If you’ve just gotten an asphalting job done at your home, you’re likely ecstatic at how pristine your driveway looks.
The asphalting company will give you an idea of how long to stay off new asphalt in order to ensure that it stays in good condition; however, months or years after your asphalting job is finished, you might start to accumulate oil stains on your once-beautiful driveway.
This is only natural, seeing as your cars may drip or leak oil from time to time, but that doesn’t mean that it’s something you’re necessarily happy to see. Thankfully, before you consider getting an asphalt patch, you can try a few tricks yourself. Here are six household items that can act as a safe asphalt oil stain remove.
Home Asphalt Oil Stain Removers
Cat Litter
Before you head to your cat’s litter box, make sure that the litter you’re planning to use in order to remove the oil stain on your driveway is clay-based. If you’re more of a dog person, simply head to the store and buy the cheapest clay cat litter you can find.
Once you towel off any extra liquid on your asphalt, simply cover the oil stain with cat litter and let it sit overnight. In the morning, sweep up the cat litter and place it in a trash receptacle.
Baking Soda
Baking soda seems to be a miracle when it comes to deodorizing and making things sparkle all over your house, and this common household item is just as useful outdoors, too!
Pour a heaping amount of baking soda onto your asphalt oil stain and then scrub it with a stiff brush before letting it sit for at least 30 minutes. Once the appropriate amount of time has passed, you can rinse off your driveway and re-examine your asphalting.
Coca Cola or Pepsi
One way to remove asphalting stains is to head to your fridge!
After removing excess liquid from the asphalting oil stain, simply pour one or two cans of cola onto the oil stain. Let the cola sit on the stain overnight and then clean it off in the morning with a hose or watering can.
Then you should be able to see the asphalt oil stain removed like magic!
WD-40
While not everybody has WD-40 on hand, the chances are high that you might if you already work on cars in your driveway.
WD-40 is a good quick remedy for oil stains on your asphalt, because you can spray it on and almost immediately scrub it off to remove the stain. Just make sure to spray a generous amount onto the oil stain first.
Dish Soap
You’ve probably seen commercials on TV about how Dawn brand dish soap is safe yet strong enough to help clean off baby ducklings affected by oil spills. As such, you’re probably not too surprised to hear that dish soap is a great remedy for oil stains on your asphalt, too.
After you’ve applied a dollop of soap to the stain, you’ll want to activate the soap with water and scrub at the stain with a stiff brush. After a few minutes, you can rinse off the stain with some water and put your dish soap back in the kitchen.
Powdered Laundry Detergent
While many households have switched to liquid laundry detergent, if you’re someone with powdered detergent laying around this could be a great solution for your asphalt oil stain remover.
This is one of the more involved remedies since you’ll need to sprinkle detergent onto the stain, activate it with a bit of water, and then scrub it with a brush. After you’ve sudsed up the oil stain, you’ll want to take a break and let the laundry detergent do its thing for about thirty minutes before rinsing it off.
While the above home remedies are good in a pinch, it’s important to remember that there are times when asphalt repair is best left to the experts. If oil and water have caused cracks to form in your driveway, it’s a good idea to reach out to a local team of asphalting professionals to see what sort of asphalt repair job is best for your circumstances. AA Asphalting offers both asphalt and concrete repair services to help you keep your pavement in excellent condition year-round.
Important Environmental Note
Keep in mind that some of the above suggestions and solutions need to be carefully handled in order to mitigate any unintended environmental impact. Make sure that you check with local rules and laws about how to handle the proper disposal and handling of potentially hazardous materials like oils and other chemicals.
For example, don’t just wash cat litter down a nearby storm drain—you need to sweep up and properly dispose of this material. Spending an extra five or ten minutes finding the right way to clean up your materials once the job is done can ensure that your asphalt looks great and you won’t risk a fine or harm the environment unintentionally.