How to remove Turpentine stains on garage concrete floor?

Question

I recently used the poultice method which was using mixed turps and baking soda paste on to old oil stains on my garage floor to get rid of old oil stains. I later removed all and washed it with detergent and hot water. The turpentine stains are still on the floor. How do I get rid of the excess turp stains? already tried detergent and hot water and it didn't work. Thanks.

MitchellMc · Answer

Something like this

https://www.bunnings.com.au/peerless-jal-1l-cleanshop-heavy-duty-cleaner-degreaser_p4466404

, which is a trade-grade product, would likely be your best bet, @Summer4eva.

Mitchell

Summer4eva · Answer

I"m wanting to leave it as bare concrete. Painting it is too much trouble and other reasons. Maybe let try the degreaser first. What degreaser do you recommend?

MitchellMc · Answer

Hi @Summer4eva,

Thanks for uploading those images.

Looking at the before and after photos, it does appear more likely that you're dealing with residual oil staining rather than staining from the turpentine itself. The poultice seems to have drawn a significant amount of contamination out of the concrete, which is encouraging.

Can I ask what your end goal is here? Are you looking to clean the concrete and leave it exposed, or are you planning to seal or coat it afterwards?

If you're hoping to leave it as bare concrete, it may simply take a few more applications of a strong degreaser, followed by vigorous scrubbing and rinsing, to remove more of the residual oil. It's important to keep in mind that with heavily stained concrete, it's not always possible to restore the original appearance completely, as some contamination can penetrate quite deeply into the slab.

Have you considered painting the garage floor? Given the improvement you've already achieved, it looks like you could be getting close to a suitable surface for coating. An acid etch followed by applying a garage floor paint could be the way to go. That would likely provide the most uniform and visually appealing result.

Here are a couple of helpful guides: How to apply epoxy to garage floors and How to paint concrete floors. Also, here's a Best Advice article on How can I paint my garage floor?

Here's an AI-generated image for some inspiration.

Please let me know your thoughts.

Mitchell