I recently had an old oil line leak heating oil into my crawl space. the amount is probably only a gallon or two, but the smell has permeated the whole house. After removing as much of the contaminated soil as possible, does anyone know of a product that I can use to dissipate any residual oil before I replace the vapor barrier ?
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AK1
Check with your heating oil supplier. I had a small spill in my basement caused by the oil truck driver not believing the full whistle. The oil supplier came out with absorbent pads (brand name "PIG") and a white powder which he covered the floor with several times and swept up. The powder had a sweet smell and absorbed the last of the oil and masked any smell. Good Luck
The best thing is to make every effort to remove all the soil, vapor barrier and whatever that has been effected by the oil. A soapy wash cleans oil up pretty good.
After the great Dawson City flood of 1979 I was sent up to deal with the repairs and clean up. That spring the Yukon river had ice jammed and over flowed it's banks. Many basements were flooded, the oil tanks in the basements broke off from their piping and floated up spilling their contents. Some tanks almost came right through the floor once they let go. Surprisingly we washed the concrete foundations down with wisk, a detergent, took the oil and smell right out. I think any liquid detergent, besides wisk, would have helped the clean up.
You can use microbes, like they do for roadway oil spills.
http://www.united-tech.com/obt-hydrocarbonreduction.html