Father Time puts his mark on everything. Everything wears out. Take, for instance, think about the buildings. They are affected by the sun’s ultraviolet light, the rain’s acidity and general dirtiness, and the temperature extremes of summer and winter. Unless the facade consists of brick, stone, glass, or another “naked” surface, it has paint or another similar coating to protect it. And since this paint must abide by the same physical laws of entropy; it must be refreshed when it begins to look tired. Refreshing the facade is a two-step process. The initial step is to prepare the surface, and the second is to apply the paint. In San Antonio coatings have to be suited to the Texas weather. Likewise, San Antonio sandblasting prepares the surface properly.

Homeowners on a small budget may prefer to climb a ladder to scrape peeling paint and wash off loose dirt. But for a commercial building of any size, hand preparation is not a sensible option. The most sensible solution is generically referred to as sandblasting. The sandblasting process consists of aiming a high-pressure blast of fine particles at the surface to be cleaned or etched. Since the use of sand has been determined to cause the lung disease silicosis, it is not used as frequently now as when the term sandblasting came into use. There are many other materials that are now used instead. These materials include steel grit, copper slag, walnut shells, powdered abrasives, and even bits of coconut shell. A common method of cleaning metal and concrete surfaces is shot blasting. In this method, the shot is mixed with water as it is blasted at the surface. The shot and water are recaptured so that the shot can be separated from the water and debris to be reused. Another innovative material is dry ice. When dry ice is used, there is no need to be concerned with recapturing the blasting material because it just disappears into the atmosphere. Sandblasting is a means of cleaning the “naked” surface that will never be coated as well as preparing the surface for painting.

If the cleaned building is a painted building, the time has come to coat the surface. The first coat often is not paint. There are many types of undercoating that may be needed to further prepare the surface. If the surface is pitted or cracked, a filler can restore the original smoothness or planned texture. Another undercoating that will further prepare the facade is in the primer category. The purpose of primer is to prepare the surface to receive the paint covering. Then, when the surface is ready, the actual painting can occur.

Keeping up the outer surfaces of our structures, whether a cozy bungalow or a towering skyscraper, is vitally important. The first effect of neglect is a degrading of in the appearance. If the outward appearance of the structure is allowed to decline further, the building will drop in value. But the paint or other coating serves an even more important purpose. If neglected for a long period, the physical structure will begin to deteriorate.