Copyright: [email protected] 1 Acid Etch and Removal T.A.G.S. (The Anti Graffiti Syposium) Saskatoon...

Copyright: [email protected] 1

Acid Etch and Removal

T.A.G.S. (The Anti Graffiti Syposium)Saskatoon Canada

13 – 14th Sept 2007

Martin Giles


Acid Etch and RemovalLet me introduce myself!

Name; Martin GilesNationality; swenglishAge; Born Cambridge England 1962Home; Malmö SwedenLanguages; English / Swedish

15 years working within the marketing and advertising branch, my specialty was and still is event marketing. 4 years of which was running a partnershipIdeas Worldwide AB, an advertising and event-marketing agency in Malmö

Sweden.

For the past 10 years I have been free leasing, working for different companies worldwide working in marketing and helping to prevent

vandalism.


Topics of Discussion

Indentify - Removal - Protect What is Etching / Scratchiti

Tools of the trade

Where to find it

Who is doing it

Costs

Problems of removal

History of removal

Removal systems

Glass polishing

Myidea

Protective Films

Other products

Glass Vandalism


Indentifying the ProblemWhat is Scratchiti / Dutch Graffiti

Scratching graffiti into the surface using a sharpened tool or object!


Indentifying the Problem


What Acid EtchEtch graffiti into a surface using an acid solution!




Tools of the TradeScratching



Tools of the TradeAcid Etching



Tools of the TradeAcid:

How does it work and is it danagerous?

Email from Armour Etch:

According to what I was told but the chemist,

we do not put any HF into the recipe when creating Armour Etch. There is however a .5% (that's half of one percent) presence ofHF from the Bifluorides in combination.

Hydrofluoric (HF) acid, one of the strongest inorganic acids, is used mainly for industrial purposes (e.g., glass etching, metal cleaning, electronics manufacturing). HF acid also may be found in home rust removers.



Tools of the TradeAcid: Is it danagerous?



Different kinds of damage

Fully tagged were the new scratches make the older ones deeper




Multi Line done by a lava stone!

Multi Line done by goingover the tag many timesWith a stone or plug maybe!




Single Line scratchesMade with maybe drillBit or a scriber




Homemade Acid etch mop Acid Etch applied with a sponge




Wiped from thebottle onto a rag!



What kind of Vandal does this kind of Vandalism!

Toys with very little or no graffiti skills!

Taggers / Gangs wanting to get their name up quick and for it to stay up!

Taggers bored with spray paint!

More turned to Scratchiti then acid!


Removing the Problem

The main problem with removing vandalism from glass was the time is took!

A store front with a glass window measuring 4m x 3m with a long scratch end to end or a large tag could take 5 to 6

hour to grind and polish!

Problems to romove the damage



Problems to romove the damage

Often or glass the damage could be on old annealed glass were grinding too hard or to near the edge could crack the glass.

Grinding glass that had deep scratches could cause trenching (deep distortion)



Different kinds of glassAnnealed glass is the common glass that breaks into large, jagged shards that can cause serious injury, hence annealed glass is considered a hazard in architectural applications. Building codes in many parts

of the world restrict the use of annealed glass in areas where there is a high risk of breakage and injury, for example in bathrooms, in door panels, fire exits and at low heights in schools.

Toughened glass (also known as tempered glass) is a type of safety glass that has increased strength

and will usually shatter in small, square pieces when broken. It is used when strength, thermal

resistance and safety are important considerations. Toughened glass is typically four to six times the strength of annealed glass. Although toughened

glass is most prone to breakage via edge damage, breakage can also occur from impacts in the centre

of the glass pane.

Toughened glass in a vandalized phone booth in Britain



History of removalScratchiti Meets Its Match in Shane Hong's Invention

Prof. Shane Hong, professor of mechanical engineering, who has created a "scratchiti buster," a device that applies a flame to the window's surface, melting the glass to erase scratches and repolish’s the surface. Prof. Hong has created a prototype that

includes a small propane torch to be controlled by a mechanized arm that would attach to a subway car window. The operator could then re-locate the arm from one window

to another. Dr. Hong's scratchiti-buster directs intensive heat near the scratch marks, melting a thin

layer into liquid, which changes the glass's viscosity. As the glass cools down, the surface tension evens out the indentations made by the scratching. Once cooled, the

glass is as smooth and even as it was originally, without grinding or polishing



Removal Systems

There has been many different systems on the market promising to give perfect results!

As everything in life some work some don’t!

Some have invested in amazing machines to do a simple jobs!

When it comes down to get, its to grind glass and then bring it back to its shine1

Here is a few of the systems I have worked with!



Removal Systems

Basically the first thing you have to do is grind the damage away.

The most common way to do this is with 3M trizact grinding pads,

There are 4 to 5 different grades, depending on the damage!



Removal SystemsThen came the next stageReturning the glass back To a high gloss finish!

This is SRP Glass RestorationSystem.



Removal Systems

Another way is to polish the glass back using polishing

pads and a polishing compound!



My ideaThe industry needed to be pulled together!

There was scratch removal companies starting up and thenclosing down as quickly as they started!

There was distrust among the building management companies, as well as the transport companies!

The costs were not leveling out, just going through the roof; as soon as the glass was repaired it was hit again!

The glass protection companies offering polyester film were having a problem because budgets were being used up for repair!

I decided to look for a new system. Time to bring it together!



My ideaI needed to find a way to grind dry instead of wet, it seemed that

wet grinding caused the 3M pads to wear out very quickly.

This could be a problem, starting with a new pad half way thourgh a grind could cause distoration!

I also needed to find a quicker way to polish the glass! I tried many different ways and find if I slowed my grinder down to

around 1500 RPM it polished faster!

I also tried some dry industrial sanding pads at a lot lower speed which worked better!

The last stage I needed to do was to incorparate the protective film!


Protection against the Problem

Working for the brand Vandal Shield for many years,I understood the in’s and out’s of Anti Vandalism films!

Vandal Shield was the only film really designed for anti- scratch graffiti with its 3 ply polester film!



Fixing some samples, I was going to send out to a customer I placed Vandal Shield over a area of glass I had been

grinding earlier for an experiment, and find it made the fining marks

disappear!



www.vandalshield.com


Acid Etch and Removal

Question Time


Thank You

Contact details:

Martin Giles

E mail: [email protected]

www.myidea.se

Tel: +46 40 6302573

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