STEAM CLEANING / PAINT REMOVAL
This property is a heavy grade of pebble dash, that has failing paint and coatings. I was contacted to remove the failing coatings, prior to a re-application of a more suitable coating being applied after some repair work to the pebble dash coating.
FAILING COATINGS
The previous coating was failing in a major way, from sunlight, age & weather damage.
PLAN OF ACTION
The correct approach for this application, was high pressure steam cleaning at 120 degrees plus with the use of a paint / coating softener. Jobs of this nature can be a real challenge for two reasons:
1. The heavy texture of the pebble dash, as this makes the surface being cleaned three dimensional. It’s not like removing a coating from a flat surface, it has to be approached from many angles.
2. The sheer size of the property & the access to all the levels. Because of the temperature & pressures required to remove these coatings, the scaffolding has to be placed far enough back from the buildings edge, in order to allow for the length of the tooling required and for clear visibility at all times.
METHOD
With high pressure steam cleaning, the objective is to get heat into the surface being cleaned /removed, this works in two ways:
- You need the heat to soften the coating, so that the pressure can remove it.
- Attention needs to be paid in keeping a working area up to temperature, so that you are warming the surface ahead of where you’re working. A chemical softener is also used in certain areas, to reduce the dwell time, in the more sensitive areas of the building.