Hi everyone,
I live in the UK and unfortunately my car has been leaking oil onto my driveway. I’ve tried everything I can think of to remove the oil stain, but it just won’t go away.
I’m worried my landlord may charge me for it from my deposit when I move out.
Has anyone had this problem before and can recommend something that actually works to remove old car oil stains from a driveway?
Any advice or product recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks
Oil Eater, it's an enzyme that helps break up the oil. Liquid and sold in bottles. Give it a try.
You'll probably never get it out completely. For now, the cheapest solution is a pile of cat litter under your car to keep it from getting worse. Replace as necessary. After you no longer park there, try a solvent of some sort (preferrably not flammable) and try to minimize it.
For what it's worth, I've never seen a parking spot that eventually didn't have an oil stain. I doubt your landlord will notice.
The father of a sloppy teen mechanic want to know too!
I use Gunk engine cleaner on my driveway, not sure if it is available in UK. Squirt it on, let it soak, hose it off.
Putting cat litter on the oil spots will,pull it out. The normal diatomaceous earth type.
My son’s car dripped onto my concrete driveways. Lots of small spots. I sprayed it with Purple Power engine degreaser, let it sit for a few minutes and then hit it with the pressure washer and they all came right out. The drips were there for several months, the concrete is 30 years old no not sealed or specially treated.
Had a buddy with this exact problem in a rental. He tried the enzyme stuff and it helped a little but the stain was still there. Landlord never said a word when he moved out though, fwiw. Those spots are everywhere once you start looking.
A pressure washer should work. It worked on my driveway.
I covered mine in liquid laundry detergent and dawn dish detergent. Let sit overnight. Spraying off with a hose after that got 90%. A pressure washer after that soak instead of a hose would likely get it even better.
I had a kerosene leak in the shed a few years ago and I got this stuff. Oilgone S-200. Apparently it's the newer version of the stuff they used to clean up the BP oil spill. We'll it worked for me. It was a slow leak that spread out and evaporated up the sides of the burner. Sprayed it with that stuff and it just disappeared in a week or 2. Can't recommend it enough.
oilgone S-200
Orange oil and a lot of scrubbing.
The cheapest solution isn't cat litter.
The cheapest solution is to fix the damn car before the engine gives up for lack of lubricant. Also, keeping the oil level isn't cheap.
Let’s go deeper. Cheapest means lowest cost - OP sell the car. Thats truly the cheapest!