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engine oil on the drive
Nightkid - 4/5/05 at 04:25 PM

any idea how to get engine oil stain off the drive? i heard its quite difficult and it is something i must sort out. just tried putting degreaser powder on the drive, cover it with plastic bags. i see what happens overnight. Thanks in advance guys.


dave dickson - 4/5/05 at 05:41 PM

scrub with washing powder, a stiff brush and a little water. Works a treat for me.

Test on a small patch first incase it discolours your drive though.


Peteff - 4/5/05 at 06:00 PM

Brother in law got some diluting stuff off the shopping channel that cleans it up perfect. Don't know what it's called but it smells of lemon and works brilliant on concrete and slabs.


JoelP - 4/5/05 at 09:32 PM

washing up liquid and a stiff brush should sort it, failing that some gunk remover is the 'specialist' stuff. both ideally need a good hose pipe.


liam.mccaffrey - 4/5/05 at 09:35 PM

firstly assuming an oil patch 300mm sq dig up 500 mm sq with jackhammer and relay concrete in said hole. making sure to screed over level afterwards.


Mark Allanson - 4/5/05 at 09:58 PM

quote:
Originally posted by liam.mccaffrey
firstly assuming an oil patch 300mm sq dig up 500 mm sq with jackhammer and relay concrete in said hole. making sure to screed over level afterwards.


Alternatively, empty the sump completely and apply evenly to the drive with an old watering can. No more oil patch


Nightkid - 5/5/05 at 08:08 AM

cheers. did i mention its a brick laid drive. i'm worried about discolouring the bricks as the oil seem to have soaked in pretty well.


simonH - 5/5/05 at 08:35 AM

Turn the bricks over! also cat litter , the grey stuff (fullers earth) is great at soaking up oil


bigbriglasgow - 5/5/05 at 08:36 AM

Throw down cement dust, it absorbs the oil then brush up and look ta yr clean drive. make sure oil is still wet and it will work. remember dont add water or u will have a cement stain.


mcig68 - 6/5/05 at 12:29 AM

Sprinkle washing powder over the stain and let the rain do the rest. It's Scotland. It WILL rain. It's probably raining now.
I've done this a few times in the past and it usually works a treat.


andyps - 6/5/05 at 12:20 PM

washing powder works well as already stated, I use it regularly. Also Gunk drive cleaner is very effective.


flak monkey - 6/5/05 at 12:23 PM

Use a pressure washer with strong detergent. Works well for us....


timf - 6/5/05 at 01:07 PM

quote:
Originally posted by flak monkey
Use a pressure washer with strong detergent. Works well for us....


don't use a pressure washer on a block pavier drive it forces all for the sand out from between the blocks and they then start to tip and also get weed growth between them


Nightkid - 6/5/05 at 01:49 PM

Just tried the washing powder method last night. Scrubbing it with a brush. I think it faded a bit but still noticeable. Maybe a couple more go with washing powder will do it? I thing I tried engine degreaser next and see what happens. Cheers


Danozeman - 6/5/05 at 05:25 PM

Engine degreaser will make it worse.. I used gunk driveway cleaner on me mums block paved drive when i left a huge patch on it when it hadent een layed long. Worked a treat. Let it soak in a bit before u scrub it and rinse it.. It wont discolour the blocks..


irvined - 8/5/05 at 07:27 PM

You could do worse than marine clean, its made by the same people who make por15 paint, its actually fairly safe stuff, very good at cleaning, in fact, its the best cleaning stuff i've ever used.

It worked well on the drive at my last house, soaked for an hour, stiff brush, then jet washed off.

I'm going to have to re-tar my current one, its just a skim, and is covered in patches, some of the tar is actually lifting now, and to top it off, i jacked it up (on a clean patch) and the jack sunk down to the level of the hard tar underneath. Not impressed.

HTH

D


johnjulie - 10/6/05 at 07:43 AM

There was a recent article in one of the Classic car mags. SWARFEGA oil & grease remover, came out on top. I tried it with very good results. Available from B&Q.
Cheers John


DarrenW - 10/6/05 at 08:45 AM

Iheard that biological washing powder is beter than non-bio.

What about dishwasher stuff? It has always been a good trick to use dishwasher for cleaning car parts when SWMBO is out.

You can get brick acid for cleaning buildings (i got some from builder centre - called brick cleaner on the bottle) - never tried it myself on oil but maybe worth a try.

DIY method 1 must be strong detergent and power washer. Failing that a paving suppliers may sell a goog driveway cleaner that is made for the job.

If all else fails do not admit responsibility. It was either your dad, your dog, or your mothers mates old car.


Nightkid - 10/6/05 at 03:38 PM

i dont think the engine degreaser work well for me. maybe i should leave it longer than 15mins while it soaks in? i got an idea of a friend to try mr muscle oven cleaner. apparently it is so strong it will eat the brick if left longer than 1min but suppose to be very good. another suggestion was cermet sand overnight and brush off . suppose to "pull" the oil stain out of the brick but dont use it on a windy day is it will kill even plant in your front garden


wilkingj - 10/6/05 at 07:57 PM

Cor!!... What a Bunch of Woosses!..

Get a Land Rover... When the oil stops dripping, its time to service it.. Opps sorry I meant fill it up again!

I have nice oil patches from the front diff, engine / gearbox / rear Diff on my drive... they have taken 11 years of parking the same Landy in the same place to perfect!!

I even have a nice one developing in the works Car park!... Everyone knows which parking places are MINE!!


JoelP - 19/6/05 at 04:55 PM

fairy liquid is crap, i was wrong

my drive is an absoulte mess! time to work my way through the suggestions in this thread!!!! Some bastard also stole my hose thing off the tap (the little hoselok thing that screw onto the tap) and my gun end bit. Bastards...

but yeah, fairy liquid and a big brush is a no no. As in no effect at all. At least if it doesnt come out i can relay all the affected bricks...