How to Clean Cement

When I was a kid, I had a swing set in my backyard. This was in the 80's, so the thing was built, more or less, like a death trap. In point of fact, the weight of two children swinging in unison would cause it to tip over. I know this because my childhood friend, Luke, and I discovered it by glorious accident one rainy, August afternoon. We took the ash from the old Weber grill my folks had in the back yard, and mixed it with collected rainwater from an ancient rain barrel (and by ancient, I mean older than I was at the time, which was eight). We mixed the two together to form a thick, sludgy paste that we determined was cement. We then used this to "cement" the four posts of the swing set into the ground. The next day, once we were certain the "cement" had dried, we attempted to use the swing set once again. I still have the scars.

I know that has little to do with the actual cleaning of cement, but it's an amusing anecdote that deserves sharing. Cleaning cement isn't that much different from cleaning concrete. It's slightly more porous, and a little less impervious than concrete, but cleaning cement floors is about the same as cleaning concrete floors. To read up on that topic, check out How to Clean Concrete. In this article, I'm going to focus on how to clean cement fixtures, such as walls, the bases of street lamps, and even curbs.

Ways and Means of Cleaning Cement

Gather your cement materials. You can't clean cement with spit and rage. Believe me, I've tried. You're going to need supplies, patience, and a little bit of muscle. Here's what you'll need: bleach (preferably an eco-friendly, chlorine-free bleach), liquid laundry soap, a clean bucket, a scrub brush or sponge that you don't clean dishes with (or at least don't intend to anymore), rubber gloves, water, and an old toothbrush, if necessary for hard to reach areas.

Here's why you need these items to clean cement. Bleach is an excellent disinfectant for mold and bacteria. Laundry detergent is simply a good cleaning agent without unnecessary additives, and the added bonus of working well with the bleach. Water is a great medium for both, and much better than the lethal gas created from mixing bleach and ammonia. The rubber gloves are to protect you from the chemicals you'll be using. If you're using chlorine-free bleach, the rubber gloves are more of a precautionary measure in case of skin allergies or sensitivity. If you're not using chlorine-free bleach, you should get on that bandwagon. It's toxic to you and the environment, so the rubber gloves are a necessity. I feel the rest of the supplies are intuitive.

Mix your cement cleaning solution. Fill the bucket about two-thirds full with water. Add in about four capfuls of bleach, and roughly the same amount of laundry detergent. Mix gently with so that the water and bleach are spread throughout. You're also going to want to wear old clothing that you don't mind getting both dirty and wet. Hopefully you don't mind this, because you will get dirty and wet. If you don't, either learn to live with dirty cement, or hire one of your friends to do your dirty work.

Proceed with the cement cleaning. Grab your scrub brush or sponge, give it a good soak in your cleaning solution, and go to town on whatever cement item you're cleaning. There's no preferable technique to this, so find what's most comfortable for you. Focus more on heavily soiled areas, but be sure to scrub everything or you'll wind up with an uneven look. Keep in mind that this will not be easy. It will not be quick, either. It will be frustrating and at times, irritating. Stick it out—the results will speak for themselves.

Finishing up your cement cleaning. Rinse however you want to, whether by hand or hose or bucket of water. Once the wall is clean and rinsed, you'll want to dry it as best you can. Old beach towels will work for this purpose. If you're patient, a handheld hair dryer would suffice. Drying it off will prevent any new mold from growing, which would effectively cancel out your cement cleaning binge.

Skip ahead unless you plan to paint your clean cement. You'll want to first seal your cement with the proper sealant. Since cement is such a porous material, the paint will seep if not properly sealed first. That would be bad. I was reading about a new earth-friendly concrete sealer called SealGreen. Yes, I know concrete and cement are different animals, but the sealer works on the same principle for both. It's awesome because it keeps out moisture and the things that cause mold and stains, thus making cleaning much easier for you.

In Regards to Cement Cleaning

I had somewhat a difficult time writing this article. Not because the subject matter was difficult or offensive (God knows I've written about worse), but because I had never cleaned cement prior to researching for this article. The bottom line is this: Cleaning your concrete and cement is not just a good aesthetic choice, and extends the life of your cement/concrete so you don't have to pay an exorbitant amount of money replacing the stuff. That is not a cheap project, and it is even more hard work than just taking the time to clean cement and concrete every year or so. Good luck!