DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES ON HOW TO REMOVE PAINT FROM LANDMARKS

If you want to know how to remove paint, we break it all down.

Whether it’s due to irresponsible and negative graffiti, or if a building needs a new coat to look great again, removing paint is not an easy task.

There are many different methods to safely remove paint.

Ensuring that it doesn’t damage whatever is underneath.

Being delicate with the paint is key in most situations.

You don’t want to damage a famous landmark that has been painted over maliciously.

You want to avoid damaging things like glass panes and windows.

These are common targets for graffiti and other forms of illegal painting.

We’ll be discussing a couple of different methods on how to remove paint from our brick and stone cleaning experiences.

Commonly used methods for safely removing paint from delicate surfaces that you want to preserve.

Heat is one of the common elements used to remove paint.

This technique safely removes paint from a surface.

This is not the safety nor the most environmentally friendly.

Early heat-related paint removal tools used open flames and other dangerous sources of high heat in order to remove paint.

If you must use a heat gun, then keep in mind that toxic fumes can be released.

This is common if you are trying to remove paint that contains lead.

You also want to avoid using a heat gun on any indoor or sensitive materials that could burn.

Use heat as a last resort, but try and avoid it entirely if possible.

Chemical paint removal has been available for a long time and they are usually a safe and effective way in how to remove paint from a surface.

All paint strippers work incredibly quickly so it’s great for emergency situations such as clearing up some graffiti that was painted overnight on your store window.

However, there are some dangers associated with using strong paint strippers.

For starters, paint strippers are flammable so they can easily catch on fire if you aren’t careful.

They also contain methylene chloride which can burn your skin and eyes if you’re exposed to the substance itself.

They do not work well on wooden surfaces so if you are preserving a famous landmark or trying to strip paint from a wooden surface, it’s best to avoid using a paint stripper.

Some paint strippers even have carcinogen warnings, so make sure to read the labels and use the right tools before you use a paint stripper.

Scraping via hand can take a long time especially if there is a lot of paint to remove.

You will also need to sharpen the blade after some use to ensure its sharp enough to continue scraping away the paint.

It’s also possible to purchase vacuum attachments that contain all of the dust that is created by scraping away paint.

It may also help to spray a fine mist of water onto the paint itself to contain the dust.

Scraping is a simple way to remove paint but will take a long time, so it’s not recommended for larger tasks.

You can be incredibly delicate with scraping paint, so it makes a good option for famous landmarks and commercial buildings with fine surfaces.

A mechanical paint grinder works similarly to a scraper but has a vacuum attached to it to contain all of the debris.

These are also safe for how to remove paint with lead in and can remove all of the paint from a surface incredibly quickly.

However, since they are difficult to control and will literally grind the surface down to remove the paint.

It’s not recommended to use one of these tools for delicate surfaces such as a historic landmark.

Lastly, there is the option of using an infrared paint removal tool.

These use heat much like a heat gun but they do not go over certain temperatures.

This means that the heat is more controlled.

There is no chance of something catching on fire like wood.

It also means that lead paints do not turn in to a toxic vapour.

That could cause harm to your health.

Instead, an infrared tool works by warming the paint on a surface.

Then it loosens and can be peeled off easily using a scraper.

It’s a little slower than other methods.

The heating takes a while and the infrared heating devices are not very large.

This means they need to be re-positioned constantly.