Hard Water Stains On Sidewalks

Hello everyone. I am getting ready to do a pretty large job tomorrow. I have to remove heavy rust stains off the building, the windows, the sidewalks and the the curb lines. I usually use CC550 on the windows and the building, but to do all the sidewalks I know I am going to go through 10 - 15 gallons of the stuff. It is $40.00 a gallon! Anybody have any other alternatives that will work to get rust off concrete without destroying the concrete or all the plants. That was the other thing about the CC550 on the concrete. It would have to be flushed a ton to not kill the grass or plants. Any cheaper alternatives that work? Thanks.

try zep lime remover.

you cant buy it at home depot though, you will have to go through zep or a broker.

Are there zep brokers everywhere, or do I have to order and wait 3 days?

Well i met my broker at home depot. and yes you will have to wait till it ships, I know you need it tomorrow. If you lived by me i would sell you mine.

Iron out at gro stores might do something !!! The out fit that sells saferestore has something that would work i know. What happened to plan ahead ???what 's your tds there ?? That"s the why for, how come u have damage to all areas. Right ?? Stan

:confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:

I thought one uses oxalic acid to remove rust from concrete.

Thought I planned better. Thought I had 12 gallons of CC550. Turn out 6. Ordered 5 more yesterday, but won’t be here until Monday. Need something today, that’s all. Rust everywhere on every building in the professional park. Windows walls and concrete. It actually is showing up on the sealed ashpalt.

Was this due to water damage ?? How long has this been there ?? A person just can’t have product seting around for these projects !!! The tds tells you what your up against!! Take pic for show and tell !! Should make some good bucks !! Stan

Actually the TDS won’t necessarily tell you what you’re up against. Different regions have differing levels of minerals that make up TDS. One areas TDS of 450 isn’t necessarily the same concentration of minerals as another areas TDS of 450. A water report from Doug’s area would tell him what concentrations of which minerals he would be dealing w/ on this site much more effectively than a TDS reading.

They do use oxallic acid to remove rust stains on concrete. Iron Out or Super Iron Out is just a trade name and they both contain oxallic acid. Works very well. Wal Mart also had big containers of Iron Out. Just mix it into a pump sprayer and start cleaning. I usually let mine dwell for 5 to 10 minutes, then I scrub with a deck brush, and then rinse. If the stains are dark, just put the Iron Out on as a straight powder, scrub, then rinse.:slight_smile:

Excuse my little threadjacking, and my ignorance, but what does tds have to do with rust stains? The minerals in the water create rust on the concrete?

It might be too late now, but I’d do EXACTLY that.

TONY, YOUR RIGHT ON THE TDS’s !! A PERSON HAS TO KNOW WHAT CHEM DOES WITH WHAT AREA. ANY AND ALL INFO HELPS GET A BETTER JOB DONE !! WHAT A PERSON BACKS IN TO WITH WINDOW CLEANING AND FRAMES AND WALL AND SIDEWALK’S !! KINDA NEAT !! STAN