Paved driveways, carports or parking lots quickly show signs of wear and tear from regular driving. Read here which means and methods can be used to properly remove tire marks from pavement.
In a nutshell
- choose a gentle method to avoid damaging the surface of the patch
- Cleaning depends on the respective stone material and degree of soiling
- Products from the trade and household items are suitable
- Remove light tire marks with water and washing-up liquid
- use dirt erasers, solvents or a polishing machine for more stubborn marks
Table of contents
- React fast
- Remove light tire marks
- Remove moderate tire marks
- More stubborn tire marks
- Solvent-free commercial products
- polishing machine
- frequently asked Questions
React fast
Tire marks are caused by rubber, which appears on the pavement due to normal wear and tear, even with low, slow tire revolutions. The problem is the plasticizer contained in the rubber. This lays like a protective layer over the surface of the pavement and causes permanent discoloration there, which makes it difficult if not impossible to remove tire tracks. For this reason, you should clean paving stones regularly at short intervals and quickly even if there are only minor tire tracks.
Remove light tire marks
If the first tire marks appear on the pavement, they can usually be removed with detergent, a scrubbing brush and water. The procedure for this is as follows:
- Wet plaster with warm water
- Cover wheel marks with washing-up liquid or soft soap
- rub in lightly with a mop or brush
- leave for ten to 15 minutes
- Pour hot water over stains, scrub again and allow to cool
- Spray off the plaster with a garden hose and high water pressure
- alternatively: high-pressure cleaner (not on Put judge!)
A notice: Using a high-pressure cleaner will roughen the pavement surface. Moisture penetrates deep into the pores. This promotes the formation of lichen and fungi. With the right attachment, you can treat the surfaces more gently.
Remove moderate tire marks
A real expert tip for removing tire marks on pavement is to use dirt erasers, such as those that can be bought in any well-stocked hardware store. As long as the traces are still relatively "fresh" and superficial, they can simply be erased. However, depending on the size of the area to be worked, this involves a lot of physical effort. It is therefore advisable to use the dirt eraser immediately as soon as a tire mark is visible. This does not reduce the amount of work, but divides it into smaller stages over a longer period of time.
More stubborn tire marks
When the dish soap stops working, the gum is already too tight in the patch or under the softener layer. Then only heavier guns will help.
Solvent-free commercial products
The trade offers some cleaning products to remove tire marks from pavement. These should be mild and free of acids and solvents. Suitable cleaning agents are, for example Remei and gum ex. Basically, the products are milder, the more basic they are. However, it then also requires more cleaning effort because the product has less cleaning intensity and has to be helped. This is how it usually works:
- Mix the agent with water (mixing ratio depends on the degree of soiling)
- Work the mixture into the plaster with a sponge or soft brush
- let it take effect for a short time
- Wipe off surface dirt with a sponge or cloth
- with water hose or similar plaster
polishing machine
If there have been numerous tire marks on the pavement for a long time, the only thing that usually helps is mechanical cleaning by polishing and grinding to remove them completely. A single-disc machine with diamond pads is best suited for this. These can be rented from some builders' merchants, but can also be ordered as part of a service with the full cleaning service. This is how mechanical cleaning works:
- Removal of the first tire tracks by superficial polishing of the pavement
- Abrasive pads for deeper tire tracks
- carefully remove thin layers of plaster
- remove tire rubber
- finally primer or apply sealing
- Plasters susceptible to soiling after treatment with a polishing machine
Tip: Therefore, prefer other cleaning methods for regular use and limit the machine method to the basic cleaning, which you do about every three or four years.
frequently asked Questions
Is it a conventional pavement made of concrete, a natural stone or other calcareous Materials, vinegar and other acidic agents such as citric acid, are by no means apply. The acid attacks the material, can cause cracks and holes and leaves unsightly stains that remain permanent.
The cheapest and most effective way to remove lichen is boiling water. Pour this directly onto the braids and loosen them with a soft brush. Then sweep up and discard the leftovers.
Green surface quickly becomes slippery and a slip trap. A speedy removal is advised. To do this, use hot water with a generous amount of soft soap. Soak the affected cobblestones with it for a few minutes and scrub off the green covering with a hard root brush or wire brush. An alternative and gentler on the plaster is a spatula, with which you can simply scrape off the verdigris.
