Ok...here we go. First off, what TYPE of concrete floor do you have (can you up load pics in a response to this post)? Is it polished, sealed, epoxy, or "raw"? How old is it?

The fun thing about concrete is it is HIGHLY POROUS (worse than marble) when left as polished (no finish but nicely ground down to look pretty) or "raw" (regular ol' concrete pored and then level like a basement or garage floor).

So...the lower level finishes (the one's with a lower price tag) are known to be harder to deal with as a homeowner. Because concrete is porous (think of the worst marble you have ever seen and then times that by 2) it will absorb things like oil (dog prints are oil based because their skin contains oil) and colour (like spilled cola or ketchup) or even etch when acid is dropped on them (like water or vinegar or orange juice, etc).

So...before we go much farther, it is best to find out what TYPE of concrete finish (if it is sealed...what is the sealer) do you have. Photos of what you are concerned about would also help.

The floors are poured concrete, followed by a cementitious layer (pigmented, so the color is IN this top layer, not painted on the surface). Sealed with Diversery Iron Stone Acrylic Seal. Initially, the floors had a nice, clear gloss surface. Dust mop, then wet mop (no cleaning product) got them clean until our dog arrived and one month later, we have the greasy smears over the entire floor.

The smears don't show in a cell phone photo:( In fact, after dark with interior lighting only, they don't show much. We see the smearing and paw prints in bright sunlight, primarily.

Thanks and I appreciate your suggestions!

Stone sealers often require reapplication. This can be every year or so for the first few years...etc. I would reach out to the company that did the work or visit the website for the sealer and find out your reapplication schedule.

I've read the application document and it states it is EASILY stripped using a chemical stripper. That tells me all I need to know - it is NOT a permanent finish. It is temporary (like a polish...but better).

By the sounds of it, the floor has dulled (absolutely normal) with use and then a dog was introduced (with oily foot prints) and these glossier prints are now visual (absolutely normal with a duller surface).

It is probably time to give this thing a REALLY good clean...and then reapply. This is going to be your maintenance schedule for many years. Short term sealants have this history. Permanent finishes (like epoxy) do not....they are exactly that = permanent.

Thank you for all the info! Our installer is coming in today to take a look and go over cleaning and maintenance issues with us.

An update...installer suggested Murphy's Oil Soap but it hasn't lifted the film. The floors are clean, but smeared with the dog prints. Any other ideas?

BTW these floors were installed in June of 2017

Murphy's Oil soap on concrete....hmmmm. Interesting. It is an oily soap that is used on WAXED wood (like in a church from the 1500's). Personally I think Murphy's Oil is the biggest scam since snake oil.

Start with rubbing Alcohol $1/litre (quart if you are in the USA) at any pharmacy. See if it will lift the oil prints. I still think this needs to be stripped/cleaned and then a new finish applied - one that is better at doing the job than the one applied at time of installation.

Or you live with it as long as possible and decide what to do in a few years.

I too have stained and sealed Concrete floors for a wedding venue. They are about 8 months old. I made the mistake of mopping with Murphy’s Oil soap. What a HUGE mistake! I now have 5,500 sq ft of flooring with a layer of oily film I can’t get off. Everything shows up and my beautiful high gloss is gone. Any suggestions on how to take this off short of renting a buffer. Thanks!

Rubbing alcohol - with LOTS AND LOTS of ventilation!!!! And I mean LOTS of VENTILATION. Every window open. Fans going. And you still need to work with a "buddy" (think swimming). Rubbing alcohol cuts through most cleans while LEAVING the finish below intact.

The other option = Windex Original. The odour is less offensive than alcohol and the fumes are less dangers. Personally I get ill (dizzy, nausea) when working with more than just a little bit of alcohol. The Windex Original is much easier to work with.

And with 5,500sf, you have a choice: weeks and weeks and weeks of hands and knees scrubbing in 2ft x 2ft squares....or rent a buffer. The choice is yours. I know which one I would go with.

But first things first: a bottle of rubbing alcohol at the drug store = $1.99/Litre/quart. A bottle of Windex Original = $2.69 at Walmart. Go ahead and purchase one of each and then figure out (hands and knees, trial and error) which one works best.

And please throw out Murphy's Oil soap (which is for wood....and even then it is an absolute NO-NO for wood floors BTW!). If you had used it on wood, you would have the same problem...but at least you could have started a class action lawsuit.

Thank you for all of the good advice. I’m not much on getting on my hands and knees hours on end. A buffer it is!

When there's a nasty spill on the highway, they use Dawn dishwashing detergent to clean it up. Give it a try, please.

I just bought a large bottle of Dawn. I’m going to give it a try. I’ll let you know if it works. Thanks!

I had similar thoughts, if Murphy's Oil Soap is leaving a residue, you need something stronger to cut it. Two ideas presented: a solvent (alcohol) or stronger detergent (Dawn). Other detergents might work as well. A floor cleaner like Spic & Span, made up a little stronger than listed on the label, might do the job with fewer suds compared to Dawn.

Well, no need to throw away cleaning products...surely there's something it can be used for, or give it away to someone who wants it. :-D

i have the same problem. My concrete floors were finished with a poly-crylic high gloss sealer (by Old World Concrete). This was done about a month ago (April 2020). I have high traffic in certain areas of the house, and two dogs. The people prints do not show up, however, I have oily dog prints EVERYWHERE on my beautifully shiny floors, I have used hot water, windex, ZEP ph balanced floor cleaner, alcohol, dawn, Bono for stone, microfiber clothes, sponge mops, string mops, hands and knees with a scrubbie pad, EVERYTHING! Once mopped and while wet, the floors are just as beautiful as they were a month ago after the sealant was put down, however, once dry, the paw prints come back as if I never even mopped, scrubbed, cleaned there in the first place. I’m thinking about mopping once last time over them, let them dry, then add a high gloss wax over them to see if that doesn’t reduce or eliminate the prints. ZEP make a “high traffic, high gloss“ floor wax that I used to use at another house and it works perfectly with no stripping needed when it’s time to reapply, I think I will have to give this a go and see if this doesn’t clear up the prints, I have run out of options here!!

This was supposed to be attached to my post about the oily dog prints on the floors

If I had a vehicle that leaked oil onto my floor, I think I would be more concerned about the leak than the floor.

Have you considered; changing your dogs diet, cleaning it’s paws?

Hot water mop might help your floor. What have you tried?

@Jim, dog paws are like our hands and feet. They naturally have an oil on them. Ever notice how a handprint is noticeable on a stainless steel refrigerator door? Same thing with dogs paws.

I clean with water, vinegar, and a touch of Dawn. My cleaning lady taught me this and specifically said Dawn takes off the oily dog and barefoot prints. You can look up concentrations online. Mostly water, then vinegar, a squirt of Dawn. You can add some essential oil if you want better fragrance than vinegar. I also read castile soap can be used instead of Dawn.

Hello all, our contractor poured new cement early morning 7am and didn't account for any walkway or areas for us to walk in the house. 10pm rolls around and we need to go home.. So our contractor told us we can walk on the edges but only with our socks (no shoes). Then these "footprints" started becoming visible and noticeable. I assume these are oil deposits from our feet? I've tried scrubbing with water and soap... And it's still there :( Please help.. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!

Here is another attached pic.

Where are these in the house? Did anyone mention a few nights in a hotel while the floors cured? Do you know that fresh concrete should NOT be cleaned too soon?

Hi SJ, this is outside in the courtyard. We were under the impression that they were going to leave one clear access to the entry point, but his crew went ahead and poured the whole lot at once. He said by 10 pm, it should be okay to walk on the edges with our shoes off (we both had our socks on). I know that now.. I sprayed the lot down and took a cloth and lightly scrubbed the prints hoping it would disappear. It's been a little over a month now. We did 2700 sq ft and to have these print stains are sooo frustrating. Any help/tips are appreciated. Thank you so much!

You could always grind the surface down (the ENTIRE lot). The prints are now 'in' the concrete. I'm guessing the weight of the foot/body caused a slight change in the SURFACE of the concrete. This would have shifted the direction of the surface aggregate to have a different look. Kinda like vacuum lines in a carpet. The direction change of the pile changes the appearance of the carpet.

When finishing concrete the pros sweep it or 'brush it' to give it a specific look. I'm guessing your body weight disturbed this brushing enough to cause a visual change.

Technically there is nothing wrong with the concrete...but it is an eyesore.