Degreaser for oil stains on driveways/sidewalks

Chemical/Chemistry
21

I wouldn’t put a degreaser in my hw mix…

But a caustic diluted then DS will not hurt anything. No need for it though.

Honestly find a local chem supplier. They’ll have better products and knowledge then your big box stores. Usually way cheaper.

22

You actually landed that job huh? I remember you posting about it. Must of been a year ago. Did you ever actually drive out there or dis you just bid high and hope for the best/ hope to not land it? :joy:

23

I adore this group, where else can you find non-chemists debating SDS’s???

  1. Caustic soda/sodium hydroxide, is only a problem in high concentrations and if you let it dry. Same as sodium metasilicate.

  2. The higher the pH the better a product will clean, and sodium hydroxide has the highest pH there is. Keep in mind that pH is a tricky thing. If I have 2% or 20% sodium hydroxide, I will get the same pH reading.

  3. Most of the pressure washers I talk to add a caustic cleaner into their house wash mix because it’s bleach compatible and cleans better. These aren’t the people looking for the huge bleach suds, just to clean.

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24

Good info @CaCO3Girl .what degreaser is best for oil stains on concrete? Does purple power have hydroxide ?

25

For oil stains in on concrete I recommend grounding kitty litter into it with a boot first. Then hitting it with the purple stuff. Mess around with concentrations. You may have to prespot it with full strength.

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26

I agree. This stuff is the best I have used.

27

This is the best concrete degreaser I have used for oil stains. You can use it on siding as well but, as someone else pointed out, this has caustic in it and can hurt windows and aluminum so be careful with it if you use it for that purpose.
Hurricane Heavy-Duty Degreaser Super Concentrate – Vector Chemicals.

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28

I take it kitty litter is cheaper than speedy dry ? Lol. Same thing really !

29

Exactly! Kind of like an oven and grill cleaner is the same formula as a caustic foaming coil cleaner…one just costs 50% more :roll_eyes:

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30

So Purple Power has the exact same active ingredient as Gutter Zap?

31

I don’t know what gutter zap is. But if it’s butyl and caustic and purple it’s likely

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32

Is this the same method you would recommend if using a cold H2O PW?

33

I’m actually a chemist, not a pressure washer. However, if you put a few nuggets of sodium hydroxide there then it won’t be cold water :joy:

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34

She’s so right, We mix a 55 gallon batch of degreaser up cold , By the time its done its 150 degrees then let it settle overnight.

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35

You really got to add an evil laugh in there too

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36

CaCO3girl
Are you saying small amounts of purple power is ok in a house wash mix for extreme situations?

Situations like 10 year baked on mold-algae on stucco where even brushing it doesnt get it all off…is what I am thinking about.

I do love the cleaning power of super clean on greasy old equipment. works great on alot of stuff.

Funny, I was delivering to a huge chemical company yesterday and they had a pool deck cleaner with some funky chem mix in it…2-alkyl something…no bleach. They wouldnt sell to me…I need to get a salesman they said. Place in business since 1930.

37

HCS-400 from hydro chem is awesome stuff. Worked great at some gas stations we did

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38

Definitely HCS 400 or their other specialty degreasers, skip the box store watered down junk .

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39

What are you applying with and how strong is your mix?

40

Applying in small amounts wouldn’t do much, and large amounts could strip the paint. Darned if you do and don’t in that situation. Listen to the other people that chimed in on what to use.

The 2-alkyl stuff sounds like a quat. Quaternary ammonium compound, otherwise known as a pesticide. Companies have to be careful who they sell that stuff to, and they have to keep records of where it went.

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