Cleaning Soot From A Concrete Slab

We were contacted by a contractor about cleaning soot from a concrete slab. The previous metal building had burned. The owner of the property wanted to have the soot cleaned from the concrete slab before the new building was installed. The soot was over the entire floor. It was worse in some areas than in others. There were objects that melted to the concrete floor that needed to be scraped up before the cleaning. We had done fire restoration for this contractor before. We tried different degreasers with very little to no success. The product that we found to work best for us was Spartans Oven and Grill Cleaner. Spartans Oven and Grill Cleaner cleans soot from burned bricks and concrete really well, but will remove paint from painted surfaces also.

Cleaning Soot

We mixed 2 gallons of Spartans Oven and Grill Cleaner with soap to 25 gallons of water. The solution was then sprayed over the surface using our 12 volt dedicated pump. This system allows us to apply a stronger mix than down streaming the solution or using a pressure washing  xjet. We could have used a pump sprayer but a pump sprayer was not ideal for a job of this size. After the cleaning solution was applied we divided the concrete slab in half, then cleaned it in sections. Two men using two machines, 4gal /4000psi each with a 20” GP Hammer Head surface cleaner, myself and a helper started cleaning the slab. We each cleaned a section at a time. After each section was cleaned we rinsed with our wands. This process was repeated until the slab was complete.

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Tools Used

Honda 4000 Psi Pressure Washer
20” GP Hammer Head Surface Cleaner
Pressure Washing Hose
3 ft Lance
Ball Valve
NorthStar 12 volt pump
Spartans Oven and Grill Cleaner