Rust On Concrete

[spam4us]

I have some heavy rust stains on my basement concrete floor from where my oil boiler had a slow leak that went unnoticed. I have tried vinegar, peroxide, baking soda, scrubbing lightly with a brass brush with no luck in removing it. The stains are really dark in some places.

I am hesitant to use any type of acid since this is indoors and I'm also concerned about the fumes or spills attacking nearby metal surfaces. I am not planning or placing a finished floor where the stains are. It will be just a bare concrete floor so grinding it off would make it look just as bad.

Anyone have a suggestion on what to use?

Thanks

 

[audioworks04]

Concrete is like a sponge and will soak up anything, likely to far gone to save. Try a diluted acid solution in conjunction with your brass brush, the fumes won’t be nearly as bad as you expect.


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[Armorpoxy]

Have you tried a product called 'CLR'? Its available at most hardware stores and home centers. The R stands for 'rust' and it's an excellent rust dissolver.

 

[jenga70]

Another product is 'Iron Out'.

 

[rlitman]

I would suggest oxalic acid (the main ingredient in Bar Keeper's Friend). It converts rust to iron oxylate, which is both water soluble (can be washed away), and transparent.

But any product you use will etch the concrete, so I can't think of anything that will just make the rust disappear.

 

[apollo11]

paint over it

 

[mldittmer]

Product called "Rid O Rust". It's a liquid, lawn sprinkler companies sell it to remove the rust stains from houses, driveways, and landscaping. Spray it on, rinse it off.

 

[The Cobbler]

Have you tried a product called 'CLR'? Its available at most hardware stores and home centers. The R stands for 'rust' and it's an excellent rust dissolver.

Hmm, my experience with it is quite different. just saying

 

[spam4us]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

I have tried CLR. It didn't touch it. Made no difference.
Based on the replies above, I'll try Bar Keeper's Friend first to see if it will work. If not, I'll move on to Iron Out or Rid O Rust. Can't really rinse it off well because it's on my basement floor. Maybe a shop vac?

Thanks

 

[James-W]

I am not sure that anything will "****" the rust out of the concrete. I am not sure about this but there may be a way of staining the entire floor that would camouflage the rust stains.

Another option would be if you could clean the floor really good and then use a good epoxy paint, that may work out acceptably well. Or, you could cover the floor with indoor/outdoor carpeting or some other type of floor covering.