Calling all homeowners with concrete or asphalt driveways, this one’s for you.
We’ve all been there. It’s spring – a beautiful day. You’re in the garage, getting out everything you need to start pruning your yard into the perfect Home & Garden’s cover. So you dig out the lawnmower, the gas jug and the weed whacker and drag them out into your driveway. Suddenly, you look down and realize that you’ve somehow managed to spill gasoline all over your driveway.
What do you do?
It may seem like a simple problem, but there’s a right way and a wrong way to clean up spilled gasoline on concrete and asphalt, because left unattended to, it can be problematic. Gas spills leave noticeable stains on concrete and can badly damage asphalt.
To prevent stains and damage, eHow reccomends these steps to clean up a gas spill:
- Cover the spill with cat litter – it’s random, but it works. Cat litter will soak up the gas that has yet to be absorbed into your driveway. The key to this is getting the litter on the spill fast – so, run Forrest, run.
- After letting the cat litter sit for about 10 minutes, sweep it up with a broom and dustpan. Seal litter in a sealed metal can (eHow recommends a coffee container with a lid) so that it can be disposed of properly.
- Sprinkle powdered dish washing or laundry detergent onto the remains of the spill. Add small amounts of water to the powder until it forms a paste and let it sit for up to 10 minutes.
- Grab a scrub brush and start scrubbing! You may need to add more of the detergent paste as you go.
- Scrub until the stain is gone and rinse well.