Whats' Your Favorite Mix for Concrete Driveway Cleaning???

fireandrain · April 15, 2006

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I do alot of driveways and NEVER use any type of detergent to prewash before i PW. Any suggestions on good,plant safe detergent mixes that might speed things up for us? Thanks!

Mike Williamson · April 16, 2006

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I do alot of driveways and NEVER use any type of detergent to prewash before i PW. Any suggestions on good,plant safe detergent mixes that might speed things up for us? Thanks!

I always downstream my housewash mix (pool chlorine and citracleen 70/30) onto concrete prior to cleaning with the surface cleaner. It works great to loosen dirt up, make the algae easier to remove, remove tannin stains, and brighten up the concrete.

bulletproof · April 16, 2006

RPC 2000 with some 10% mixed in to brighten

Barry M · April 16, 2006

Mike, does doing it that way also get rid of tire (rubber) marks?

Mike Williamson · April 17, 2006

Mike, does doing it that way also get rid of tire (rubber) marks?

I've not had a problem getting rid of those with just regular cleaning.

aquabob · April 18, 2006

Hi Guys, just signed up! Looks like a FREAT place for valuable information!
I do alot of driveways and NEVER use any type of detergent to prewash before i PW. Any suggestions on good,plant safe detergent mixes that might speed things up for us? Thanks!

for really dirty driveways i like to use sodium

hydroxide (deck stripper/roof cleaner) but it is not plant safe. i usually bleach after washing to get rid of

mildew stains.

Mike Williamson · April 18, 2006

for really dirty driveways i like to use sodium
hydroxide (deck stripper/roof cleaner) but it is not plant safe. i usually bleach after washing to get rid of

mildew stains.

Unless there's oil/grease, why use a hydroxide cleaner? Isn't that a degreaser? Most of the driveways I clean, I'm removing either dirt, or some variation of mold/algae/mildew. Rarely do I run into any type of oil staining, so a degreaser would be a waste of chem.

Don Phelps · April 18, 2006

They both work, but one is considerably cheaper than the other. Sodium hydroxide will definitely help with oil stains though. Otherwise, sodium hypochlorite will usually do the trick. A light coating after cleaning will help to brighten it a bit too.

CCPC · April 18, 2006

I usually downstream my house wash over the concrete, clean with surface cleaner, rinse clean, and then apply a thin layer of 50/50 to straight chlorine to the concrete via a pump up while it's still damp, then leave last thin coat of chlorine to dry and nuetrilize on it's own. This is for standard Florida dirt, mildew, algea, mold removal. For rust or grease there's a few more steps involved.

fireandrain · April 18, 2006

I always downstream my housewash mix (pool chlorine and citracleen 70/30) onto concrete prior to cleaning
Thanks Mike. Is this chlorine/citracleen safe on plants/grass,etc? Thanks

VanDiesel99 · April 18, 2006

Mike is right again(on a roll)Bleach + a detergent is the best combo for mildewed concrete. Its common sense, bleach to kill the green stuff, the detergent to help wash all the dirties away. I think the degreasers might help for some greasy oily stuff, but for the most part its not going to do much.

aquabob · April 18, 2006

Unless there's oil/grease, why use a hydroxide cleaner? Isn't that a degreaser? Most of the driveways I clean, I'm removing either dirt, or some variation of mold/algae/mildew. Rarely do I run into any type of oil staining, so a degreaser would be a waste of chem.

sodium hydroxide isnt just a degreaser. i can be used for other things. it is used for making the crap on dirty roofs come off fast with very little pressure, it has the same effect on dirty concrete. have you ever hit the side of a dirty house with hydroxide in your mix? you see how it makes the dirt loosen itself from the siding, almost jumping off. i also use it in my homebrew exterior window cleaning solution, removes bug deposits and even paint overspray without having to scrape.

Mike Williamson · April 18, 2006

sodium hydroxide isnt just a degreaser. i can be used for other things. it is used for making the crap on dirty roofs come off fast with very little pressure, it has the same effect on dirty concrete. have you ever hit the side of a dirty house with hydroxide in your mix? you see how it makes the dirt loosen itself from the siding, almost jumping off. i also use it in my homebrew exterior window cleaning solution, removes bug deposits and even paint overspray without having to scrape.

Gotcha! No, I don't use hydroxide except for the rare oil stain on concrete, so I had assumed it was strictly a degreaser. And of course, you know us FL guys don't use that junk on our roofs! We prefer to clean with NO pressure. :)

PLD · April 18, 2006

I always downstream my housewash mix (pool chlorine and citracleen 70/30) onto concrete prior to cleaning with the surface cleaner. It works great to loosen dirt up, make the algae easier to remove, remove tannin stains, and brighten up the concrete.

Mike, for the non-fla folks you might add that pool chlorine is not the powdered stuff you get at WalMart. One you get up past the Ga. line, liquid pool chlorine is pretty hard to find anymore...

Mike Williamson · April 18, 2006

Mike, for the non-fla folks you might add that pool chlorine is not the powdered stuff you get at WalMart. One you get up past the Ga. line, liquid pool chlorine is pretty hard to find anymore...

Have you had any luck finding it at agriculture supply places or cleaning supplies/chemical suppliers? There's a cleaning supply distributor here that sells 15%, but it's expensive ($2.00/gallon).

squirtgun · April 18, 2006

Have you had any luck finding it at agriculture supply places or cleaning supplies/chemical suppliers? There's a cleaning supply distributor here that sells 15%, but it's expensive ($2.00/gallon).

We already pay that for 10.5% to 12% now.It's jumped about $.65 a gallon over that last year.

aquabob · April 18, 2006

Mike, for the non-fla folks you might add that pool chlorine is not the powdered stuff you get at WalMart. One you get up past the Ga. line, liquid pool chlorine is pretty hard to find anymore...

philip, if you are having probs finding it aqua engineers

on thorton road in lithia springs can get it for ya,

120.00 per 55 gal drum of 12%, and they deliver. i have

4 55 gal drums coming next week. any other raw chems you need they can get. 50lb bag of hydroxide for 50.00.

their number is 770-944-6677 ask for shawn madden.

i know of a few other suppliers that have it but if you dont have a hazmat endorsement you can only pick up 1

55 gal drum at a time.

HotShot · May 20, 2006

Hey guys.... I'm getting ready to clean a Firestone Tires parking lot (they are a full service auto shop). I have a lots of caustic because I use it for cleaning hoods, should I prespray with that being there is a lot of grease and things like that? What else should I use? Oh yeah, let me mention that there is no mold or anything like that out here where I live and right now it's about 103 degrees outside so whatever I pre-spray with is going to dry in a matter of seconds. What do you guys think?

StainlessDeal · May 21, 2006

Oh yeah, let me mention that there is no mold or anything like that out here where I live and right now it's about 103 degrees outside so whatever I pre-spray with is going to dry in a matter of seconds. What do you guys think?

I think you should work at night!;)

I clean some greasy loading dock areas, and I've found it worth my time to use a scraper on a stick to pick-up what I can of grease blobs (5th wheel/saddle grease) before I soak anything. Some spots I pretreat with various degreasers mentioned above, then finish with a blast of chlorine or Oxalic, depending on how bright I think it needs to be.

These customers are not real picky, but I like the work to represent me well.

HotShot · May 21, 2006

Scott...yeah, it's a little warm :)

See that's what I don't get. How do you put on the bleach or Ox? Do you have like 10 different pump up sprayers or what? I know that it's not good to mix Sodium Hydroxide and any acid. If you set there and rinse out the pump up everytime wouldn't it take forever?

Sorry I'm such an idiot, but could you just explain exactly how to go about the proceedure?

One Tough Pressure · May 21, 2006

Your hood mix should work fine. How do you apply that? I only use 2 pump ups, 1 for acid and 1 for alkaline.

HotShot · May 21, 2006

Hey Alan, I was wondering where you were....I use a pump up for my caustic. I was planning on putting SuperFlash in my chemical tank on my trailer. It holds 25 gallons, then just putting acid in the pump up. I never saw you put any bleach on anything and your stuff turned out beautiful....

Integrity Curb Appeal · June 22, 2006

I usually downstream my house wash over the concrete, clean with surface cleaner, rinse clean, and then apply a thin layer of 50/50 to straight chlorine to the concrete via a pump up while it's still damp, then leave last thin coat of chlorine to dry and nuetrilize on it's own. This is for standard Florida dirt, mildew, algea, mold removal. For rust or grease there's a few more steps involved.

Forgive me I am very new, when you write "50/50 to straight chlorine" do you mean 50% liquid chlorine to 50% water? When the term downstream is used does that mean pump through the hose (dillute even more) as opposed to pump sprayer? Thanks for taking the time to help.

Scott

Mike Williamson · June 23, 2006

Forgive me I am very new, when you write "50/50 to straight chlorine" do you mean 50% liquid chlorine to 50% water? When the term downstream is used does that mean pump through the hose (dillute even more) as opposed to pump sprayer? Thanks for taking the time to help.
Scott

He means a mix that varies between 50% pool chlorine and 50% water, to full strength pool chlorine. Yes, downstreaming is injecting the mix into the hose, which will dilute it even more, usually at a ratio between 5:1 and 20:1, depending on the injector and machine.

Integrity Curb Appeal · June 23, 2006

1

There is a lot of talf concerning oxalic acid and driveway cleaning. I have found a list of different types (below) what is the safest thereby recommended form of oxalic acid for concrete? What is a safe/effective dillution ratio?

Thanks in advance?

Oxalic Acid, Anhydrous, Crystal, Reagent

CAS #: 144-62-7; Formula: (COOH)2

View MSDS for Oxalic acid anhydrous

Chemical Catalog > Alphabetical Listing of Chemicals > O

2Oxalic Acid, Dihydrate, Crystal, Reagent, ACS

CAS #: 6153-56-6; Formula: (COOH)2•2H2O

View MSDS for Oxalic acid dihydrate

Chemical Catalog > Alphabetical Listing of Chemicals > O

3Oxalic Acid, Dihydrate, Crystal, Technical

CAS #: 6153-56-6; Formula: (COOH)2•2H2O

View MSDS for Oxalic acid dihydrate