Ugh...neighbor's contractor left HUGE oil stains on street

[omni550]

My next-door neighbor (the one who has not spoken to me for 2 yrs., ever since I insisted he remove his new fence from my property and relocate it on the property line, where it belongs) has had some contractors install an above-ground pool in his backyard this summer. This past week he had another contractor building a large wooden deck and stairs adjacent to this pool.

Yesterday I noticed a huge oil stain (irregular in shape, but maybe half the size of a car) on the concrete street in front of my property and oil 'tread marks' in front of my driveway. Whatever fluid drained out of the offending vehicle left actual puddles in the gutter area and a sizeable enough quantity of oil on the street that the offending vehicle, when departing, left 2 long 'tread marks' (about 10-12 ft. long) extending from where it had been parked. Initially I thought this was water from a recent rain shower, but alas no, it's oil or transmission fluid. The only vehicle that was parked there this week was someone working for my neighbor on his deck/steps pool project.

I'm annoyed. It's unsightly and will likely be there for a looong time. I realize I don't own the street, the county does. But an huge oil stain right in front of my property reflects poorly on the appearance of my home.

How best to handle?

omni

 

[calmloki]

Cat litter for openers. immediately.

 

[Scrapr]

Cat litter for openers. immediately.

and pressure wash. stains on concrete are hard. esp after letting sit. get on it immediately

 

[gauss]

and maybe spray with aerosol "brake cleaner".

 

[omni550]

In what order? brake cleaner...then kitty litter or vice versa?

omni

 

[gauss]

In what order? brake cleaner...then kitty litter or vice versa?

omni

I have always done brake cleaner, let sit for a few minutes then the kitty litter.

I haven't done any type of scientific experiments to see if this makes a difference, but it certainly seems to cut through the oil when applied if the oil is still loose.

-gauss
p.s. Sell that house before any further blight sets in. The whole situation must be making you miserable.

 

[target2019]

We have this problem most months in the nice weather. Contractor(s) roll up and park in front of our house, then proceed to work on next door neighbor's yard. Above-ground pool, paved back yard, then a play house overlooking the fence.
What I do is cover over the oil spots with whatever I blow down the street. It's a combination of sand, dirt and leaves on asphalt street. SO it soaks up the oil over time, and eventually blows down the street.
I'm just not gonna interact much with neighbors, as it usually leads to more pain than the initial problem.

 

[MRG]

Here's a test of cleaning oil on driveways from utube. There's quite a few out there.


https://youtu.be/sHlEIedvU1c

 

[JoeWras]

What is wrong with these trucks? This is not isolated! Contractor trucks are notorious for dropping all kinds of fluids.

 

[REWahoo]

What is wrong with these trucks? This is not isolated! Contractor trucks are notorious for dropping all kinds of fluids.

Hard use + lack of proper maintenance = drippy hoopie

 

[omni550]

UPDATE: I was outside taking photos to figure out how much stuff I'd need to buy to remedy this. See photo....sorry it's sideways. It's longer than a car-length, btw....and then oily tread marks go another few car lengths.

While I was out there, the neighbor lady was pulling out of her drive so I flagged her down. She said it was HER car that 'exploded' (her words) leaving that mess. Apparently she just had an oil change on her 2-yr-old Lexus, and they didn't get everything sealed-up (drain plug? filter?) afterwards.

She said it had rained when this happened, so she was not aware of the oil stains in the street until everything dried up.

She said she'd work on it this weekend as "it looks tacky." (No kidding).

I don't think she has any idea how much work it will be.

--------

She was driving a shiny brand new Lexus SUV. I complimented her on it. She said it's a loaner. Now I'm wondering if the engine in her own car may have seized up as a result of this leak?

omni

 

[DFDubb]

Sounds like your neighbor has had a rough week, maybe you could cut her a little slack?

 

[Dawg52]

UPDATE: I was outside taking photos to figure out how much stuff I'd need to buy to remedy this. See photo....sorry it's sideways. It's longer than a car-length, btw....and then oily tread marks go another few car lengths.

While I was out there, the neighbor lady was pulling out of her drive so I flagged her down. She said it was HER car that 'exploded' (her words) leaving that mess. Apparently she just had an oil change on her 2-yr-old Lexus, and they didn't get everything sealed-up (drain plug? filter?) afterwards.

She said it had rained when this happened, so she was not aware of the oil stains in the street until everything dried up.

She said she'd work on it this weekend.. as "it looks tacky." (No kidding).

I don't think she has any idea how much work it will be.

--------

She was driving a shiny brand new Lexus SUV. I complimented her on it. She said it's a loaner. Now I'm wondering if the engine in her own car may have seized up as a result of this leak?

omni

What she said is possible as it happened to me. May have been first oil change on my Hyundai Santa Fe. There is a separate seal that is put in place and then oil filter screwed on. They admitted to not getting the seal in place properly. I was pissed needless to say. The dealer came out and had a crew clean it. Not sure what all they used but got it up good. Ended up whiter than my driveway. They gave me a couple of free oil changes and washed my car a couple of times. Ha.

 

[aja8888]

Believe it or not, the stain will eventually go away. Have her try to clean it up as best she can, then you will have to wait out the deterioration of the hydrocarbons. (bugs (bacteria) will eat them over time)

 

[Big_Hitter]

pour a bag (or 3) of the cat litter stuff on it then crunch it down with your shoes/boots - they sell it at autozone

 

[omni550]

Believe it or not, the stain will eventually go away. Have her try to clean it up as best she can, then you will have to wait out the deterioration of the hydrocarbons. (bugs (bacteria) will eat them over time)

Thanks. This is good to know.

omni

 

[pb4uski]

From all the cracks in the concrete, it looks like that section of the street is due for replacement soon.

 

[omni550]

From all the cracks in the concrete, it looks like that section of the street is due for replacement soon.

I wish.

This is in a subdivision in Michigan. Our main roads in this area are much worse than this. They are always patching the main roads, rarely replacing. I predict that they will never get to this road in my lifetime.

BTW, this spot is the worst cracking in the subdivision. Years ago I had an issue where my porch and adjacent brick wall was pulling away from the house....leaving a 2" gap. That got me wondering about the soil around here. I went to the city engineer's office to get a map of the soil types and characteristics. There are a bunch of different soil layers that seem to meet up right in this vicinity, thus likely helping cause the road cracks. The soil here is clay, which does not drain well and has characteristics of expanding and contracting significantly depending on the moisture content and temperature(freeze/thaw). Hence the cracked road.

omni

 

[45th Birthday]

We had a Lexus that blew some sort of hose, leaking oil in our garage. It was a known defect covered under a service bulletin, but our dealer never fixed it before it blew. So, I made them come tow the car, fix it, and send a crew out with a pressure washer to clean the garage floor. They only reluctantly agreed to the latter, but I was insistent.

 

[travelover]

pour a bag (or 3) of the cat litter stuff on it then crunch it down with your shoes/boots - they sell it at autozone

Dollar Tree has it too, for a buck. You want the cheap stuff as it is just dried, ground clay - no fancy stuff added that impede the oil pickup.

 

[NW-Bound]

After the bulk of the oil has been lifted with cat litter, to take care of the stain I have used engine degreaser on my driveway with some success. It is in aerosol spray cans sold in autopart stores. The best time to apply is when the sun is out and the driveway is warm, in order for the degreaser to dissolve the oil.

I would spray the degreasing cleaner on, wait 15 minutes then wash it off with a water hose. A pressure washer would be even better.

 

[omni550]

Thanks for all the responses.

Hopefully, the neighbor will get this all cleaned up over the weekend.

I'm leaving for 3 weeks in Europe. Will assess the condition when I get back.

omni

 

[Chuckanut]

In my city any contractor who left that much oil on a city street would be in for a huge fine. I can't even wash my car in the driveway because the local street drain flows into a lake. I have to wash it on the lawn.

So, if your city has such environmental protection laws, that might be a way to force the contractor to clean it up.

 

[omni550]

In my city any contractor who left that much oil on a city street would be in for a huge fine. I can't even wash my car in the driveway because the local street drain flows into a lake. I have to wash it on the lawn.

So, if your city has such environmental protection laws, that might be a way to force the contractor to clean it up.

I live in a township and the roads are 'maintained' by the county. Several neighbors go around every year and get everyone to chip in for street snow removal that we hire a private company to do, as the county has never plowed in the 29 years I've been here. Once a year or so, a street sweeper/cleaner goes though here, not sure who (county or township) pays for that.

Water runoff goes into a storm sewer system. We have no rules/regulations as to washing cars, etc.

Hopefully the neighbor will do the right thing and clean this mess up.

omni

 

[Texas Proud]

I once had an oil change and when I got home found out it was leaking badly the next day.... I had them tow the car in since I did not trust I would not lose all my oil on the way...


They gave me a 50 lb bag of oil dry.. it worked great... there was still ring where you could tell oil was spilled, but nothing out of the ordinary...