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How to clean up battery acid?

16K views 13 replies 12 participants last post by  Rog02 
#1 ·
My son knocked over a tractor battery and it spilled on garage floor. Poured some cola on it, then put some floor dry on it. Now their is a big whit spot on floor. Anyone know how to clean it up?
 
#4 ·
btw: coca cola has a mild acid in it too, so pouring it onto an acid spill will not help.

baking soda as mentioned... in an emergency - if you "just spilled" the acid, the #1 answer is lots and lots of water.
all inorganic acids are water soluble, and the more water you add, the more "diluted" it becomes... just flood the area....
 
#6 ·
what they said, but please crank up your paranoia about the washed off acid. Put up a temp *** or something equivalent, the cleanup drool from a battery acid spill can be as bad as spilled acid.
 
#7 ·
Thanks for the tips. I can live with the white spot as long as nothing is left behind that would hurt the kids. put some baking soda on it and plenty of water. Thanks again, this is a great site for info...
 
#8 ·
Your sweating bullets about nothing. The lime in the concrete has already neutralized the acid. The white spot is from the sulfuric acid etching the surface. It's white now and will continue to be white until sufficient oil and dirt accumulate to cover it.

Back in the "bad old days" we used to intentionally up end a couple of old batteries in each bay of the shop occasionally to clean the floors. It would leave the floor clean and the etched surface acted as an anti skid surface. We quit doing that when that owner finally purchased a power washer.

Just hose it down and dilute it with lots of water. Don't worry about it. Besides for your information they use muratic acid to clean brick and masonry with only a thorough rinse to neutralize it.
 
#9 ·
The floor will be fine , but if the little guy get's it on his hand , clothes, etc. .Wash him up with white vinegar real quick. Before his brain gets itchy and desides skratch it through his nose. WHAT? It's the fastest way , the ear wax blocks the other way in.
 
#10 ·
Muriatic acid is used to clean concrete,block and brick all the time and it is deluted Sulfuric Acid.All new brick houses have gallons of it on the ground where they clean the excess mortar off the brick.If you cleaned the floor with muriatic acid the rest of it would probably match the spot.
 
#11 ·
Actually, Muriatic acid is a form of hydrochloric acid, not sulfuric.
Either way, soaked the area with copious amounts of water which will dilute/neutralize it, white spot will stay. Once diluted, there are no worries about little one getting poisoned or burnt. Baking soda is best neutralizer followed with water....works great to clean those corroded battery terminals too.
 
#13 ·
This is just a WAG but I would say acid rather than distiled water, reason being you don't have enough acid in the empty cells to convert the water into acid, Im sure someone better qualified will discount this probably.

Ron
 
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