How to Keep the Garage Floor Clean?

Cleaning the garage and the garage floor is the least favorite task to do for most people. But, without giving it a good clean, there is no way of keeping it clean.

If left untouched, clutter builds up and not to mention the damage dust, dirt, stains, and chemicals can cause to your garage floor.

Cleaning out your garage 

Organize before cleaning

Begin by organizing your garage so that the floor is clear of any obstacles. First, dust off shelves, work surfaces, storage areas, and each item standing around. Cleaning the shelves and storage is so you can pack them away or hang them up free of dust and debris, such as garden tools, work tools, and bicycles. 

Once the upper levels are clean, and you have dusted the surfaces with a microfiber cloth. You can move to clean the garage floor.

Sweep the Floor

Once the floor is clear of all loose items, it is time to sweep your garage floor thoroughly. For this part of the garage cleaning, you can use a wide push broom to sweep up all the dust and debris. You can then take a good and powerful vacuum cleaner such as a shop vac to vacuum any dust that the brush may have missed.

Wash the garage floor

With a bucket of warm water and soap such as laundry detergent, wash garage floor. This step is to remove most of the dirt and minor stains from the floor. You may need to use some force and scrub individual sections of the floor. Rinse it off with a garden hose or power washer and then sweep away the excess water. Leave the floor to dry altogether.

Once the floor is dry, inspect it for oil stains, rust marks, and even salt stains. In this section, we will discuss how to remove the different stains from the garage floor.

Removing oil and oils stains from a concrete floor

To clean oil from the garage floor that is fresh. Sprinkle some sawdust on the oil, and if you do not have any, you can use cat litter. Leave it to soak up the oil for a few hours an entire day would be best before you clean it all up.

There are a few different ways to remove old or tough oil stains. They are:

• Pouring laundry detergent or dish soap onto the stain and leaving it to sit for 30 - 45 minutes. Then scrub the soapy solution off with water.
• Use a concentrated concrete degreaser to do the same as above.
• Rub a cut lemon and its juices on the stain, wait 10 minutes and scrub and rinse it with water.
• Pour white vinegar on the stain and leave it for about 10 minutes before scrubbing and rinsing it off.

Remove Rust stains

To answer your question, how do I get stains off my garage floor caused by rust? You can try one of these options, such as.

• Pour white vinegar on the rust stain, leave it for several minutes before scrubbing it with a wire brush and rinsing it off with water.
• Mix up a paste of laundry detergent and baking soda, add some water and leave it to soak for an hour or two. For a more effective result, keep the paste wet during the soaking period.
• Mix an ounce of trisodium phosphate (TSP) to a gallon of boiling water and then pour it onto the rust stain. Leave for 20 minutes and then scrub the stain with a wire brush before rinsing it away with water.
• Apply Oxalic acid to the stain and leave for about 5 minutes before scrubbing and rinsing it off again. 

Removing Salt stains

The various forms of liquid magnesium and calcium chloride used to de-ice the roads cause salt stains. This solution attaches itself to the tires of your car, which then leaves stains on your garage floor.

To clean the garage floor after winter and repair the damage it left behind should not be too difficult once the garage floor cleaning is complete. However, it will need some hard work in scrubbing the concrete floor. Here are some solutions:

• Mix warm water, about a gallon, one or two cups of vinegar, and two or three drops of dish soap and scrub the stains by dipping the brush in the mixture. Then mop up the residue and rinse thoroughly with clean water. 
• Buy a salt removing product and apply the solution to the stain.

Repair cracks in garage floor

It is best to use an epoxy paste and a putty knife to fill or repair any cracks that you may have to your garage floor. Gently fill each crack with the filler and wait for it to dry before lightly sanding it for a smooth finish.

Seal your garage concrete floor

If you want a solution to prevent future stains on your garage floor, it is best to apply a penetrating concrete sealer to the floor. A sealer will not only make it easier for you to keep your garage floor clean but also will help prevent the concrete from producing excess dust.

Keeping your garage floor clean

Now that your garage floor is clean and you have repaired it, all that’s left to do is figure out how to keep the garage floor clean? Do this by following the tips below:

• Check and repair dust and dirt entry gaps in and around your garage door panels and seals.
• Clean tools and equipment after each use before storing them in the garage
• Clean the dust and debris from your car
• Do regular checks for oil leaks on your car.
• Use storage containers that can seal to minimize the dust.
• Do a quick monthly sweep of the garage floor.