Best Way Remove Oil Stains From Asphalt Driveway: 11 Tips To Remove Oil Now!

We show you how to remove oil stains from your asphalt driveway, the asphalt driveway protecting tips and what works, what doesn’t.

What Best Way To Remove Oil Stains From Asphalt Driveway? If your asphalt driveway is in serious need of removing oil stains you should follow these tips: 1. Contain the spill. 2. Sweep it up. 3 Absorb, 4. Use Dish Soap. 5. Use household cleaner 6. Hose it off. 7. Rinse. 8. Remove ugly stains. 9. Scrub 10. Use microbial cleaners 11. Protect your driveway by sealing it.

11 Tips Remove Oil & Protect Your Driveway

Contain. Spread cat litter on the stains to contain it from spreading and flowing down the driveway. Just spread enough to cover the oil so it quickly is absorbed by the cat litter and can be removed.

Let the cat litter or absorbent material sit for an 15 minutes. Spread it around so it can quickly absorb the oil.

2. Sweep. The cat litter into a plastic bag or trash. If you don’t have any you can pick it up or other absorbent material at your local hardware store or home depot, lowes. Baking soda will also work if you need immediate absorption on the asphalt pavement.

Put the plastic bag to the side. You will be disposing of more items.

3. Absorb. Remove fresh oil stains and grease stains, oil spots with paper towels or an absorbent cloth. Matt it down on the stain to absorb any excess oil.

4. Dish soap or dish detergent. Use Dawn dish soap (preferably) since it does an excellent job at breaking up the oil and removing it from the asphalt.

Use your scrub brush to work the stain out of the driveway. Depening on the size of the spot, it may take some elbow grease to really scrub it hard.

5. Simple Green or common household items. Oven cleaner or engine degreaser will even work well. Try the dish soap first before you go to the cleaners. Spray the wet area and scrub some more.

6. Water. Use a garden hose or power/ pressure washer to remove any remaining stain. Use a stiff brush or wire brush to clean the stubborn stains from asphalt surfaces or even your concrete surfaces.

Pro tip: These 11 steps will also work on your concrete driveway and garage floor for oil leak or old oil stains.

7. Rinse and repeat.

8. Next morning remove the unsightly stains. Use an oil stain remover on the stained area. This will also work on fresh oil spills.

9. Scrub stubborn oil stains. Stubborn oil stains require a scrub brush or wire brush to remove.

10. Microbial cleaners. Use microbial cleaners for really hard stains

11. Protect Your Driveway – Seal It

Yes, if your driveway can be saved…and chances are it can be. If your asphalt driveway is more than 10 years old than, chances are, it needs some TLC and is falling apart

RELATED: 3 Simple Methods to Permanently Raise Concrete with Foam NOW!. If you have cracks, spider cracks, crumbling corners or the center of your driveway is breaking up…then you need a fix.

Clean it. Your driveway needs to be clean before you patch it. You should use a broom or leaf blower to remove any of the loose debris, leaves, and dirt.
Wash it. Use a power washer to clean it off. You really need to clean off all of the deep-down dirt, grease, oil that has built up over the years. Use a quality degreaser to get it clean.
Remove loose asphalt. If there are spots where you have loose asphalt then you should use a shovel to remove it from the driveway. If left in place it will likely break apart in the new year and leave a bigger hole.
Trim your grass. Trim your grass back at least 2″ all the way around your driveway. This way you will be able to completely seal it and your corners won’t break down in 2 years.

Patch it. Patch uneven spots and any holes. Use a quality patch kit like this one here. You can get a cold or a hot patch kit. Hot patch kits are ideal as you can form them into the area easier than with a cold kit. If you get a cold kit then you have to use a heavy stamper to compress the asphalt into place.
Seal it.
Equipment:
- Sealer,
- Patch it or EZ Street asphalt patch
- squeegee,
Temperature: Ideally above 60 degrees F. 65-75 degrees is better but don’t apply it over 85 degrees.

Process

How to apply it:

Turn it over. Turn the 5 gallon bucket over the night before so it mixes. Turn it back over, right side up, 1 hour before you start. This will help mix the sealant further.
Pour it slowly. Open bucket and pour it near the top of the driveway near the center. About 4 quarts or 1/5th of the bucket on the driveway.
Get used to how runny and easy it is to move on the driveway with your squeegee so you don’t put too much down and have a mess.
Wax-on/wax-off – Move your squeegee like you would a mop that is mopping up a big mess….cleanup in isle 9!
Pull it to the edge. Take it almost to the edge of the driveway and then slowly pull the liquid to the edge. You don’t want it dripping all over your grass. This stuff is hard to clean up.
Pour the next 1/3rd of the bucket and squeegee your way down the driveway.
Repeat. Pull it to the edge until everything is covered.

Pro Tip: Put a second coat on the next day – once the 1st coat has dried 24 hours. The second coat will make sure your sealant lasts much longer than just one coat.

Bonus Tip: Dispose of bag of kitty litter, oil waste.

Make sure not to pour the remaining sealer away or down a storm drain. One pint of oil or sealant can produce a slick of approximately one acre of water. EPA.gov

There are only a few options you have for disposing of your own oil.

Recycle at the local landfill. Most landfills accept used motor oil and tar from homeowners. At our local landfill, they have designated areas for paint, oil, and other chemicals. It is usually free (paid for with your taxes).