Need an easy concrete patio cleaner? This diy patio cleaner will have your porch looking like new in no time...with items you probably already have on hand. We've now been using this homemade cleaner recipe for several years and swear by it. 

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 by dogs and kids. We have finally found our favorite homemade patio cleaner that really does the trick. Check it out below.

DIY Miracle Concrete Patio Cleaner

We realized we needed a patio cleaner of some sort, when at the end of the winter, the patio ended up looking like this:

Niiiiiiice.
Can you see the dogs' 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 this particular patio cleaner recipe 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. I normally try to stick to 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!

Supplies for Concrete Patio Cleaner:

You'll need  2 parts baking soda and 1 part bleach. I usually start with two cups of baking soda and one cup of bleach. But, that is a fairly small amount. Feel free to double or triple (or even quadruple) this recipe since most patios are large sizes.

The patio cleaner will be thick and soupy (is that a contradiction? Like pea soup, no?). Grab some rubber gloves and a large 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.

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!

As you can see in the bottom right corner of the above photo, I like to use a "Gong-Style" brush for this. It can get into the crack between the siding and the concrete, as well.

Just be sure to rinse really well after using the patio cleaner. Let dry completely before walking on it again.

More Patio Cleaners & Ideas:

• While we love this patio cleaner, we eventually changed the color of our entire patio area. See how we etched and then painted this patio.
• Hunker has a recipe for concrete cleaner that's a bit more scientific, but also good.
• My Homemade Residue Remover is also a good one to try on stubborn gunk.

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

Neglect your chores like me and don't miss a thing:

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