Trouble with cleaning bridges over water...
We've been involved in a lot of bridge cleaning projects this year. In Spring, Civil Engineers Walters, acting on behalf Somerset County Council, contacted us for help with removing graffiti and old, peeling lead paint from three different bridges in Somerset; Wellington bridge, Staplegrove railway bridge and Taunton Town bridge.
From traffic management to addressing environmental concerns around removing lead paint and protecting UK waterways, each project had its own particular requirements - and we were able to deal with them all.
Clean down and paint
The first job involved sorting out graffiti on a metal bridge - Staplegrove Railway Bridge, on the outskirts of Taunton. It was agreed that for this project cleaning down the panels and then repainting them would give both the best outcome and best value for money. We arranged traffic management to allow our team to access the bridge panels and do the cleaning and painting and our client was delighted with our service.
containing AIR BOURNE LEAD DUST
The second bridge, located near Wellington, presented more of a challenge. The bridge had been painted using lead paint which was flaking badly and needed to be removed. Old lead paint dust can be a serious risk to health so care needed to be taken to meet associated H&S regulations while carrying out the work. We used dust extraction equipment during cleaning to contain the lead paint dust. The surfaces were then carefully repainted leaving the bridge looking much improved.
protecting the UK's waterways
Finally, we cleaned the iconic Taunton Town Bridge that spans the river Tone. Built in 1894, the bridge is part of Taunton's heritage so dealing with the peeling paintwork was seen as an essential element of revitalising the town centre. Because it spans a waterway strict environmental regulations needed to be adhered to, unfortunately this meant the only acceptable method of cleaning was by hand.
Meeting h&s and environmental regulations
The work was painstaking carried out by our dedicated team using hand held brushes and great care was taken to ensure that the paint being removed did not fall into the water. In this way we were able to complete the project in line with both the client's and the environmental agency’s requirements - which was appreciated by both.
To find out about more about our range of exterior cleaning services contact Max or Andy on 0333 234 1445 or email your enquiry and we will get back to you as quickly as possible.