Abrasive Blasting Contractor
Specializing in Vapor Blasting, Sponge-Jet® Blasting, Sandblasting, and Soda Blasting
Abrasive blasting quickly and thoroughly removes corrosion, contaminants, paint, and debris from a wide variety of surfaces. Almost instantly, abrasive blasting restores surfaces to like-new condition and creates a perfect surface profile for strong paint adhesion.
McCahill Painting has extensive experience applying both wet and dry abrasive blasting techniques, including low-dust blasting, to safely blast away years of contamination in even the busiest, least accessible, and most sensitive environments.
Vapor Blasting a Concrete Sculpture at Morton Arboretum
How Abrasive Blasting Works + Common Questions
What is abrasive blasting?
Abrasive blasting, sometimes called media blasting or grit blasting, is the process of using pressurized air or water to powerfully blast abrasive media against a surface to remove old paint, corrosion, decay, dirt, graffiti, and both biological and atmospheric contamination.
Abrasive blasting is valued as a fast and highly effective method of cleaning and restoring surfaces and preparing them for optimum paint adhesion.
What types of contaminants does abrasive blasting remove?
Abrasive blasting can remove nearly any type of unwanted material including paint, rust and corrosion, dirt, grease, stains, graffiti, mold, biological growth, and residue from atmospheric or chemical contaminants.
What blasting media are used in abrasive blasting?
Some commonly used blasting media include sand, baking soda, glass beads, coconut shells, walnut shells, and garnets.
Will abrasive blasting cause damage to surfaces?
Not if done properly. Selecting the right blasting technique and abrasive is extremely important to achieving desired results while protecting the surrounding environment and preventing damage to the original surface material.
A trained and experienced contractor like McCahill Painting will understand which blasting technique and blasting media are best suited for each individual project. For example, blasting steel and blasting more delicate masonry require different blasting methods; choosing the wrong one will yield poor results and could cause irreparable damage to the substrate.
Does abrasive blasting require special equipment or training?
Yes, it is extremely important that abrasive blasting is performed by knowledgeable and experienced technicians using best-in-class equipment to achieve successful results and ensure the safety of the technician, surface, workspace, and surrounding area.
Types of Abrasive Blasting Methods
Dry Blasting
Dry abrasive blasting uses pressurized air to blast abrasives against a surface to remove old paint, corrosion, decay, dirt, graffiti, and/or biological and atmospheric contamination.
- Sandblasting and soda blasting are well-known forms of dry abrasive blasting.
- Sponge-Jet® blasting is an innovative low-dust dry blasting technology where sponge blasting media is propelled onto a surface where it abrades the surface while also capturing the vast majority of dust, debris, and hazardous particles.
Wet Blasting
Wet abrasive blasting, or vapor blasting, uses pressurized water as the force to blast abrasives against a surface. As with dry blasting, vapor blasting is commonly used to remove failing paint, rust, dirt, decay, and biological, chemical, and atmospheric contamination.
- By incorporating water, dust is suppressed by at least 92%, which achieves excellent blasting results with minimal mess and clean up, better workspace protection, and far less environmental impact.
- Vapor blasting is sometimes referred to as wet sandblasting, hydroblasting, slurry blasting, low-dust blasting, or dustless blasting.
*There is no such thing as 100% dust-free blasting!
Be cautious of those dust-free claims! While today’s advanced blasting techniques offer great advantages by vastly suppressing dust (by as much as 92%!), 100% dust-free blasting is a myth.
Even so, the dust suppression achieved by using vapor blasting, and Sponge-Jet® Blasting, is still extremely advantageous and can minimize prep and clean up, reduce health and safety hazards, and protect the environment and your space exponentially over traditional dry blasting methods such as sandblasting or soda blasting.
Comprehensive Abrasive Blasting Capabilities
McCahill Painting has extensive training and experience using a full range of abrasive blasting methods for paint removal, surface preparation, and cleaning.
Our in-depth understanding of each blasting method allows us to match the best technique to each project.
- Vapor blasting (low dust)
- Sponge-Jet® blasting (low dust)
- Sandblasting
- Soda blasting
Blasting Solutions for all Substrates & Structures
Our highly trained technicians are adept at safely blasting metal, steel, concrete, brick, stone, and wood in a wide range of industrial and commercial environments.
We have experience abrasive blasting industrial structures and equipment, tanks and silos, precast concrete, structural steel, metal building facades, masonry structures, swimming pools, wood beam ceilings, and more.
Blasting in Challenging and Sensitive Settings
Our crew members are trained and licensed to work safely in challenging environments including elevated surfaces, hard-to-access structures, and areas containing sensitive materials.
- We are licensed and experienced in safely using aerial lift equipment, elevated platforms, and swing stage scaffolding.
- Our highly skilled team members are accustomed to working in busy and sensitive environments where containing dust and debris is extremely important.
Low-Dust Abrasive Blasting Options
McCahill Painting offers innovative low-dust blasting options including vapor blasting and Sponge-Jet® blasting, which greatly suppress dust and deliver excellent results.
Key benefits of our low-dust blasting methods:
- Suppresses dust by 92% or more
- Protects sensitive work areas, personnel, and materials
- Improves technician visibility and safety
- Minimizes mess, containment requirements, and clean up
- Reduces waste and environmental impact
- Reduces risk of fire/explosion in areas where flammable gases may be present
Low-dust abrasive blasting is often used in the following situations:
- Indoor/crowded settings and worksites – minimizing dust greatly reduces mess as well as inhalation and visibility concerns
- Outdoor urban or high-density areas – low dust blasting does not require the extensive containment measures necessary when dry blasting to keep dust within legal safety limits
- Industrial and other settings where flammable gases may be present – low dust blasting minimizes the explosive potential of dust as compared to traditional dry abrasive blasting
Explore Our Abrasive Blasting Specialties
Safe Abrasive Blasting
Abrasive blasting is an extremely powerful process requiring diligent safety precautions and a high degree of skill. It is extremely important that blasting is performed by knowledgeable and experienced technicians using properly maintained equipment and protective gear to ensure the safety of the technician, surface, workspace, and surrounding area.
McCahill Painting has maintained an impeccable safety record for more than four decades, and we continually invest in abrasive blasting training and best-in-class equipment. In addition to carefully protecting people and workspaces, we utilize eco-conscious methods whenever possible to reduce the environmental impact of our work.
Trust McCahill Painting to preserve and protect your valuable industrial and commercial assets
You’ve invested in valuable structures and property and want to see those investments stand the test of time. McCahill Painting can help. We are experts in a variety of blasting methods, allowing us to customize our approach for each project to achieve your specific goals while protecting both your worksite and the environment.
As a McCahill Painting client, you’ll find we’re a true partner you can rely on to complete your abrasive blasting projects safely, on time, and budget, with minimal disruption and excellent, long-lasting results.
