I'm looking for some suggestions re: cleaning up an oil/gas mix spill from the concrete floor of my garage.
The tank on an old snow thrower leaked. I put some a dry substance on it (can't recall the brand name) that I had purchased from Wal-Mart intended to absorb the spill.
I have a strong gas smell in the garage and, with temps not expected to get above the mid-20s this week, my options for aggressively rinsing the area are a bit limited. Suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks !
Simple Green does a decent job. Laundry detergents also work OK. Both do require a fair amount of rinsing with water.
Though much more expensive, and more flamable than gas, Acetone will dissolve darn near anything. Problem with Acetone is it evaporates so fast. Wear a mask, rubber gloves, and provide lots of ventilation.
No, don't use acetone or the like in a garage; too many pockets & corners for it to collect the fumes in, even with forced ventilation.
It's an accident waiting to happen.
Detergents will work, and there are also cleaners made specifically to remove gas & oil from the concrete - visit a local NAPA or similar auto goods store.
HTH,
Pop
... : : Though much more expensive, and more flamable than gas, Acetone will : dissolve darn near anything. Problem with Acetone is it evaporates so fast. : Wear a mask, rubber gloves, and provide lots of ventilation. ...
Good advice Pop, I stand corrected. Of coarse one must also consider the danger of the gasoline inside the garage as well. I'm no chemist, but aren't gas fumes just about as bad?
Cat letter and Naphtha along with a little time and a few repeats will usually do the job. As noted most any detergent will handle most case. You can use the stuff you wash dishes with.
: > It's an accident waiting to happen. : >
: > Detergents will work, and there are also cleaners made : > specifically to remove gas & oil from the concrete - visit a : > local NAPA or similar auto goods store. : >
: > HTH, : >
: > Pop : : Good advice Pop, I stand corrected. Of coarse one must also consider the : danger of the gasoline inside the garage as well. I'm no chemist, but aren't : gas fumes just about as bad? : : lol, that's sort of a catch-22! You'll be just as cooked after either one, so ... 6 of one?
Seriously, I have no idea and no background to make any kind of Physics guess. While it's slightly less flammable temp wise, the same spark would set either one off in concentration. What I'm not so sure of, which makes me curious, is whether the flammable part of gasoline fumes float, combine with, or settle downward in, the air. Alcohol et al goes everywhere and mixes well with the atmosphere it's in, esp the water molecules, but gasoline ... hmm,.
Maybe someone that actually knows will pipe in. But I still wouldn't use either if I wanted to see tomorrow.
Pop
an oil/gas mix spill from
You can buy good concrete cleaner/degreaser at autoparts stores. Castrol Superclean for example. Another solution is TSP (tri-sodium-phosphate) found at home improvement stores. Its a powder that you mix with water. Follow the mixing intructions and let it sit on the stain for about 20 min and rinse away with water.
Take dry cement and throw on the spill, leave for a week or so. Thats what we did when a space heater went out during the night, pumped 12 gallons of fuel oil on the floor. Dried it so we could tile the floor later on.
Another solution is TSP (tri-sodium-phosphate) found at home improvement stores. Its a powder that you mix with water. Follow the mixing intructions and let it sit on the stain for about
20 min and rinse away with water.==================
Just be alert when purchasing the TSP. There are TSP look-alikes out there such as a product labeled "PF-TSP." That means "phosphate free TSP", which is an oxymoron since TSP must, by definition, be loaded with phosphates.
replying to daved, Marcus Pandolfo wrote: Simply wash with dawn and water.
replying to newsreader, FmlyDskst wrote: Fumes of gas are what ignites, gas as a liquid you can put out a match if quick enough though very stupid to try. A drum with a cup of gas in it will explode horribly because of the gas accumulating. I know this is an old post but this is for the next one looking.
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