Match the stain, then the molecule
Driveway bottles sell ‘oil and grease remover’ as one job. The SDS usually names one of three tools: an alkaline detergent builder, a solvent / citrus poultice, or an absorbent powder. Green algae is none of those — that is a quat biocide, covered on the patio-actives guide.
Fresh drip under a car: blot, absorb, then wash. Grey traffic film on concrete: alkaline degreaser. Black motor-oil halo that has sat in limestone or sandstone for a season: solvent poultice, then a builder wash, then reseal if you care about the next drip.
Alkaline builders: metasilicate and TKPP
KilrockPRO is disodium metasilicate (CAS 6834-92-0) with soda ash — a masonry degreaser. About 30 g/L of pentahydrate matches the jerry; then dilute 1:10–1:20, scrub and rinse. Keep off aluminium, galvanised steel and soft paint. Always add powder to water. See the metasilicate guide for the biocide-versus-degreaser split.
LTP Grimex is tetrapotassium pyrophosphate (TKPP, CAS 7320-34-5) with glycol ether and a little ammonia — a stone scrub for grime and old wax before resealing. About 20 g/L of TKPP matches the builder band. Related alkali family, different salt. Do not treat Grimex as a drop-in for KilrockPRO, and do not mix either with acids or bleach.
When a solvent or citrus poultice helps
Lithofin OIL-EX is a paste of C9–C10 hydrocarbons (CAS 64742-49-0) with a little d-limonene (CAS 5989-27-5) in absorbent solids. It dissolves deep oil and wicks it into a powder you brush off after about 12 hours. The bulk stack is low-aromatic white spirit plus fuller’s earth — flammable, well-ventilated, keep off plastics and asphalt.
Use it on a discrete stain in stone or concrete, not as a whole-drive wash. After the powder comes off, wash with metasilicate or TKPP so you are not resealing over solvent residue. Solvex (benzyl alcohol) is a different solvent job — wax and acrylic sealer, not engine oil.
Absorbents and what never to mix
Dry absorbents (fuller’s earth, cat litter, sand) are first aid for a fresh spill. They are not a substitute for a builder or a poultice on an old stain, and they do not belong in a quat or bleach bucket.
Never mix alkali + acid, alkali + bleach, solvent + bleach, or solvent + concentrated alkali in one pot. One chemistry per pass; rinse between if you change tack. Gloves and goggles for builders and solvents. Read the SDS on the pack you actually hold — the teardowns are pack maths, not a COSHH assessment for your drive.
FAQ
- Will Patio Magic remove engine oil?
- No. Patio Magic and Wet & Forget are benzalkonium chloride for algae film. Oil is a chemistry problem. Use an alkaline degreaser for traffic film, or a solvent poultice for a deep spot — then rinse. Never mix a quat with a solvent or a bleach.
- Should I use cat litter or a chemical first?
- Fresh wet oil: blot and cover with an absorbent (cat litter, sand, fuller’s earth) before any wet chemistry. Old dry stains in concrete usually want an alkaline builder scrub. Old stains in porous stone often want a solvent poultice that pulls oil out, then an alkaline wash.
- Can I mix KilrockPRO with OIL-EX in one bucket?
- No. Metasilicate is a strong alkali. OIL-EX is a flammable hydrocarbon paste with d-limonene. Mixing solvent and caustic in one pot is a COSHH fail — heat, splash and a useless emulsion. One chemistry, rinse, then the other if you still need it.
More patio & exterior guides
Patio guide
Patio cleaners decoded: BAC, DDAC, bleach, acid and degreasers
Patio guide
How much patio chemical do you need? Measure first
Patio guide
BAC vs DDAC vs bleach on patios — which active for which stain?
Patio guide
When to use a metasilicate degreaser on driveways
Patio guide
Water-repellent, biocide or acid — which patio job needs which chemistry
Patio guide
Driveway & TFR oil and grease: which solvent for which stain
Related teardowns
Live stacks this guide points at — mix maths and DIY affiliate links on each page.
Patio & exterior
Patio, Driveway & Masonry Cleaner
KilrockPRO
- Retail pack
- £14.005 litres
- Raw active
- Sodium metasilicate pentahydrate10213-79-3
This is not Patio Magic (BAC) and it is not Mortar Clen (HCl). KilrockPRO is a dilute alkaline masonry degreaser — disodium metasilicate (CAS 6834-92-0) with soda ash and a chelator. Metasilicate pentahydrate crystals mixed at about 30 g/L match the bottle strength; then dilute 1:20 for light stains as the pack does.
Patio & exterior
Grimex Intensive Cleaner
LTP
- Retail pack
- £33.005 litres
- Raw active
- Tetrapotassium pyrophosphate (TKPP)7320-34-5
Not a patio biocide (BAC/DDAC) and not brick acid. LTP’s 2025 SDS lists tetrapotassium pyrophosphate (~1–3%) with glycol ether and a little ammonia — a phosphate-builder scrub for grease and old wax. TKPP crystals at about 20 g/L match the bottle’s builder strength; then dilute as the pack does.
Patio & exterior
OIL-EX Oil Stain Remover
Lithofin
- Retail pack
- £16.56250 millilitres
- Raw active
- Low-aromatic C9–C10 white spirit plus fuller’s earth poultice64742-49-0
Lithofin OIL-EX is a solvent poultice, not an alkaline degreaser. The GB SDS lists C9–C10 hydrocarbons (CAS 64742-49-0) at 60–65%, C9 aromatics (CAS 64742-95-6) at 15–20%, and d-limonene (CAS 5989-27-5) at 0.5–1% in an absorbent paste. It is not KilrockPRO metasilicate, not LTP Grimex TKPP, and not Solvex benzyl alcohol. Low-aromatic white spirit plus fuller’s earth is the same solvent-and-absorb job without the 250 ml tube tax.
Patio & exterior
Solvex High Performance Remover
LTP
- Retail pack
- £18.001 litre
- Raw active
- Benzyl alcohol100-51-6
A viscous sealer stripper whose SDS lists benzyl alcohol at roughly 30–50%. Bulk benzyl alcohol is the same solvent that softens wax and acrylic films so you can scrub and wet-vac them off — not a biocide and not brick acid.
Household cleaning
Original Washing Up Liquid
Fairy
- Retail pack
- £1.25320 ml bottle
- Raw active
- SLES 70% paste (sodium laureth sulphate)68585-34-2
Fairy is mostly water and SLES — the workhorse anionic surfactant in almost every UK washing-up bottle. A 25 kg drum of SLES 70% paste dilutes to hundreds of litres of 2% working liquor. You are paying for the green bottle and the scent, not a proprietary molecule.
Household cleaning
Soda Crystals
Dri-Pak
- Retail pack
- £2.491 kg
- Raw active
- Sodium carbonate decahydrate (soda crystals)6132-02-1
Dri-Pak’s bag is sodium carbonate decahydrate (CAS 6132-02-1) — washing soda. The molecule is the product. A 5 kg sack of the same crystals is the cupboard staple without the 1 kg grocery markup. This is not Vanish (that is percarbonate) and not borax substitute (sesquicarbonate).
DupeStack provides chemical concentration data and educational mixing guides only. Wellness pages compare food supplements, not medicines or prescribed treatments. Always review the supplier Safety Data Sheet (SDS) and comply with UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and COSHH regulations when handling concentrated substances. Mixing and storage are at your own risk. Some links are affiliate advertisements (Amazon Associates, eBay Partner Network, and Awin when those programmes are live). Commissions do not change listed concentrations or calculator output.