Steel roof decking is commonly found in manufacturing environments, such as power plants, food and pet food manufacturing facilities, marine production factories, and water treatment plants. Over time, whether as a result of manufacturing processes, bad surface prep, or normal wear and tear, coatings fail and corrosion can occur on these roof decks.Plants typically address roofing interiors as part of a commitment to ongoing continual maintenance in order to ensure structural integrity and avoid disruptions to the manufacturing process. Abrasive Blasting with Sponge Media provides a low-dust, low-rebound surface preparation solution for steel roof decking projects, minimizing plant shutdowns and providing long-lasting results.

Avoiding Shutdowns in Manufacturing Environments

In many cases, shutdowns cost manufacturing plants thousands (or even millions) of dollars per day when they need to stop production for maintenance. Ongoing, regular maintenance is a cost-effective way to avoid shutdowns. In order to prep steel roof decking for new paint while manufacturing operations continue, an abrasive blasting method with low dust generation and low rebound must be used. The surface prep process must be safe for nearby manufacturing workers as well as sensitive equipment like electronics, valves, and other moving and rotating components.

Some advantages of blasting with Sponge Media come from its low-dust, low-rebound characteristics. Thanks to these capabilities, blasting steel roof decking with Sponge Media allows for continued operations while the work is performed either overnight or during normal working hours. 

Blasting near sensitive equipment is a core benefit of using Sponge Media. While traditional abrasives pose risks of grit contamination or damage, Sponge Media minimizes dust and abrasive rebound, preventing damage to manufacturing equipment. When Sponge Blasting steel roof decking, contractors may only need to use 6-mil poly and dust collection for containment.

Sometimes only spot work is required for roof decking. In these cases, it’s vital to choose a low-rebound abrasive in order to prevent damage to coatings on adjacent structural steel. In these situations, Sponge Media is a great option because it allows for precise, controlled blasting. The ability to target specific areas without affecting the surrounding structures is crucial.

Galvanized Steel

Galvanized steel is a very common material used in roof decking due to it's corrosion-resistant properties. To preserve the anti-corrosive benefits of galvanization, galvanized steel needs to be properly prepared before painting is attempted. If a coating is put on over smooth, untreated galvanized steel, it will not adhere correctly and lead to premature coatings failures in a short period of time.

Sponge-Jet technology is capable of etching the galvanized steel in order to create a mechanical bond for the new coating. This specialized galvanization surface prep prevents common issues such as premature peeling and flaking of new coatings.

Sponge Media has the ability to remove visible and invisible contaminants like chlorides, or hazardous material like lead-based paint from steel roof decking while still effectively preparing the surface for its new coating.

Sponge Blasting provides a reliable method for removing coatings and corrosion from steel roof decking by minimizing downtime, etching galvanized steel, and ensuring long-lasting coatings results through proper surface preparation.