​A customer that had been using a graffiti remover purchased from a large retail store recently contacted Snagwolf.  After multiple applications of the retail graffiti remover, there was a shadow that remained on the front columns of a concrete building.  The retail product did not have strong enough active ingredients to penetrate and remove the shadowing.  The customer then used SnagWolf’s Safety Two Graffiti Remover.  In one application, the shadow was faded.  After the second application, the shadow was undetectable. 
 
As much as we would like to say we have these kinds of results every time, the reality is that each application (and base material) is different. Using an industrial strength product, like Safety Two Graffiti Remover, will give you the best chance of removing shadowing.

More About Shadowing…
When cleaning the surface of base material there can remain a faint representation of the original graffiti. This is called shadowing.  Graffiti works its way into the pores of the base material. In most cases, shadowing can be removed by taking additional steps like soaking and agitating, using a pressure washer and in extreme cases heating up the base material before applying a graffiti remover. The more porous the material, the more opportunity there is for shadowing.  If a porous base material is tagged when the base material is warm, there tends to be a better chance for shadowing to occur.  

From time to time, we run across things we feel are worth noting and sharing with our customers.

Some think removing graffiti is as simple as removing paint like one might do in restoring a piece of furniture.  When using a paint stripper, paint remover or naval jelly, the goal is to completely remove the paint from the base material.  These types of products differ from a true graffiti remover in the fact that graffiti removers are designed to remove the unwanted outer layer of spray paint or marker while leaving as much, if not all, of the base coating intact. 
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An aerosol can of paint remover from a big box store was used for the application shown in the picture.  It did remove some of the graffiti.  However, the graffiti was not fully removed on the first attempt, so the product was applied a second time and left to sit for a few minutes.  When the user tried to wipe away the graffiti, the paint remover had penetrated through and lifted the original paint as well.  Yikes! 
When the maintenance staff stood back and looked at the completed job, they probably said the same word the tagger used... “S***!”