Ulrich Instead of anti graffiti why not tax the spray paint to cover the cost of graffiti removal? The clowns who fowl others' property like this may think twice about it if they had to pay $100.00 for a can of paint.
Instead of anti graffiti why not tax the spray paint to cover the cost of graffiti removal? The clowns who fowl others' property like this may think twice about it if they had to pay $100.00 for a can of paint.
What do you think the paint manufacturers will think of that idea?
Well, therein lies the rub. People want a protective coating that repels everything, but also want to be able to paint over it. By nature, if the anti-stick properties are in place, then paint would not adhere to the surface-- just like graffiti spray paint won’t.
That said, there are several ways to remove the protective coating if necessary, but takes some effort.
Paul of Covington How do the anti-graffiti coatings affect future re-painting of the cars? Can they be removed or neutralized?
How do the anti-graffiti coatings affect future re-painting of the cars? Can they be removed or neutralized?
Sand blasting will take care of alot of coatings. I know alot of OTR trucking companies are looking into these coating. They are tired of their equipment looking like crap when they get pulled from customers yards from IDIOTS with a spray can.
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"A stranger's just a friend you ain't met yet." --- Dave Gardner
Typically the product costs including application for non-sacrificial industrial coatings can range from $2 to $4 per square foot. Large applications are less expensive and small/difficult applications are more expensive.
The benefit once applied is that with the GPA-300 product, no harsh chemicals need to be used to remove graffiti, but simply a towel or a cold pressure wash for larger tags. Also, the product has excellent non-stick characteristics so labels, stickers and fly-posters don’t adhere to the protected surface.
I've seen some freight cars (primarily certain series owned by or leased to the ExxonMobil Corporation) that have black rectangles around the reporting marks and numbers. While I really have no clue as to what this may be for, it is conceivable that there is an anti-graffiti coating inside this rectangle, intended to keep the reporting mark and number visible. I suspect that this would be all that the railroads would really care about (other than the trespasser/safety aspect of taggers on their property). It's not that they wouldn't care about the rest of the car; it is, as others have suggested, probably too expensive.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
There are 2 basic categories of anti-graffiti coatings: Sacrificial and Non-sacrificial.
Sacrificial coatings come off after one to several graffiti removals.
Non-sacrificial coatings are permanent and repel graffiti for multiple removals.
Within the non-sacrificial group of coatings, there are a variety of products, but usually they are comprised of 2 component (usually urethane) and single component products.
Of the myriad of coatings available, few have independent 3rd party testing, case studies, governmental approvals, longevity in the market place and graffiti can be removed without the use of harsh chemicals.
There is quite a bit of technical information available in the Internet for anti-graffiti coatings. Basically they prevent any paint from bonding to the factory finish once it has been applied. The one question I wonder about is the cost of these coatings. If you paint a new railcar, what is the added cost to add an anti-graffiti coating to the factory paint? If there is significant extra cost, I wonder if the freight railroads would simply live with the graffiti rather than spend the money on anti-graffiti coatings.
Some of the anti-graffiti coatings are sacrificial, meaning that they must be pressure washed to remove the graffiti along with a portion of the anti-graffiti coating. And then more anti-graffiti coating must be applied over the original coating. So, I would tend to conclude that these anti-graffiti coatings and their maintenance would be deemed too costly for freight cars.
On thing to consider is that the availability of these anti-graffiti coatings might inspire the making of laws requiring such coatings in order to protect the aesthetic sensibilities of the general public. The freight railroads might be concerned about that development.
I'm guessing here, but I'd think that such finishes would be to spray paint what Teflon is to food on non-stick cooking surfaces.
I'd also bet that right now such finishes are a little pricey, but that you may well see the prices go down as more and more potential graffiti victims start to use it.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Within Jim Wrinn's "From the Editor" column on page 4 of the Trains issue for January 2011 (that I received in November 2010 !!), I find mention of "anti-graffiti coatings for passenger cars." Having seen, like us all, the scourge of such maliciousness on cars, railyards, and ROWs, I'd sure like to know about what kind of coatings can deter graffiti. Can any of you all educate me? Thanks very much in advance.
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