© 2025 News On The Block. All rights reserved.
News on the Block is a trading name of Premier Property Media Ltd.
© 2025 News On The Block. All rights reserved.
News on the Block is a trading name of Premier Property Media Ltd.
As a property manager you need to act fast because Mr Smith is angry, and quite rightly so, but you need to determine some facts because although graffiti is, in most people’s opinion, unsightly and an act of vandalism, some tags as they are known as, need to be removed quicker than others.
You need to find out if the tag is in a prominent area where most people will see it, does it contain swear words, is it a racist comment or slogan, is it aimed at a particular person or community – if the answer is yes to any of these then it has to be removed as soon as possible as it could cause distress to tenants.
If the tag is purely a form of graffiti art work, although it is classed as vandalism, the emphasis to remove it does not have to be so quick but do not be complacent because if not removed promptly, it could encourage others to leave tags and before you know it the whole site will be covered. It will be an expensive task to remove the tags and sometimes it becomes a battle because as quick as you remove a tag, another appears and the only way to win is to remove them completely and in a manner that the ‘artist’ gives up.
The removal of graffiti is a great skill. A lot of companies boast they can remove all traces of it and will paint the area with anti-graffiti paint afterwards. This does not always work. Some use very strong chemicals, while others use high pressure washing systems. Then there are some who use cheaper products that can do more harm than good.
A few of years ago, our specialist cleaner spent a couple of days on a large tag using chemicals recommended to us by a local council. At the end of the second day, he came back exhausted, down hearted and beaten saying that he had barely removed it and what had gone had left a ghosting effect. The pointing on the brick work was falling out from all the scrubbing and pressure washing. This was not cost effective for us, the client was being let down and staff morale was low.
With this in mind, I made it my mission to investigate the best methods of removing graffiti. Hours were spent researching until I finally found the products that ticked all the boxes.
When removing graffiti you have to look at many different aspects. Is the product safe for the environment? Does it meet control of substances hazardous to health regulations? Does it come with safety data sheets? Is it going to leave shadowing/ghosting effects? Will it cause damage to the surface the graffiti is on? What personal protective equipment is required for staff, and most importantly – does it work?
The products I found match all the above, and although the initial cost to have the licence and ensure all our specialist staff were trained was expensive, it has been well worth it, as I have yet to see it not work on any graffiti. As for the one that took two days – it took only a couple of hours to finish, and as the system uses a low-pressure washing system, caused no damage to the pointing or brick work.
The system is bio-degradable, can be used on heritage work like statues and war memorials, leaves no ghosting or shadowing and the staff feel total satisfaction with a job well done and clients can be assured of a speedy service. Also, as mentioned earlier, graffiti artists like to tag the same areas repetitively and when a system works well, they soon stop. Then Mr Smith will be happy that you have reacted to his call in a professional manner.