How to Remove Tire Marks From a Concrete Driveway

You can make your driveway look pristine again.

All tires are made with petroleum-based chemicals, which means they have an oily composition. This composition will resist regular soap and water.

1. Apply a coating of degreaser solution thick enough to completely cover the tire marks. Scrub the solution in with your brush to penetrate and loosen the tire rubber.

2. Allow the degreaser to sit on the tire marks for several minutes. This will allow the chemicals in the degreaser to actively work to loosen and dissolve the oil and the rubber from the tire marks.

3. Attach your garden hose to the pressure washer and turn on the water valve. Start your pressure washer by pulling the starter rope, if it is gasoline powered, or plug it in if it is electrically powered.

4. Pick up the wand, which is attached to the washer with a hose, and pull the trigger to release a stream of pressurized water. Pressure wash the solution-covered area with a 2-inch stream of water, which is adjustable at the nozzle tip. Play the stream back and forth across the marks until they are gone. If results are not satisfactory, cover the area with another brushing of degreaser and pressure wash the area again.

Tip

Scrubbing lighter colored tire marks with a heavy-duty cleaner like trisodium phosphate may remove them, but if the marks are dark black, only the high pressure generated by a pressure washer will clean them completely. A brake-cleaning product may help to dissolve the stain.

Warning

Always keep the pressurized stream of water moving to keep from eroding away the concrete that you are washing.