Can anyone help, my grandfather and I recently spilled a fair amount of oil in my basement I’ve gotten most of the smell out, but there is still some lingering. I just don’t know where, or what is holding the smell. Is there any kind of powder or something that would help to absorb the smell, should I be powerwashing the area with some sort of a degreaser. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Nick
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How about cat litter or oil dry? Dump it on fairly heavy and spread it around. Let the material soak up as much as possible, come back later and sweep it around some more. Objective is to use as much surface area as possible. You can even clean it up and add more if needed. Pressure wash probably won't hurt, but seems awful messy.
I get paid to do carpentry. That makes me a professional.
If I work on my own house does that make me a DIY?
Nick -
After you do what Hooker said, buy a pound of the cheapest coffee (not instant) you can find.
Spread it on top of the spill, & wait. You may need to do this more than once, but it works. I know because, while my house was vacant, vandals stole all the copper pipe from the cellar, including the line from the oil tank to the boiler.
Good Luck!
Kate
I spilled some kerosene in the (attached) garage while cleaning the grease off a new saw table. After cleaning it up as best I could, I applied scent killer as used by deer hunters, which took away the remaining odor.
I can think of a couple of options.
First would be to buy some oil consuming microbes (bacteria I think) and apply the solution to your floor. That would actially clean up the spilled oil. Might be hard to find depending on your location. Try calling around to find a spill response company in your area.
Second would be to deal with the odor by using an ozone generator. If your local rental outfits don't have them try a fire damage resoration company. Be aware that ozone in heavy concentrations is hazzardious to humans. You should leave it to run in an unoccupied space and ventilate well when you return. Ozone will also break down certain rubber materials, be careful about what you leave stored in your basement.
Kate ... that bites!, but interesting solution ....
Nick25 .. be very carefull who you tell about this .. up here (the great white north) the government gets involved and it will cost you a bundle just to prove nothing got anywhere it shouldn't ...