Circuit City - Paint Removal

CIRCUIT CITY
	Peel Away 7® Used to Remove Chemically Resistant Coating Strips Elastomeric Coating from Smooth & Split-Faced Brick.

Removing chemically resistant coatings can be a contractor's worst nightmare. Epoxies, urethanes, and elastomerics have bedeviled many a removal effort. Robert Fuller, Lakeside Interior Contracting of Maumee, OH, should know. Lakeside was selected to remove a stubborn elastomeric coating from the natural and split-faced brick exterior of a retail electronics store in Toledo, OH.

Originally applied more than five years ago to protect the masonry, the 20 - 40 ml thick elastomeric coating had failed, with potential for significant substrate damage. It was essential that the coating be removed to preserve the integrity of the brick.

Sandblasting was not an option. Grains of sand bounced harmlessly off the elastomeric at distances that would not harm the brick, but coming in close enough to penetrate the coating could seriously damage the brick beneath.

"This coating was like kryptonite," reported Fuller. "It appeared impervious to just about everything we threw at it during patch testing, including a variety of commercially available chemical removal products."

With one exception - Peel Away® 7 from Dumond Chemicals, Inc. Outperforming all others during patch testing, Peel Away® 7 demonstrated a strip rate of 98% following one application.

Peel Away® 7 is a unique, safe system designed to remove paint and chemically resistant coatings including oil and latex paints, epoxies, urethanes, elastomerics, chlorinated rubber, marine, automotive and aerospace.

A poultice system, the product is designed for use with the fibrous laminated cloth provided by the manufacturer. The paste and cloth work together for optimum performance while controlling evaporation. While not all projects require use of the specially designed cloth, it provided maximum product efficacy here.

The paste was sprayed onto the brick, moving smoothly through thin tubing and adhering without running to form a tacky, light layer over the elastomeric coating.

The Peel Away® cloth was then smoothed into place over the paste, with the crew working from the top down.

Once covered with the cloth, the paste was left to dwell for about 24 hours. Following dwell time, the cloth was "peeled away," and with it, the bulk of the paste and stubborn elastomeric coating.

A power wash with clean water was the final step. Any remaining paste and coating were easily washed away, revealing the bare brick beneath. The run off - a thin, milky liquid - washed easily from the grooves between blocks and crevices on the stone face.

The results were immediate and obvious. With one application, Peel Away® 7 safely and easily stripped the stone of the elastomeric coating that had resisted all other removal efforts.

Because Peel Away® 7 is free of hazardous chemicals and solvents, containment needs were minimized. Run off and debris were collected in poly sheeting for disposal as per state and local regulations.

The building's entire exterior was stripped in about 12 weeks using Peel Away® 7.

For further information about this and other paint removal and masonry restoration products, contact: Dumond Chemicals, Inc., 1501 Broadway, New York, NY 10036. PHONE: 212/869-6350, FAX: 212/764-5762 or visit www.peelaway.com.