“Krystal Klean pressured washed and painted Ring Power Corporation’s 54,000 square foot shop area at our Ocala heavy equipment repair facility. This job required extra coordination and planning because the area was still needed during our regular hours of operation.
The painting and pressure washing included the ceiling, which is exposed to corrugated metal. Krystal Klean did an exceptional job organizing the work to limit interruption to our daily operations. We were concerned about water from the pressure washer getting on our equipment and damaging electrical items.
The project was controlled so well we did not have any problems with the water. Although the Krystal Klean team worked around our schedule, a portion of the work had to be completed after business hours. The project from start to finish was managed and organized very professionally.
The finish work on the painting and attention to details exceeded our expectations. Krystal Klean’s team and management did everything to make sure Ring Power was a satisfied customer. I would recommend them to anyone that wants quality work.”
– Dennis Steed Sr. Vice President Ring Power Corporation
A History of Industrial Coating
Krystal Klean began over 20 years ago as a painting company. Over the years we have expanded our capabilities to many other categories of work, but one thing that sets us apart is our industrial coatings service. We recently acquired Belet’s Painting which added 26 new experienced commercial and industrial painters to our team.
Our painting, coating, and sealing services operate under the internationally recognized ASTM Standards.
Painting, coating, sealing and waterproofing projects are coordinated through a partnership between Krystal Klean and Product suppliers. Material manufacturers include Sherwin Williams, PPG, Benjamin Moore, BASF, and Dow Corning.
There are many steps involved in completing a high quality painting or waterproofing project for our industrial customers.
The first step in an industrial coating project is for our team to create a detailed customized proposal that includes all aspects of the project. This includes comprehensive site inspections, PH testing of your surfaces, adhesion testing of the planned paint/coating, along with final approval of the project plan from a paint manufacturer’s representative.
A project begins with comprehensive surface preparation, cleaning and inspection. If we identify any issues with the structure or building envelope, those should be addressed before the painting and sealing is done.
Prior to mobilization, a site pre-construction meeting is scheduled with the owner’s representative, applicator (Krystal Klean) and manufacturer’s representative to review mock-ups, materials, protection of in-place conditions, surface preparation, inspection benchmarks, application requirements, and desired final results.
Paint manufacturer inspections typically occur at bi-weekly intervals or as required by the manufacturer to attest that the design performance of the system applied conforms to the specs of the warranty requirements.
Materials are stored in accordance with manufacturer and customer instructions. Krystal Klean technicians follow manufacturer recommendations for application and cure times while taking weather into consideration.
Krystal Klean will protect all areas in proximity to working areas where paint, coatings, or sealants are not desired, protecting non-painted surfaces from spillage, overspray, and dripping. Spraying will not occur in windy conditions, to mitigate liability of overspray.
Surfaces are pressure washed using up to 3500 PSI to remove surface contaminants which might otherwise affect adhesion of coatings being applied.
Krystal KIean has excellent past performance references for painting, coating and sealing surfaces including concrete, stone, masonry, brick, EIFS, stucco, wood, metal, and asphalt.
The process of coating a metal tank or a metal surface is much different than coating a concrete building. For example, a metal surface needs to be carefully prepared to remove all corrosion, rust and mineral buildup before the surface is primed, painted and sealed.
Industrial coating requires the right product and the right EXPERTISE
An important aspect of every industrial coating project is the continuity of business for our customers. They need a clean, coated, safe facility, and usually our customers can’t shut down the business during the project.
This is where our flexibility and range of approaches becomes a big advantage. We understand how to plan a project to minimize the operational impact on the business, while also completing the project as quickly as possible without sacrificing quality.
One particularly important question is around the type of paint, coating or sealing products used. For example, self-cleaning or low maintenance coatings can lower the frequency which you need to pressure wash your building in the future. These hydrophobic coatings shed water; the dirt sticks to the water keeping the painted surface virtually dirt free.
Best practice calls for using top of the line paint and coating material, with a minimum of a twenty-year warranty. When completing projects like this the largest expense is labor. With that in mind, it’s best to choose a package of products that have a 20-year warranty.
In order for material warranties to be honored, building owners must clean the building annually and inspect the waterproofing system for failures. Catching the small failures early minimizes water intrusion issues.
Another warranty concern that we keep in mind during a project or during an annual inspection is the trees and landscaping around the building. Buildings should be free and clear of landscaping intrusions at all times, such as a tree branch leaning close to the building. Failure to ensure landscaping is kept at least 10 feet from the building surface can result in a voided warranty, because this can cause the waterproofing and coatings to fail.
Another important detail is the relationship between the paint and the waterproofing method used. In general, paint is designed to coat and protect surfaces, and give it aesthetic appeal.
Waterproofing is different than just painting. Waterproofing coatings are applied much thicker and are designed to flex with your building or structure.
Your building does flex, and will its entire life. Paint is not designed to flex with the building. This means when your painted building flexes your paint cracks. These cracks allow moisture in.
The point of waterproofing is to give a building a seamless barrier that doesn’t allow moisture in but also allows the building to breath and move. If the building can’t breathe it can develop serious moisture build up on the inside, causing many of the interior mold/mildew issues we see today.
Coating your building properly and doing comprehensive building inspections annual will save you money compared to the expense of fixing rotting wood siding, spalling concrete, and interior mold.
