Why is it that . . .

[Nathan]

. . . every time I have contractor with construction equipment working at my house, they have to leak hydraulic fluid all over my driveway?

 

[jd2cylman]

Because I need to work too...
But seriously, nothing can work hard like a piece of construction equipment and be trouble free. I can minimize the down time, but hydraulics are sensitive systems that are affected by heat, fatigue, and abrasion. I can clean coolers to help with the heat, replace old hoses that are fatigued, and realign hoses and tubes to keep them from rubbing through. But not if the customer doesn't want to spend the money... To pick a good contractor, look at his equipment. Well maintained, clean equipment is a sign of a business that knows the equipment is earning their money. Poorly maintained equipment is a sign of a company that's just trying to stay afloat...
And one other reason.... Sometimes no matter how much you wash something after a repair, there's just no way to get ALL the spilled oil out... I try, really I do. But some designs (especially new equipment) make it hard to succeed.

 

[BA_Incognito]

Besides, it goes well with the oil leek from my 98 Jeep Cherokee!

 

[Maxter]

. . . every time I have contractor with construction equipment working at my house, they have to leak hydraulic fluid all over my driveway?

Because his brother-in -law owns a pressure washing company.......

 

[Bat-mite]

Because his brother-in -law owns a pressure washing company.......

Winner!

 

[Nathan]

. . . Sometimes no matter how much you wash something after a repair, there's just no way to get ALL the spilled oil out...

This wasn't just a little fluid that that wasn't cleaned after a repair. He probably leaked more than a quart in my driveway and then all the way down the road as he was leaving. This was leaking from a Bobcat that he rented from Sunbelt. He stopped working and returned it when he realized it was leaking badly. What do I put in my pressure washer to clean hydraulic fluid off of exposed aggregate?

 

[snrkl]

This wasn't just a little fluid that that wasn't cleaned after a repair. He probably leaked more than a quart in my driveway and then all the way down the road as he was leaving. This was leaking from a Bobcat that he rented from Sunbelt. He stopped working and returned it when he realized it was leaking badly. What do I put in my pressure washer to clean hydraulic fluid off of exposed aggregate?

Burning APC?!?

 

[Wallace]

I blame you for having exposed aggregate....You'll find it impossible to clean without destroying it.

 

[heada]

oxalic acid

 

[Wallace]

Your best bet is to load up the pressure washer with hydraulic fluid and do the rest of it. You'll never notice the spot(s).. Seriously though, I've tried everything I could find and the only thing that works (at least for me) is muriatic acid. Hot/nasty stuff and if you leave it even a moment too long it'll eat your concrete. Make absolutely certain you are wearing ALL necessary ppg. Scary stuff to work with. I'd not recommend you even attempt using it.. Rant over..Out.

 

[Kartman]

This wasn't just a little fluid that that wasn't cleaned after a repair. He probably leaked more than a quart in my driveway and then all the way down the road as he was leaving. This was leaking from a Bobcat that he rented from Sunbelt. He stopped working and returned it when he realized it was leaking badly. What do I put in my pressure washer to clean hydraulic fluid off of exposed aggregate?

Use the pressure washer with a soap solution to remove as much as possible. In the hot sun the oil will disappear into the concrete in a few weeks.

 

[jd2cylman]

The best thing is HOT water. So hot it's almost steam. Our pressure washer at work heats the water to 200°. If you can rent an actual steam cleaner, you wouldn't even need soap, but a little Dawn wouldn't hurt. For actual puddles of oil, if you have a cat, use the litter to soak up the oil. Otherwise a bag of oil dry at the autoparts store is not super expensive. Dump some of the material on the spill area and grind it in with your shoes before sweeping it up. That helps get it down into smaller crevices. But if there is a puddle of oil let the oil dry soak all that up and scoop it up and reapply more oil dry before grinding some in. Honestly, the contractor should be the one cleaning it up. It technically wasn't his machine, but it was his job. Whenever I spill oil on a service call, I make sure no trace is left behind (if at all possible)...

 

[tomsteve]

first things first- get rid of what fluid you can before trying to wash. if you have access to sawdust, it works great at pulling oil out of pavement. spread some out and lay some plywood over it. if no sawdust, kitty litter. let it sit overnight. after cleaning it up, hot water pressure wash with EBC
https://www.jracenstein.com/category/ebc/enviro-bio-cleaner/

 

[Rex R]

I would suggest unused kitty litter as oil dry .
Rex

 

[Nathan]

Got about 2" of rain the first night after the spill so there is no oil puddle to clean up and no need for kitty litter. Just a big dark stain on the concrete. I'll try the EBC cleaner, thanks.

This has happened before, last time I cleaned it with degreaser and it still took about a year to fade away.