Product to paint over remnants of home heating oil?

lbeachmike

Hi -

The old oil tank room in our house has some stains from home heating oil. The stains are on painted cinderblock near the bottom of the wall, and some on the concrete floor. I've cleaned it up to the best of my ability, but some remnants remain. Does anybody know of a product to seal over the areas on the walls so we can paint? I'm unsure if a regular primer will suffice. For the concrete floor I had planned to pour self-leveling over the area.

I may try to power-wash the remaining spots, but it will be tricky to do indoors.

Thanks.

Mike

Jamie Hall

Almost impossible. However, you may want to try a cleaner called "Simple Green" (the name puts me off, but...). It does seem to work remarkably well, and it is used by a water company I used to consult for to do the last cleanup of any oil or hydraulic fluid spills on pavement.

STEVEusaPA

If the area is tight, no flaking, I'd probably just try indoor waterproof paint. Goes on thick like parging.

EdTheHeaterMan

Kilz oil based primer has a better sealing quality than other paints. I know it works on fire damage rooms that have soot on the walls. When using regular paints and primers, many times you get those soot stains to bleed thru the paint. That does not happen with KILZ oil based primer. I have never actually tested it for oil stains on block or concrete. But it can't hurt to try
https://www.homedepot.com/p/KILZ-2-ALL-PURPOSE-1-Gal-White-Interior-Exterior-Multi-Surface-Primer-Sealer-and-Stain-Blocker-20941/100096395

HomerJSmith

Try "Oil Eater" a driveway product that cleans oil spots. Then coat the spots with a sealer that is made for covering oil spots on asphalt driveways before topping an asphalt driveway with a latex top coat.

Might try Home Depot or Lowes for these products or talk to a commercial driveway sealing company in your area.

Waher

Have you tried Dawn dish detergent?

lbeachmike

Jamie Hall said:

Almost impossible. However, you may want to try a cleaner called "Simple Green" (the name puts me off, but...). It does seem to work remarkably well, and it is used by a water company I used to consult for to do the last cleanup of any oil or hydraulic fluid spills on pavement.

I have used various products that seem to work well in these cases. The problem here seems to be that this is old dried up oil, which seems harder to remove than if it were fresh (it was hidden from us when we first bought our house.) I have tried Dawn and WD-40 degreaser. Both have worked well to remove quite a lot, to where the odor is significantly less.

I am unsure about how little needs to remain before I could successfully encapsulate it with an oil based primer or specialized product.

I'd also like to better understand if the "smell" from this is toxic, thus if it should be handled with urgency.

lbeachmike

HomerJSmith said:

Try "Oil Eater" a driveway product that cleans oil spots.

Oil Eater doesn't seem to get better reviews than the WD-40 degreaser I've been using. It seems that Brake Line cleaner is the most ideal, but I'm not sure if it comes in non-aerosol and if that product itself may be more harsh/toxic than what I'm trying to clean. This is inside my basement - not outside.

lbeachmike

EdTheHeaterMan said:

Kilz oil based primer has a better sealing quality than other paints. I know it works on fire damage rooms that have soot on the walls.

I will contact Kilz and ask about my application. I will also talk to my local paint store. Thanks for the recommendation.

reggi

EdTheHeaterMan said:

Kilz oil based primer has a better sealing quality than other paints. I know it works on fire damage rooms that have soot on the walls. When using regular paints and primers, many times you get those soot stains to bleed thru the paint. That does not happen with KILZ oil based primer. I have never actually tested it for oil stains on block or concrete. But it can't hurt to try https://www.homedepot.com/p/KILZ-2-ALL-PURPOSE-1-Gal-White-Interior-Exterior-Multi-Surface-Primer-Sealer-and-Stain-Blocker-20941/100096395

For historical reference your link doesn't forward to Kilz Oil based primer.. it forwards to Kilz2.. not sure if your recommendation is either or specific 

KC_Jones

Jamie Hall said:

Almost impossible. However, you may want to try a cleaner called "Simple Green" (the name puts me off, but...). It does seem to work remarkably well, and it is used by a water company I used to consult for to do the last cleanup of any oil or hydraulic fluid spills on pavement.

I'll add to the comment about Simple Green.

I use that stuff on engine rebuilds to clean out oil pans and such, the last one had 180k miles on it, and when I was done it was literally brand new inside. It needs some soak time, but it "eats" just about everything. I use it to clean my hands, engines, old paint brushes are like new after soaking for a day, you name it that stuff eats it up. It isn't fast, but it is one of the best cleaners I've ever used by a long shot for grease and oil.

BTW Jamie, I am not positive on the origins of the name, but the stuff is biodegradable so that might be part of it, or all of it. I don't really care, just care that the stuff works.

Oh, and the final part, it smells good.

hot_rod

KC_Jones said:

Jamie Hall said:

Almost impossible. However, you may want to try a cleaner called "Simple Green" (the name puts me off, but...). It does seem to work remarkably well, and it is used by a water company I used to consult for to do the last cleanup of any oil or hydraulic fluid spills on pavement.

I'll add to the comment about Simple Green.

I use that stuff on engine rebuilds to clean out oil pans and such, the last one had 180k miles on it, and when I was done it was literally brand new inside. It needs some soak time, but it "eats" just about everything. I use it to clean my hands, engines, old paint brushes are like new after soaking for a day, you name it that stuff eats it up. It isn't fast, but it is one of the best cleaners I've ever used by a long shot for grease and oil.

BTW Jamie, I am not positive on the origins of the name, but the stuff is biodegradable so that might be part of it, or all of it. I don't really care, just care that the stuff works.

Oh, and the final part, it smells good.

I use Simple Green to clean my shop floor after oil and grease spills. A stiff bristle brush seems to make it foam up and work best.

lbeachmike

Thanks KC and Bob for the additional info on Simple Green - I'll definitely give it a try.

I don't expect I will be able to clean everything off the floor, given the porous nature of concrete - so I'll likely need to go over it with a layer of self-leveling cement once I reach a point of diminishing returns on cleaning. Any alternative suggestions are welcomed.

lbeachmike

There are several simple green degreasers. Could you let me know which specific one you guys used? Is it the one shown below?

https://www.amazon.com/Simple-Green-SMP13012-Industrial-Degreaser/dp/B00DORUJS4/

KC_Jones

That's the stuff. The original green formula is all I use, I have not tried any of their more modern formulations with different scents so I can't speak to their effectiveness.

mattmia2

You might try some paint thinner to soften up the old dried up oil then go at it with detergent. Be careful because the paint thinner is flammable and should be used with ventilation. The alkyd kilz or shellac bin should seal in the smell, that is why they are used on fire damage.

lbeachmike

mattmia2 said:

You might try some paint thinner to soften up the old dried up oil then go at it with detergent. Be careful because the paint thinner is flammable and should be used with ventilation. The alkyd kilz or shellac bin should seal in the smell, that is why they are used on fire damage.

Great suggestion! I hadn't thought of that and will give it a try. Thanks : )