Removing Oil Stain from Flagstone

[Bruce K.]

Hi,

I made a small puddle of motor oil on my flagstone desk.

Tried:

Kitty litter type clay chips.

Dawn Dishwashing Detergent

Didnt remove all of the stain.

Any Ideas?

Thanks in advance .

Bruce

[Ed Pawlowski]

How did you get the car on the desk?

I don't think you will ever get it out entirely. Use the Speedi-Dry or whatever brand and leave it sit for a week or two.

[Norminn]

Kitty litter type? Use regular, non-clumping k.l., mash it in hard with your foot and let it soak for a couple of days when no rain expected.

[micky]

no great answer today, but these guys are really contractors for the most part, and their talk is interesting.

[David L. Martel]

Bruce,

I Googled this and found a recommendation for carb cleaner. It's cheap and probably won't hurt.

Dave M.

[micky]

Right. And the OP can learn something from what didn't work for this guy.

[nestork]

I would try applying mineral spirits to the flagstone surface, and then wicking up the mineral spirits with paper towels.

I'm hoping the oil dissolves in the mineral spirits, and the mineral spirits are absorbed in the paper towels.

[Norminn]

I've used kitty litter and it worked fine on concrete. Had to mash it in hard and leave for a couple of days. As porous as concrete is, one has to remember that k.l. won't soak up oil if the k.l. isn't ground in. The concrete held onto some of the finer dust....didn't bother to hose that off because it was an out of the way place. Condo neighbor stored car stuff in a plastic cabinet outdoors and the full can of oil rusted and ran out. On the water in Florida, it takes metal about 5 minutes to rust.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Yes, if it is square. Most flagstones are irregular and cannot be flipped.

[WW]

Hi,

I made a small puddle of motor oil on my flagstone desk.

Tried:

Kitty litter type clay chips.

Dawn Dishwashing Detergent

Didnt remove all of the stain.

Any Ideas?

Thanks in advance .

Bruce

I use GUNK engine cleaner on concrete. After it soaks into the oil it is water soluble for clean up. WW

[micky]

Good idea. But won't the desk legs point up if he does that.

Actually I think it's just as likely it's a flagstone deck, and he's using deck wrong. The stone may not be as flat on the other side, but once it's out of the dirt,

What about a propane or MAPP gas torch. He could find flagstone scraps, spill oil on them , and test the more outrageous methods to see which one works.

A guy I barely new once lent me his piano (when he moved to a furnished house that had a piano.) I was very happy to have it. He lent me other furniture too, including a leather topped coffee table.

Everything was fine for 3 years, I kept a plant on the cofffee table, but I put it on a paper napkin to protect the surface from the plastic pot. One day i overwatered, but didn't notice becuase it took a while for the water to reach the dish and overflow.

I found the texture of the entire paper napkin 6x6" or so, embossed in the leather. I tried everything, Neets food oil, and other things I forget now. I called about getting new leather inlaid. Hundreds of dollars, and I figured he might want the money instead.

Then a year or more later I needed the space and I put the table in the basement of a friend's house, a basement with stone walls. A few years later, after about 8 years total, the man called about his piano (etc.) So I went to get the table. After 4 or more years in the basement, the leather looked perfect. I couldn't find the damage even though I knew where it had been. Humidity?? And to top it off, he told me he didnt't want the table. I thought he'd said it was one of the things he wanted most.