Discarded chewing gum has long been a blight on Britain's Streets. No matter how much sweeping, scrubbing and scraping is done the streets still look dirty and uncared for because chewing gum is difficult to remove.
Indeed, even when the surface layer is successfully removed, main throughways, pavements and roads are still left with unsightly staining and the resulting residue is a breeding ground for bacteria to grow.
Defra the government body concerned with the environment has recognised the issue and released the following statement:
“We have classified chewing gum as LITTER and as such all local authorities have a legal responsibility to remove it.”
Steam cleaning is the ideal way to remove gum as it is applied at a much lower pressure than jet washing. Jet or power washing blasts the surface being treated and whilst removing most, though rarely all, gum it will also blast away the grout or sand around block paving and slabs, often leaving them loose or wobbly, causing you more issues with H&S.
By utilising H2O’s unique cleaning system, high temperature/low pressure removal means we achieve optimum cleaning results whilst very little of the sand between slabs and/or pavement blocks is disturbed meaning that the minimum of follow up work is required. Steaming is cheaper than freezing or laser processes and is more effective and less harmful than power washing.
Firstly we use a rotary spinner to clean the majority of the surface area, then return to spot clean with the steam lance, which melts and atomises the gum, allowing the particles to be easily swept up. Thus leaving a completely sanitised and clean surface ,free from all residue and gum.
H2O proven cleaning technology not only removes the surface layers but also completely removes any staining and residue, sterilising the entire area leaving it clean and odour free.
We operate a two fold approach when tackling gum to avoid clean ‘spotting’ which can look as bad as the gum spots themselves.
c h e m i c a l f r e e
gum, grime & graffiti removal
gum
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Sometimes there are areas which benefit from protection due to high footfall. We use an environmentally friendly barrier designed to protect surfaces from the adhesion of chewing gum and other pollutants. It may be used on concrete, natural limestone and sandstone, brickwork, and paving slabs.
It can be walked on in only three hours, does not form a visible film and is extremely durable. It is also unusual in that it was specifically designed to tackle the problem of gum, and is non slippery even when the hard standing is wet- after rain for instance.