Cleaning Garage Floor

[TNhobbyfarmer]

My house is about 15 yrs. old. My concrete garage floor has a lot of grease, dirt, oil and grime on it from years of neglect. My springtime project is to clean and paint it. Simple question.....how is the best way to clean it prior to painting?

 

[bigshovel]

My house is about 15 yrs. old. My concrete garage floor has a lot of grease, dirt, oil and grime on it from years of neglect. My springtime project is to clean and paint it. Simple question.....how is the best way to clean it prior to painting?

Scrub and etch with muratic acid available at lowes or sherwin williams. Rinse and reduce first coat of paint by 50 percent with appropriate reducer, this will act as a stain/sealer. Then proceed with additional full strength coats.

Brad

 

[EddieWalker]

How do you get all the "STUFF" out of the garage in order to clean it?

Eddie

 

[Podunkadunk]

Scrub and etch with muratic acid available at lowes or sherwin williams. Rinse and reduce first coat of paint by 50 percent with appropriate reducer, this will act as a stain/sealer. Then proceed with additional full strength coats.

Brad

I agree with bigshovel. Also, a lot of gargage floor paint kits sold at Lowe's and Home Depot will have little bags of the acid in them already. If memory serves me, not muriatic acid though, but something made from oranges, citric acid I think. It works though, I've used the latter.

For really tough stains, a pressure washer may need to be thrown into the mix.

Good luck and if you do decide to go with a kit, buy an extra box after calculating what the box says you'll need to do your garage floor...I learned that they are skimpy with it and you'll end up making an extra trip.

Podunk

 

[Highbeam]

For the first step in cleaning I have found the Castrol Superclean to be very effective on grease and oil. I wet the concrete, distribute the superclean with a sprayer, sweep it around mop style with attention to scrub the nasty spots, and then hose it all out.

Never liked a painted garage floor. Or any painted concrete for that matter.

 

[MrJimi]

I think the best directions on how to clean floor would be on product to be applied
I would degrease it first and maybe a second time just to be sure

 

[Tororider]

How do you get all the "STUFF" out of the garage in order to clean it?

Eddie

I agree. I would have to move everything to one side, do half and then do the other side, and even that would be a chore. Good luck.

 

[AlanB]

Depends on how good of a job you want done on it.

Prep is everything in painting, shot blasting is ideal and costs about 50 cents per sq ft. Any of the acid etch's work, and usually clean with TSP prior to painting.

I use DuraGlaze epoxy from Porter.

I like the paint chip look, so on my basement we did a light gray, with blue, black and white paint chips. Instant coffee jar with large holes as a shaker.

Wear old golf shoes with spikes to work on the floor. You will need to go back across for "something" it just never fails.

Hmmm, sorry, got wandering but info thought you might want.

Best depends a lot on how much you want to spend.

Best is shot blasting / peening (let me know if you need a contact)

Next Hot high pressure, high quality soap, acid etch, TSP

Next, Cold pressure, degreasing soap, acid etch, TSP

Anything less, you will likely have a failure.

 

[CurlyDave]

For smaller oil stains with lots of oil in them, like under where a dripping engine has parked for years, I have have very good results with paint thinner and cat litter.

Pout the paint thinner on and spread cat litter over it, when it is about half dry move it around with a push broom then wait for it to dry.

The paint thinner thins the oil, and the cat litter soaks up the mixture.

I have never been able to get really heavy oil stains out with water or acid based cleaners.

 

[scgargoyle]

Make sure you remove anything that can rust before you use muriatic acid. Every thing steel or iron will be bright orange the next day. I think there are precautions concerning the fumes, too. Be careful out there!