Article recreated from Auto Service Operator Magazine issue March 2008. By Clay Peil, The Buying Network, Inc.
A Better Spill Absorbent
When it comes to cleaning up oily or greasy spills, kitty litter has been the choice to cleanup these messes for as long as most people can remember. I’d bet you have dumped a pile of this granular absorbent on a spill recently too. It’s just the way we have been told over the years to clean up these little messes.
Kitty litter, most of which really is diatomaceous earth, is a good absorbent, but is likely not the product that you get from your oil dealer as floor dry. Why not? Diatomaceous earth products are light weight and easily blown by the wind or tracked around. Like when that cute kitten you brought home learns how to use the cat box for the first time. In about ten seconds, your new family pet can spread that smelly litter in a ten foot radius around the box. Not what you want in the shop.
The most common floor dry used in the shop environment is a clay-based absorbent. The clay absorbents are heavier and won’t fly around in a light breeze. If your bag of absorbent is a 50 lb. bag, you’ve got clay based floor dry. The problem is it still gets tracked all over the shop and into office.
There are other problems with this old technology. Number one has to be that clay doesn’t really absorb the spill very well. Dump 50 pounds of floor dry on a spill and you will pick up less than five gallons of liquid.
Enter newer technology – polypropylene absorbents. An absorbent like the SpillTech Airlaid oil pad will absorb more than a gallon per pound of absorbent used. So you would use less than five pounds of this oil pad to absorb that same five gallon spill.
Polypropylene is nothing new; it is a plastic polymer and you see it in your daily life. It is used in everything from packaging to textiles to reusable food containers. One of the advantages to using a plastic type absorbent is that it is selective as to what it will absorb. They come as an oil-only or a universal-chemical absorbent.
You are probably thinking why would I choose an absorbent that is oil-only when floor dry works great on everything from oil to antifreeze? Do you really want to mix those and try to dispose of it? Most states have very strict rules on chemical disposal. If you mix the waste stream, it gets very costly to dispose of the cocktail you or your employees just made. Because disposal companies charge by weight, add the 50 pounds of floor dry to the mix and the disposal bill just got much, much bigger.
An oil-only absorbent can soak up oil from a puddle of water leaving the clean water behind, reducing the amount of absorbent material needed. Additionally, these absorbents can be wrung out and reused or dumped in most landfills. Check with your local municipal for rules on disposal. If you have antifreeze or any other water-based mess to clean up, a universal-chemical absorbent will soak up all of that.
The two different types of absorbents are different colors too, to make it easier for everyone to choose the proper one. This will help with the separation of the waste stream; thus, reducing your cost. Additionally, they come in mats, pillows, booms and all sorts of configurations allowing for a tailored spill clean up procedure.
A final consideration of using a floor dry absorbent or a polypropylene absorbent is that clay absorbents can pose health problems. Clay contains silicate dust. Silica is known as a health hazard and pouring or sweeping it around can create dust. Airborne silica can result in chronic lung damage. Polypropylene mats do not pose any risk to users.
If you want your shop and adjacent office to be clean, stop tracking around floor dry and consider trying absorbent mats instead.
To learn more about polypropylene absorbents, please visit their website at