March 25th, 2010
A Quick Guide To traffic Paint
The Basics Of Traffic Paint
All traffic paint contains a lot of pigment. Pigment is the colored solid material left on the pavement after the liquids have evaporated and/or been absorbed into the pavement. Contractors are usually surprised to learn that there is a frequently wide range in the percentage of pigment used by different parking lot striping paint manufacturers.
It’s also important to be aware that some manufacturers use different solvents in their paint. Therefore, some brands may not be chemically compatible with other brands of paint. Incompatible paints may not “mix” together if combine in the same pail. For example, Brand X alkyd striping paint may not combine with Brand Y or Brand Z alkyd striping paint. Wise contractors always ask their dealer for this type of information.
By comparing the net weights of similar types of paint made by various manufacturers, you’ll instantly see which paint offers the most “solids.” That will be the paint that weighs the most. Of course, the heavily pigmented paints are unlikely to be the cheapest.
Update: The Environment and Traffic Paint
These days environmental issues are at the top of many people and agency’s priority list. With that being said paints have continued to get restructured to be more friendly with the environment in mind. Parking Lot Striping traffic paint is no exception to this. Solids are being reduced and pigments are being reduced in order to comply with local air quality laws. There is a big push here in California to create environmentally friendly paints for parking lot and parking structure applications. These new paints can be hit and miss in terms of there coverage so the best advice on them is to have a good solid relationship with your paint rep and discuss the new products before you buy.
Best Traffic Paint Products and Dealers
We believe there is a wide range of criteria in selecting paint, other than price. Some important points to consider are list below:
- Workability; consistently and how well it flows with your equipment.
- Long life/good “wear” and color retention characteristics
- Professional expertise from your dealer; you need good advice from someone in your locality when you enter the striping business.
- Credit terms/delivery service; be sure to find a high quality paint supplier who can help you in many ways.
About Empire Parking Lot Services
Empire Parking Lot Services is a Southern California parking lot maintenance company that takes the paving / parking lot maintenance industry very seriously. We strive to constantly learn about new products and new technologies affecting our wide array of services including asphalt repair, concrete repair, sealcoating and parking lot striping. If you have a question or comment on this article feel free to leave it or contact us by clicking on any of the links in this blog.
www.Empirepls.com
Tags: Parking lot Striping, traffic paint, traffic striping
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February 26th, 2010
What you Need to Know about Traffic Paint
The Good Stuff in the Paint is the Bad Stuff in the Environment.
All traffic paint contains pigment. Pigment is the colored solid material left on the pavement after the liquids have evaporated and/or been absorbed into the pavement. Contractors are usually surprised to learn that there is a frequently wide range in the percentage of pigment used by different manufacturers. The bad news however is that manufacturers are taking more and more of the solids and solvents out of these products making them less effective then their predecessors. It’s not because they are trying to sabotage anyone it’s just they have to comply with local laws for air quality and those laws deem what acceptable levels of solids and solvents can be placed in those paints.
It’s also important to be aware that some manufacturers use different solvents in their paint. Therefore, some brands may not be chemically compatible with other brands of paint. Incompatible paints may not “mix” together if combine in the same pail. For example, Brand X alkyd striping paint may not combine with Brand Y or Brand Z alkyd striping paint. Wise contractors always ask their dealer for this type of information. This can also apply to paint on the ground. Be sure to hire a parking lot Painting contractor that has the foresight to know what products can go or what. Often times we see where a customers will “paint the curbs in house” to save a few bucks. This is where the nightmare begins. When incompatible products are placed over one another the only real solution is total paint removal via sandblasting which can get costly.
Quality Traffic Paint = Quality Parking Lot Striping
By comparing the net weights of similar types of paint made by various manufacturers, you’ll instantly see which paint offers the most “solids.” That will be the paint that weighs the most. Of course, the heavily pigmented paints are unlikely to be the cheapest. Furthermore, in a recessed economy we have noticed that most people are not willing to pay for the better product.
We try to urge every new customer to ask lots of questions from there contractors about paint compatibility. Quite often a cheap job ends up costing them a small fortune in the long run.
Our criteria in selecting paint, other than price:
- Workability
- Consistently
- Long life & good “wear”
- Color retention characteristics
- Ability to stand up to hot tire
- Wash-ability
Trust Our Parking Lot Repair Services
Empire PLS has established a crew and special equipment dedicated to addressing these small jobs. This allowed us to offer parking lot painting and other services including repairing potholes in parking lots efficiently at a friendly price. Empire-PLS is fully licensed and fully insured. We are parking lot maintenance experts so, if it’s in a parking lot, we can fix it!
Call us today at (714) 633-0300 if your parking lot needs parking lot painting!
Tags: Parking lot Painting
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