ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, May 7, 1996 TAG: 9605070028
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: C-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ELLIOTT SMITH STAFF WRITER
ADVANCED CLEANING & COATINGS washes away graffiti with a technique that can take as few as 30 minutes.
When Tim Ziegler decided to open his own exterior cleaning business this year, little did he suspect that just one of his several services would keep him so busy, at least temporarily.
To realize why, just take a walk around downtown Roanoke and notice the graffiti. Vandals have left their mark on buildings, doorways, windows, street signs, trash cans and almost anywhere you look.
Graffiti has exploded into a major problem for City Market merchants and property owners. And while it was once thought that the only solution was covering it, Ziegler's company - Advanced Cleaning & Coatings Inc. - hopes to play a part in washing away this Roanoke visual woe.
Advanced Cleaning washes away the graffiti with a technique that in some cases takes as little as 30 minutes.
The graffiti problem in the city is a combination of designs and "tags," which are distinctive graffiti marks or patterns that identify each "tagger."
In the cases of William Firebaugh and Michael Zimmerman, who were convicted Friday of 10 counts of defacing property, the tags were a face with what appears to be a lighted cigar for Zimmerman and interlocking letters that spelled "Acid" for Firebaugh. The tags appeared so frequently in the City Market area that an exact count of markings couldn't be determined, according to Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Teaster.
Advanced Cleaning uses a combination of environmentally safe chemicals, a 20-foot boom, a water recovery system with a 150-foot hose, high pressure and hot water. The company said it can wash away graffiti on almost any surface without hurting the finish.
"We spray the paint off, then collect all the paint and water, which we then take to a water treatment plant," Ziegler said. "And then we apply a special coating to the building which you can't see, so the next time it happens we can come and rinse it right off."
Ziegler, who is Advanced Cleaning's chief executive officer, said, "there's no total method, but ours is 90 percent effective.
"I have a background in paints and inks, which gives us an advantage in cleaning," he said. "You have to know it to know what to do to get rid of it."
The company, which in January opened an office on Electric Road, charges a $100 fee for most cleanings, although larger areas may cost more. This includes a 24-hour emergency service to remove obscene or very large markings.
"The trick is to remove graffiti within 24 to 48 hours," he said, adding that there are three reasons for quick reaction. "One reason is, if the tagger sees his mark, others will want to compete and more tags will blossom. Two, if tags are removed quickly, the tagger will give up and three, the longer you leave a mark there, the harder it is to get out."
Ziegler added that the graffiti problem in Roanoke right now is a fad, but needs to be addressed before it gets out of hand.
"The key is to nip it in the bud, and the city has done a good job of prosecuting people they've caught," he said. "If taggers see it gone, they'll give up on it and they know it won't be condoned. Building owners need to be aware that there is a service out there because graffiti detracts from people coming downtown. It scares people because they think gangs are here."
Advanced Cleaning boasts several satisfied customers, including First Union Tower building manager Basil Graham, who had battled a graffiti problem on the downtown Roanoke office building for a couple of years.
"We had quite a few markings on the back side of the building and on our marble, which is very porous, and the [graffiti] goes down into it," Graham said. "It was real unsightly, but they did a pretty good job on it."
According to Ziegler, Advanced Cleaning - which also features services as varied as wood restoration, protection against damage from birds and installation of aluminum siding - garners about 15 percent to 20 percent of its business from graffiti removal, and is attempting to negotiate a deal with the city to provide one day of free work on public property.
"We can do a lot of damage in a day," he said.
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: CINDY PINKSTON/Staff. Tim Ziegler, chief executiveby CNBofficer of Advanced Cleaning & Coatings, uses a pressure washer to
remove graffiti from the Center in the Square parking garage
Tuesday. color.