There are many reasons home and business owners may put in an asphalt driveway in Denver. A beautiful blacktop drive can add a lot of curb appeal to any property while also offering a level of utility and convenience that can benefit you for years to come. That said, the obvious use of vehicles on asphalt pavement means potential exposure to elements, such as engine oil, which can damage its appearance and even impact its durability. This is why regular asphalt maintenance is important (read more about building a yearly asphalt maintenance plan).
While asphalt itself is essentially a mixture of rock and oil, outside oils can cause ugly stains and weaken the pavement itself, increasing the risk of premature deterioration in those stained areas. So, even if the aesthetic blemish of an oil stain on your driveway doesn't quite bother you, it's likely worth dealing with for the purpose of maintaining your pavement's longevity. Read on to learn how to remove oil stains from an asphalt driveway.
Steps To Remove Oil Stains From Asphalt Pavement
- First things first, you should clean your asphalt surface of any debris, dirt, etc. Use a standard garden hose for this, as pressure washing holds its own set of risks when it comes to asphalt. Regularly cleaning your asphalt surface of debris like dirt, dust, leaves, etc is a great thing to do to help maintain your asphalt, but is especially important if you're working to clean up a particularly messy situation such as an oil spill.
- Once the area is clean, it's time to address the spill more directly and soak up as much of it as you can. Many common household products work well for soaking up things like oil. You can start with an absorbent cloth to get as much of the oil as you can, then move on to other absorbent products to pick up even more. Common absorbent materials that tend to work well include cat litter (non-clumping), baking soda, gravel and sawdust. You can leave these on the stain area over night to let it soak up as much as it can. The next day, simply sweep it up, dispose of it and clean the area with a hose again. If the spill was fresh and you got to it quick enough, you may already be done - if not, you can try another round of absorbent material to see if you can get any more oil out, but otherwise get ready to move on to the next step and use some elbow grease.
- Apply a household cleaner (non-solvent based) to the stain, using a wire brush to scrub it in and get the oil out. Common household cleaners that work well and are safe for your asphalt include common dish soap, diluted vinegar, and powdered detergent. Once you've scrubbed the area down with your cleaner, hose it off again and see how the stain looks. Depending on how long the stain has had to sink into the surface, it may come right off with one scrub or may take a few tries to get it all out.
With those steps combined in that order, you should be able to get just about any stain out - oil or otherwise. That said, it's always a good idea to consider following up with a fresh sealcoat to further protect your asphalt.
Sealcoating to Protect Your Driveway
We highly recommend periodically applying a fresh sealcoat to any asphalt surface (read more about the importance of sealcoating driveways and parking lots). This is especially true if you've just gone through the process of cleaning a mess such as oil or mulch stains - the process of scrubbing stains out helps revitalize the appearance of your asphalt but can also accelerate deterioration by allowing destructive elements to get deeper into the pavement layers. Sealcoating locks the good oils into the pavement and provides a fresh layer of protection from things like cracks and holes.
Don't Hesitate To Call In The Pros
We hope this article helped you understand how to remove oil stains from an asphalt driveway - but when in doubt, never be afraid to call in the pros.
Here at High Quality Asphalt & Concrete, our customers are of the utmost importance and we'll do everything we can to advise and execute the right solution to your pavement needs. We're just a call or email away, get in touch today.