How do you deep clean your garage? It sounds like an easy question, but it’s not always so simple. You might simply have to clear debris off your garage floor, but you could also be dealing with liquid and chemical spills.
How to Clean Your Garage
What You'll Need
Shop towels or rags
Before you start deep cleaning your garage, you have to make sure your space is organized and decluttered. If you don’t already have most of your garage items stored, you’ll need to do that first.
Storage tubs, modular shelving, overhead racks, pegboards, and tool carts are the best ways to get your tools and parts out of the way, along with garden equipment, bikes, and anything else that’s taking up space in your garage.
Next, pick up any garbage, like old parts boxes, bottle caps, and foil tops from sealed containers. Hey, we get it, that stuff ends up on the floor. A garbage can just for your garage is pretty handy, though.
Ok, now your garage floor is ready for a deep cleaning. That means you can start with sweeping, right?
Sweeping Helpers
Wrong. You can’t sweep your floor until it’s dry. Sweeping water is one thing, but sweeping oil, coolant, or other vehicle fluids will just make an even bigger mess.
To pick up spilled car chemicals from your concrete, you’ll need an oil-dry compound. These powders are made to quickly absorb and contain liquids. Pour them on the spill, work it in, and now you’re ready to sweep.
But even once everything is dry, sweeping your garage floor can make a bigger mess than what you started with. Dust, fine dirt, and dried road salt can all end up back in the air and coating everything in your garage.
The solution is a floor-sweeping compound. These are powders made to trap dust and dirt and keep it from floating back into the air as you sweep. That means no more sneezing and wheezing as you clean! If it’s not too windy, open your garage door to let the dust that does get kicked up blow away.
Sweeping compounds are great for hard floors like the concrete in your garage—just sprinkle a light layer on the ground and start sweeping. If you haven’t used one before, you’ll be surprised how much of a difference it makes.
You’re also going to need a broom. Sure, you could grab the one from the house, but you probably don’t want to get 5W30 on your kitchen floor.
Choose a broom with a wide head and stiff bristles. That will work a lot better for sweeping your big garage floor than that small kitchen broom. Make sure you get a matching dustpan (or a square-edged shovel) to scoop up the dust, dirt, and any garbage that you didn’t pick up.
Scrub Out Tough Stains
Now that you’ve finished sweeping, you’re probably going to notice oil stains on the floor. It’s what cars do, they leak. You fix it, and then something else starts to drip.
You don’t have to clean those stains up, but we know you want to. A degreaser can help. Apply the product to the stain and let it sit for the length of time it says on the container, usually around 10 minutes.
For stubborn stains, you may have to degrease more than once. You might need to do some scrubbing, too. But you should know that those stains might never come out.
Coatings Keep Away Stains
Now that your garage is all nice and clean, let’s keep it that way.
The best way to prevent stains is to seal your garage floor. An epoxy paint coating applied to your floor makes fluid cleanup a breeze. The sealed surface won’t let oil and other fluids soak into the concrete. It also stops water from wicking up through the concrete, so you don’t get a damp back while you’re working away under your car.
If you know your vehicle is leaking, or you’re going to make a mess, get ahead of it. Oil-absorbent pads are like a puppy pad for your car. Put one down ahead of time to keep drips from reaching the floor. A little preparation will save you a lot of hassle later on.
Need more help? See our NAPA Auto Parts specialists and they’ll get you the products you need to keep your garage floor space clean and organized.
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