or two later, it is in your best interest to apply one of the aforementioned cleaning methods as soon as possible!
2. Try Multiple Methods
Not all oil is the same, and it is difficult to say which methods work best with different types of oil. We recommend trying one method, then if it doesn’t work, switching to an entirely new method to see if there are different results.
Don’t forget that many methods need more than one liquid to be applied to the stain. For example, the kitty litter method also needs to be combined with dish soap or laundry detergent.
3. Protect Yourself
You may think that cleaning an oil stain with a household method is much safer than using a chemical, but the truth is, almost every method we recommended includes some sort of powerful ingredient. Even if you decide to just use dish soap and laundry detergent, we recommend protecting your hands and eyes as you scrub–because you never know how your skin may react to these chemicals.
4. Invest in a Pressure Washer
While a hose may work in some situations, a pressure washer will take your concrete cleaning to the next level. If you regularly spill oil in your garage, then having one on hand can help you to keep your concrete looking clean.
Final Thoughts on Cleaning Oil Stains from Your Garage Floor
Overall, there are several ways to remove oil stains from your garage floor. If you try one method and it doesn’t work for you, it’s best to move on to another method, as types of oils react differently to different cleaning methods. If all else fails, grab a commercial concrete cleaning product, just be sure to protect yourself from the harsh chemicals.