Expert: Eileen Cronk - 9/21/2008

Question
QUESTION: Eileen:  furniture stain was accidentally spilt in my driveway.  What do I use to remove the stains from my concrete?

ANSWER: Hi Libby
Nice to hear from you.
I think the time this should have been removed was when it was wet.
At that point I would have used paint thinner and a scrub brush to clean the concrete.
But try this now Libby and perhaps it will help.
Sorry no better news.
Kind Regards
Eileen

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I've already tried paint thinner.  It did not work.  Any other suggestions??

Answer
Hi again Libby
Stain is miserable stuff to remove from concrete.
This may sound odd, but I would stain over the stain with a color that matches your concrete.
The type of stain I refer to is the opaque stain that we would use on our decks.
Stain can be colored just like paint.
I do not suggest power washing as I feel it will have no effect on the stain.
The stain you spilled will have actually penetrated into the cement.
No point trying paint stripper as it has virtually no effect on stained concrete (been there LOL).
Good Luck with this Libby.
Kind Regards
Eileen