Oil Stains On Asphalt Driveway?

[budest]

Hey guys, wasn't sure where to post this question so if it's in the wrong section I apologise in advance.

Anyone any idea on how I can remove these oil stains?

You can see the larger, dried looking patch where I used everything from washing powder, to coca cola, to degreaser and still couldn't fully shift it. Is there any industrial cleaner that I can buy that would clean this up a bit?

Thanks in advance

 

[Nozzle]

White spirit (not turps or turps substitute) or petrol, followed up by a detergent like washing-up liquid, gunk etc. Be warned though, what is a solvent for oil stain is also a solvent to the tar, though to a lesser extent.

Nozzle

 

[7or8]

Petrol works well on block paving... not sure about tarmac though.

 

[HERTS P&D]

What about a heat gun, works on block paving as long as you keep moving it around.

Andy

 

[Burnerman]

I use concentrated traffic film remover, followed by a blast with the pressure washer. Remarkably effective with no dissolving of the Tarmac.
John

 

[alan333]

I had great success using Swarfega on a tar driveway, scrub it in with a scrubbing brush and rinse off with a hose.

 

[foxhole]

SOAP powder , scrub in damp and leave too absorb the oil.

 

[7or8]

I use washing powder instead of swarfega... cheap and effective - didn't think of trying it with oil spots though, great idea!

 

[budest]

I had great success using Swarfega on a tar driveway, scrub it in with a scrubbing brush and rinse off with a hose.

Hey Alan,

Is that the hand cleaner stuff? Have you tried it on asphalt oil stains?

Thanks mate

 

[budest]

SOAP powder , scrub in damp and leave too absorb the oil.

Hey mate thanks for your reply,

Have you tried using it on oil stains on asphalt?

 

[JohnD]

asphalt drives are (I simplify) made of grit and stones glued together with oil, so petrol, swarfega and other oil cleaners break them down. You may find the oil leak has already softened it.

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

Asphalt and Macadam technically use bitumen as a binder (glue), which is refined from crude oil. Oils, and particularly diesel, will attack and dissolve bitumen, leading to the material crumbling. Diesel is used by surfacing crews to keep their tools and equipment clean, as it prevents the material from sticking.

 

[budest]

Asphalt and Macadam technically use bitumen as a binder (glue), which is refined from crude oil. Oils, and particularly diesel, will attack and dissolve bitumen, leading to the material crumbling. Diesel is used by surfacing crews to keep their tools and equipment clean, as it prevents the material from sticking.

So don't use petrol then?

 

[Burnerman]

Don't use any petroleum based solvent on Tarmac.....unless you want it to erupt! Soap in one of its many guises mentioned above is the way to go.
John

 

[Nozzle]

The point of using a solvent is to use one that is sufficiently volatile so as to remove your stain, and then flash-off before it does any significant damage to the rest of your material. Hence white spirit or petrol will achieve exactly that. Diesel and oil are insufficiently volatile that they don't evaporate, hence the stain. Soap is a detergent intended to make oil based materials compatible with water, then wash it away. A combination of the two will work fine - I don't think a detergent alone will draw out the stain from the rough surface.


Nozzle