Parking lots require maintenance and cleaning to improve public safety and curb appeal. One such type of maintenance is painting, but you can’t just paint it and move on. Here’s why parking lots need sweeping before painting.
Understanding Parking Lot Upkeep
Parking lot maintenance is an essential part of having long-lasting parking availability and longevity. Here’s a brief understanding of the importance of parking lot maintenance and a comprehensive guide to maintenance certifications and training. Parking lot maintenance requires time, effort, and a professional hand with years of experience.
Parking Lot Worker Maintenance Types
Maintaining parking lots includes sweeping and cleaning, striping, sealing, repaving, crack filling, and asphalt overlaying. General maintenance technicians work with outside contractors or individually to complete much-needed repairs and maintenance.
The companies and businesses that perform parking lot maintenance for commercial and industrial clients hire various employees, such as mechanics, parking lot stripers, and grading or paving crews.
Grading or paving crews often operate heavy-duty machinery. Mechanics ensure proper parking lot repair by using paving equipment. Lastly, parking lot stripers measure and paint striping lines or signs in finished parking lots. This keeps the parking lot clean and legible.
Facilities That Use Parking Lot Maintenance
Many commercial and industrial facilities rely on parking lot maintenance to ensure curb appeal and improve safety. Some facilities include commercial plazas, grocery and department stores, factories, warehouses and shipping facilities, and public buildings. Because retail facilities have large parking lots, maintenance is essential to minimizing vehicle accidents, slips, and falls. Furthermore, public buildings, such as libraries, government buildings, DMVs, and courthouses, need well-maintained parking lots.
Industrial facilities like factories require considerable space to hold oversized vehicles and public cars. Because these vehicles impact the parking lot’s quality, they require regular maintenance. Commercial plazas accommodate stores, companies, and multiple offices, so it’s crucial to have a well-maintained parking lot to preserve property value and safety. Lastly, warehouses and shipping facilities take large shipments from oversized trailers and trucks, thus requiring a large parking lot. And if you neglect proper maintenance, these lots can become expensive to repair later.
Maintenance Certification and Training
The certifications and training required for parking lot maintenance aren’t overly complicated, as there are two certification programs for receiving professional certifications. The Certified Parking Professional (CPP) certificate comes from the National Parking Association. This proves a candidate’s knowledge in several areas, including operations, maintenance, safety, loss prevention, design, equipment, and human resources.
Secondly, the Certified Administrator of Public Parking, or CAPP, comes from the International Parking and Mobility Institute, which dedicates itself to advancing professionals, including those involved in parking. The certification shows consumers, employers, and the public that drivers have competence in parking-related professions.
Reasons Parking Lots Need Sweeping Before Painting
The reason why your parking lot needs sweeping before painting is that it should have a clean, smooth surface before laying fresh paint. Before the painting professional arrives at your parking lot, you should thoroughly clean the asphalt or concrete of any debris, leaves, food, twigs, and dirt.
A clean parking lot helps parking space lines adhere to the surface. Depending on if the parking lot consists of asphalt, concrete, or cement, there are different methods for removing oil stains and dirt from the ground.
Tips for Preparing for Parking Lot Paint
Before laying down fresh paint, here are some tips for ensuring that your parking lot is clean. It’s a straightforward process that allows for perfectly smooth and precise paintwork.
Perform an Inspection
The first task every parking lot owner should perform is an inspection. They can point out any flaws in your lot that could affect the paint job. Having potholes and pavement cracks checked and fixed before applying new paint can improve the look and quality of your painted lot.
Consider the Parking Lot Arrangements
When you schedule your line striping job for your parking lot, you must arrange parking for workers and customers in another location. One of the most essential parts of preparing parking lot arrangements is providing notice to employees, tenants, and clients as soon as possible. Ensure that those involved in your commercial, residential, or industrial facility have proper parking arrangements.
Thankfully, many street cleaning and parking lot repaving services can dedicate time to helping businesses and landlords through each step of the process. They often provide a schedule to distribute to tenants, customers, and employees to inform them of which days to look out for. This can relieve the stress and hassle of telling everyone of upcoming parking lot changes.
Perform Parking Lot Cleanup
Before moving on to painting, the next step is to have your parking lot cleaned. This includes removing excess dirt, debris, rocks, trash, gravel, and other obstructions that can halt the paving and repainting process. Having your parking lot professionally swept and cleaned before the striping project can ensure the surface remains smooth.
Throughout the planning phase, the paving contractor you hired can create a preparation layout list and determine if your parking lot requires cleaning before the project’s paving date. Having your parking lot swept or using a gas-powered blower can remove stubborn debris in hard-to-access areas.
Keep the Parking Lot Dry
After getting the parking lot painted, it must dry thoroughly. While the weather isn’t in your control, you can control other water sources, such as sprinklers. It would be best to have them switched off for at least 24 hours before the stripping job, then have them switched off for 24 hours after painting.
While having cars relocated to a different facility or location before cleaning is crucial, they must also stay away from the parking lot while it dries. Sometimes, parking lots can dry in minutes after painting in direct sunlight. However, the working area must remain sectioned off until it completely dries.
CPM Sweeping guarantees high-quality parking lot maintenance and sweeping practices for safer areas and improved curb value. Our parking lot sweeping services deliver exceptional sweeping services in the Nashville area. If you have questions regarding our sweeping services, contact our professionals today.
