Recommendation on a concrete cleaning product?

Gardner

Gardner

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My driveway needs cleaning bad. It's that black gunk from stuff that falls out of the air and tree stuff.

I don't want to pressure wash it, that will be my last option :(

Any recommendation on a spray on, wait and rinse product?

I see HD has many products that are suited for use in pressure washers, are there any stand alone cleaners?

Thanks
 
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When I worked for an in-ground pool company years ago we used Muriatic Acid.

Mind you, that was a few weeks ago and might explain my bouts with lung C.
 
Where are you located? There's not much you can spray on other than Sodium Hypochlorite (bleach). Put some in a pump up sprayer and try a small spot. If it store bought, 6%, put it on straight. If you get chlorine that's 10% mix it to 5 or 6%.

I do this as a side business and there's no better way than pressure washing. Below is a driveway from Friday.

20230901_153445.jpg
 
I have a 72 year old home with various ages of concrete pours, Sidewalks, pads etc. Years and sun have etched and deteriorated the concrete and I'm trying to not do any more damage than I have to. The front walk has gravel showing through.

Pressure washing on some of this old concrete, it is wearing away the surface, along with the crud.

I'm looking for an easier solution than pressure washing, if that's possible. It may not be.

Here is a pic of the gunk and what I pressure washed with an electric 1800 PSI unit

Yeah, I'm looking for an easy out, it would take two days to do my drve.

IMG_3881.JPG
 
Dawn dish soap and a scrub brush work pretty well on oily spots to lift those or lighten them but I wouldnt want to do a whole driveway because of amount of work involved. Pressure washer has been best thing i have found on concrete. I had some of the spray on vinyl siding cleaners work well on vinyl siding but they still don’t seem to touch concrete or stains on it like a pressure washer.
 
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I know you said you don’t want to pressure wash, but if you have a pressure washer, get one of those spiny washer attachments. There are big ones for high-pressure, but the littling ones are fine for home use.

just pics, not clickable
C363BE11-3D62-4568-8894-8A2BA44E0CF8.jpeg




I have this one and can highly recommend it

I’ve had it now 4 years and have used it for 6 washings.

It takes patience. This makes it easier, but it’s still slow-going or you get streaks. Absolutely get a wand extension if you buy this. Getting the tool out away from you to swing back and forth makes it so much easier. I think I have nine feet of wand when I use it, I’ve used 12 feet of wand and like that, too.


You CAN use it with your regular wand, but I’ll bet that more than doubles the amount of work you have to put into it.
 
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Gardner said:
I have a 72 year old home with various ages of concrete pours, Sidewalks, pads etc. Years and sun have etched and deteriorated the concrete and I'm trying to not do any more damage than I have to. The front walk has gravel showing through.

Pressure washing on some of this old concrete, it is wearing away the surface, along with the crud.

I'm looking for an easier solution than pressure washing, if that's possible. It may not be.

Here is a pic of the gunk and what I pressure washed with an electric 1800 PSI unit

Yeah, I'm looking for an easy out, it would take two days to do my drve.

View attachment 666595
Click to expand...
Too much pressure is the most common cause of concrete damage. I pretreat the concrete with my house wash mix (1.5% bleach and some soaps) then use my surface cleaner (1800-2000 psi) then post treat with about a 5% bleach mixture. I can do around 1000sq ft per hour. For concrete it's more about water flow than pressure. My machines are 8gpm and make quick work of concrete.

Dawn dish soap is a degreaser so helps with oil stains but not much else. Bleach kills organics and is about your only hope without using pressure. Put it on strong and rinse it with a garden hose. I only use acids for red clay and rust stains.
 
Best to do it on an overcast day … keeps the concrete wet easier. First, I wet the concrete pretty well … it seems to “open up” the pores and get to the crude better. In a 5 gallon bucket I mix 1 cup Dawn to 4 cups bleach and fill with water. In maybe 12 to 15 foot block … like AverageDad said … I then I use a deck brush to brush the suds on and work in a little for pretreating. I’ll let it sit a few minutes … going back over it if it soaks in to quick. After I’ll go over it with a pressure washer. My pressure washer is 2800-3000psi but I use a wider spray tip (I think 30°) on the wand as to not cause damage to to concrete … and watch to not get to close to the edges, joints and cracks when I get close.
 
I wonder if the average push broom is rated for 3000 RPM? o_O
 
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