Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4th, 2021 (Eastern Time) and beginning April 20th, 2021 (Eastern Time) the Yahoo Answers website will be in read-only mode. There will be no changes to other Yahoo properties or services, or your Yahoo account. You can find more information about the Yahoo Answers shutdown and how to download your data on this help page.

Sue
Lv 5
Sue asked in Home & GardenMaintenance & Repairs · 1 decade ago

Garage Floor - preparing for paint, stubborn stains?

I am preparing a garage floor for epoxy paint.

There are old grease stains that I cannot remove. I have used a garage floor degreaser, with scrub brushes and a pressure washer. DIYnetwork suggested dishwasher detergent, laundry pre-treater, etc. but I am concerned that putting too many competing chemicals might cause toxic fumes.

After pressure washing, there is a large light brown stain remaining (the oil/ grease had been so thick we actually scraped it away before degreasing).

Is there a way to test the surface to see if the stain still contains oils that would keep the epoxy from sticking?

The garage kit includes an etching chemical, and a two-part paint (pigment and activator).

There are also some shiny black paint stains (drips) that even the pressure washer couldn't blast off. I actually pitted the concrete attempting it, so more pressure isn't an option.

5 Answers

Relevance
  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    acid wash and use H AND C concrete stain

  • 1 decade ago

    There is a detergent called Greased Lightning. If there is still grease there, it will take care of it. Dawn works well on grease, but you would still have to scrub it. The paint stains I recomend paint thinner or scraping off with a putty knife. As far as testing for oil, I don't think so, but I could be wrong.

  • 5 years ago

    Does it ever have moisture seep up through the concrete? If it does, you can't paint it. It would be real slick and the paint would come off. I have that problem with my garage floor. They told me to leave it alone. There are products at the hardware store that u can put on oil stains. It is suppose to absorb them.

  • 1 decade ago

    Try witch hazel on both the grease stain and paint.

  • How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    ...?

Still have questions? Get your answers by asking now.