Restoration Cleaning - The 10 Commandments

Restoration Cleaning - The 10 Commandments

Restoration cleaning of buildings would be to the mobile pressure-washing industry what the Himalayas are to mountaineers, or what NY is to performers. If you can make it there, you may make it anywhere.



Here are a few explanations why restoration cleaning is major-league ball:

The staining probably started before you're born. It's hard; it's thick. It's often manufactured from multiple contaminants.  The surface that's in the grip of these stains is frequently fragile, damaged or decayed. It might be like trying to scour stains off eggshells. The buildings are usually locally, nationally or internationally famous. Your cleaning effort will get media scrutiny usually reserved for politicians. Just like in rock climbing, mistakes could be costly and often irreversible.

These factors and much more make restoration cleaning a combination of art, science, prize fighting and tightrope walking. The rewards are excellent, too. Successful restoration of early 19th or 20th century churches, train depots or other landmarks not merely makes tremendous bullet-points for company resumes, a restoration is also a considerable contribution to the betterment of the communities where we all live. Listed below are 10 "commandments" for staying on the straight and narrow way to successful restoration cleaning.

1. Thou shalt positively identify every substrate on the building.

It isn't as easy since it sounds. Beneath the best of circumstances, polished granite can be taken for marble, or limestone for sandstone. When the stone is covered with 80 years of carbon staining and bird droppings, it's even more complicated. Consequences for using inappropriate treatments range from ineffective to disastrous. Get a specialist from the local university if you have to. If you are not confident enough to stake your company's livelihood on your own ID, get help.

2. Thou shalt use a proprietary cleaner from an established company that backs up its products with literature, customer support and job-site and specification-writing assistance.

Just about the most important ingredients of a restoration cleaner isn't in the cleaner. It's the technical support that comes with the cleaner. A reputable company really wants to do a lot more than sell you a product. An established company wants one to succeed and will be sure you have the proper product and information to do so. Distributors, architects and contractors are all good sources for identifying such companies.

3. Thou shalt religiously follow all safety precautions in the merchandise literature.

Several guidelines are common sense, like "do not get this product in your eyes, or "wear protective clothing. Guidelines such as "don't cut or alter these cleaners with other chemicals, or with bleaches; toxic gases could be released" may keep people safe together with masonry.

Utilize the cleaner only as specified. Results may be unpredictable if you are using the cleaner for other things. By closely following all safety guidelines - written by field service experts - you maximize your chances for a successful, accident-free cleaning job.

4. Thou shalt test before you clean.

Try your cleaner on a hidden or out-of-the-way portion of the surface. Manufacturers usually recommend test-cleaning a 4 square-foot area. Test each kind of surface and each kind of stain. What dissolves one kind of stain might leave another untouched. What cleans beautifully on one surface might damage another. Not all mistakes in restoration cleaning can be fixed. Test under the same conditions you'll have for cleaning. Test-panels you made in August may not be accurate for cleaning in October when temperatures are lower. Clean with exactly the same dilution and equipment you tested. Be patient. Let interior test panels sit overnight before inspecting. Weeks is generally a minimum for test panels on the exteriors of large buildings.

5. Thou shalt protect everyone and everything not set for cleaning from contact with the cleaner, wind drift, fumes, residue and rinse water.

Through the 1997 exterior cleaning of Kansas City's Union Station (1914), workers cleaned at night by floodlight, and on weekends to safeguard nearby traffic. If necessary, divert automobile and foot traffic. Other protective techniques:

-- Use the highest possible dilution ratio with concentrates. Stronger isn't always better. Sometimes all that a stronger solution adds is damage to the masonry.

-- Protect nearby non-masonry items with polyethylene sheeting secured by masking tape.

-- Don't clean in high wind.

-- Shut down and cover air-handling equipment which could circulate fumes into or through the building. Inform building management and occupants concerning the cleaning operations.

--When high-pressure water-rinsing is called for, pre-rinse at low pressure first to eliminate almost all of the residue.

--Use pH monitoring paper or a calibrated meter to check on pH degrees of rinse water and masonry surfaces. Find out the city's requirements for handling the waste water generated by rinsing. The city's public works department is a good place to start. Ask about the city's industrial pretreatment program. The test panel stage is the time and energy to make these calls.

6. Thou shalt utilize the proper equipment.

Normally, you'll apply cleaners with brush, roller or spray applicator. If spray-applying, use low-pressure. High-pressure spray - above 50 psi - drives the cleaner directly into the masonry. Once in, it's difficult or impossible to rinse out. Stains result. It isn't an issue if you apply with low-pressure spray, brush or roller. Always use rubber or plastic buckets for cleaning solutions. High pressure is usually had a need to water-rinse the top after cleaning, though a low-pressure pre-rinse with clean water is a wonderful safety precaution. Use a fan-type spray tip no smaller than 15�. The ruthless sprayer should be with the capacity of 400 - 1200 psi at a flow rate of 4 - 6 gallons per minute. Its the flow rate, rather than the pressure, that governs the efficiency of the rinse. Be careful of delicate, aged or damaged masonry that may not stand up to high pressure rinses.

7. Thou shalt not let the cleaner "dry in."

Leaving the cleaner on the surface too long could cause it to "dry in" to the surface, causing stains and residue. Hot, windy conditions increase danger of drying in. Thoroughly prewetting the surface with clean water, when called for by product literature, helps prevent drying in. You may also reapply the merchandise for an additional minute or two if the first application is drying prematurely.

8. Thou shalt begin cleaning slowly and cautiously.

It's possible to meet an unexpected contaminant against which a successfully tested cleaner is ineffective. It generally does not happen often, however when it does, be ready to retest. Reputable manufacturers will be ready to lend their expertise as of this or any phase of the cleaning effort.

9. Thou shalt not clean in winter without special precautions.

It's best to clean when air and masonry surface temperatures are 40�F or above. Its best Never to clean when temperatures are below freezing or will be overnight.  Rope Access Facade Specialists Canary Wharf  be determined by chemical reactions to work. Cold slows the reaction. You may try to compensate by overapplying, and accidentally damage the masonry. When it's 32�F or below, rinse water can freeze in saturated masonry, causing more damage. However, during the cold months, if both air and masonry surface temperatures rise above 40� (check the masonry with a thermometer), just do it, with one of these precautions: Use hot water (180�) for prewetting and rinsing. Raising the top temperature improves the efficiency of the cleaner. Extend dwell time by 10 -20 percent, but don't allow the cleaner dry in. Consider scaffolding covered with polyethylene. Space heaters inside may warm the surface enough for effective cleaning. Workers used this technique during the 1987 - 88 winter restoration cleaning of america Capitol. A final caution - the test panels you did in warm weather won't be accurate for winter. Test in winter in the event that you clean in winter.

10. Thou shalt not go it alone.

Never make an effort to guess the right path through problems or questions. Your distributor, merchant or manufacturer's customer support are always pleased to help. The proper answer is usually just a phone call away.

The next step

Cleaning is normally just the first step in a restoration project. Old buildings often need consolidation and protective treatments on weakened, decayed brick or stone. Regarding New York's Trinity Church, conservators had to strip off layers of contaminants just so they could start to see the damage! When cleaning revealed the rosy NJ brownstone surface, workers applied stone-strengthening and water-repellent consolidation treatments.

Today's nearly 100 percent breathable water-repellents are way beyond the acrylic, paraffin and other film-forming water repellents of years back. Those products actually trapped water vapor within the masonry these were supposedly protecting, leading to cracking and spalling. Contemporary water repellents let vapor out without letting liquid in, and without changing the appearance of the masonry. These treatments might help ensure the results of your cleaning will be preserved for generations.