DIY Miracle Concrete Patio Cleaner

We've seriously had the worst patio for a while now. We have water "issues" in our backyard. Even having a French Drain installed hasn't done much to alleviate them. There is always mud. And it is constantly tracked onto the porch. I usually let it go over the winter and it ends up looking like this about this time of the year:

Can you see the dog's path? It's bad. I've even burnt up a motor in a power washer still unable to clean it. After researching some different methods online, I came up with one that resulted in the above spot looking like this:

I'll go ahead and preface this by saying, this is by no means a "green" cleaning solution. All I use is Bonnie's amazing Shaklee natural cleaners in my home, so this was definitely out of my comfort zone. But, I was desperate, y'all. The family was coming over for Easter and something HAD to be done!

You'll make a paste of 3 parts baking soda and 2 parts bleach. It will be thick and soupy (is that a contradiction? Nah...like pea soup, no?). Grab some rubber gloves and a scrub brush. I made my paste in a shallow glass pie plate (I wasn't sure how bleach & baking soda would react with metal, so I opted for glass to be safe). I would just dip my brush and scrub the concrete. Then rinsed it all when I was done. I did line my patio with old sheets to catch the runoff. I didn't want to harm my grass or let too many chemicals just go into the big, wide world. You can see below a photo after I began the process (I sat on my little gardner's trolley like a lazy bones while working on this).

My husband and I were pretty amazed. And it goes fast. It didn't take me too long at all. Of course, the next day, the dog tracked on prints AGAIN. But, since I had just cleaned it, it easily hosed off. I'd say doing this a couple of times a year will keep the patio super clean. It also worked where my pot plants had leaked onto the patio and formed rings. Our patio now looks new!!

I guess sometimes, I really should be mopping the floor.









Partying Here:
“A Little Birdie Told Me…” (Jenn@Rook No. 17) Craft Catwalk (Jenny@Embellishing Life) Crafty Lassie Tuesday (Sew Stylish Boutique) Crazy Sweet Tuesdays (Dorothy@Crazy for Crust) Creative Creations (Chad & Mary Beth@Nothing But Country) Destination: Inspiration (Teagan’s Travels) Get Your Craft On! (Today’s Creative Blog) Handmade Tuesdays(Kristen@Ladybug Blessings) Inspiration Board (Carolyn@Homework) Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays (Linda@Coastal Charm) Overflowing With Creativity (It’s Overflowing) Show Me What Ya Got (Stacy@Not Just a Housewife)Tasty Tuesday (Emily@Nap Time Creations) Take-A-Look Tuesday (Sugar Bee Crafts) Tea Party Tuesday (Trisha@Sweetology) Ten Buck Tuesday (Lauren@Young Nester) Time to Shine Tuesday (Courtney@A Diamond in the Stuff) Tip Me Tuesday (Laurie@Tip Junkie) TOO Cute Tuesday (Kyla@Funky Polka Dot Giraffe) Topsy Turvy Tuesdays (Ashlee@I’m Topsy Turvy) Tot Tuesdays (Jenn@My Delicious Ambiguity) Tough Tuesdays (Kirsten@One Tough Mother) T’ Time Challenge (Raising 4 Princesses) Tuesday Confessional (Macy@Confessions of a Stay at Home Mommy) Tuesday Crafts & Party (A to Zebra Celebrations) Tuesday Glam Party (Giggles, Glitz & Glam) Tuesday Party (Kelly@Running With Glitter) Tuesday Talent Show (Nikki@Chef in Training) Tuesday Time Out (Melanie@Reasons to Skip the Housework) Tuesday Tutorials(Audra@The Kurtz Corner) Turquoise Lovin’ (Sara@Sweet Little Gals) Tute Tuesday (Rachael@The Little Birdie Blog) Tutorial Tuesday (Hope Studios) Tutorials & Tips Tuesday(Beth@The Stories of A to Z),Uncommonly Yours (Bonnie & Trish@Uncommon), Creative Share Wednesdays (The Trendy Treehouse) The Creative Spark (Jenn@Clean & Scentsible) Hoo’s got talent? (Leslie@Night Owl Crafting) Idea Sharing Wednesday (Jill@Women Who Do It All) Lil’ Luna Link Party (Kristyn@Lil’ Luna) Link It Up Wednesday (Junk In Their Trunk)Linking Party (Passionately Artistic)Make It Yours Day (My Backyard Eden)Mrs. Fox’s Sweet Party (Mrs. Fox’s Sweets)Penny Pinching Party (Jen@The Thrifty Home)Recipe Round-Up(Gooseberry Patch)Show & Share (Lindsay@Southern Lovely)Show & Tell Linking Party! (Becca@Blue Cricket Design)Sugar & Spice & Everything Nice (Kim@Seven Thirty Three)These Chicks Cook (Katie@This Chick Cooks)Wednesday’s Wowzers (Alison@Oopsey Daisy)Whacha Got (DIY, Crafts & Other Projects)Wednesday Workshop (Karen@Goodbye City, Hello Suburbs)Whassup Wednesday (Kara@Elements Interiors)What I Whipped Up Wednesday (Kimmie@Sugar & Dots)What We Made and Wore Wednesdays (Marissa@Rae Gun Ramblings)Whatever Goes Wednesday (Someday Crafts)Whisking Wednesdays (Pinch of This, That & the Other)White Wednesday (Kathleen@Faded Charm)Works-for-Me Wednesday (Kristen@We are That Family)Wow Me Wednesday (Ginger@Ginger Snap Crafts), A Crafty Soiree, Catch a Glimpse Thursday, Commercial Break Thursday, Get Your Brag On!, Haute Stuff Thursday, Hookin’ Up With House of Hepworths, Show Off Your Stuff Party, Frogs & Snails & Puppy Dog Tails, Pin’Inspirational Thursdays, Show-It-Off Thursdays, Strut-Your-Stuff, Sweet Treats Link Party, Taking a Timeout, Thematic Thursday, Thingamajig Thursday, Thrifty Thursday, Thrilling Thursday, Transformation Thursday, Polkadots On Parade, Lollipop Cards, JAQS Studio, Let Birdz Fly, Let Birdz Fly, My Girlish Whims, thethriftyhome, Transformation Thursdays, Somewhat simple, Show off your stuff, House of Hepworths, Delightful Order, My Simple Home Life, The Frugal Girls, Thrifty Thursday, DIY Diva Thursday, No Minimalists Here, Crafty, Scrappy, Happy, Thrifty Decorating, Between U and Me, 36th Avenue,  The Shabby nest, Show and Tell Friday, Finding Fabulous, I’m Loving it, Simply Sweet Home, Whipper Berry, Chic on a Shoestring decorating, Spunky Junky, Delicate Construction, Homemaker in Heels, Family Ever After, French Country Cottage, Common Ground, Young And Crafty, At the Picket Fence, Fingerprints on the Fridge, Miss Mustard Seed, Addicted to Decorating, Bacon Time with The Hungry Hypo, Making Lemonade, I Can't Stop Crafting, Over the Big Moon, Shabby Art, Answer is Chocolate, Freckled Laundry, Tatertots & Jello, Serenity Now, Lolly Jane, One Artsy Mama, Six Sisters, CRAFT, The Southern Institute, The Sweet Talk Shop