Madison Chemical

GalvaGrip™

Surface Conditioner for Galvanized Metal;
Eliminates the Need for Abrasive Blasting

What It Is

GalvaGrip is a unique and economical adhesion-enhancing compound designed to prepare galvanized surfaces for the application of protective coatings. GalvaGrip eliminates the need for abrasive blasting for virtually all applications, including embedded and immersion service. GalvaGrip also works well on weathering steel (sometimes referred to as Corten™ Steel).

How It Works

Easy to use and environmentally-friendly, GalvaGrip contains a rust-dissolving agent, a powerful degreaser, an industrial-grade surface penetrating compound and Madison’s proprietary AP-50 Adhesion Promoter. All of these work synergistically to create adhesion comparable to that achieved with a near-white abrasive blast on galvanized and weathering steel structures.

Why It’s Important To Eliminate Blasting

A barrier coat is often applied over galvanizing for a variety of reasons. This practice is usually referred to as “duplex coating”. However, adhesion is an issue. Acid etching and chemical washing work fine for non-critical applications and mild environments. For more aggressive environments and for embedded or immersion service, abrasive blasting is the only thing that will provide adequate adhesion. However, the abrasive blasting of galvanized steel in preparation for a protective coating is a self-defeating exercise. The process removes the top layer of zinc that the owner has just paid to have applied and, what’s worse, it fractures and compromises the remaining intermetallic layers. The amount of remaining galvanic protection is unpredictable, as is the overall adhesion from parent metal to intermetallic layer to barrier coating. The process is highly dependent on a number of variables that are difficult to control: the type of blast medium, the blast equipment, machine settings such as air pressure and operator skill, just to name a few.

As a result, the life expectancy of the duplex coating system is almost impossible to predict. GalvaGrip changes all that

Easy-To-Use

Using GalvaGrip is the essence of simplicity. It feels like liquid soap and looks like car wash foam. It is sprayed using a low pressure sprayer to a thickness of about seven mils (something as simple as a garden weed sprayer will suffice for smaller projects). The pale green foam goes to work automatically. After 15 to 20 minutes on new galvanizing, and 30 to 40 minutes on corroded galvanizing, GalvaGrip is removed with a power washer and ordinary tap water.

Huge Savings

The implications are enormous. The capital cost of setting up to use GalvaGrip is less than 10% of the cost of constructing an abrasive blast facility. Ongoing maintenance costs are minimal; there’s nothing that wears out or needs repair. In addition, ongoing operating costs are about 50% lower than a commercial blast and about 75% lower than a near-white blast.

Much Safer Than Blasting

GalvaGrip contains NO hazardous ingredients and has no onerous disposal requirements (at most, it may be necessary to neutralize the rinse water with baking soda). There are no loud noises, no annoying dust to clog your equipment (not to mention your lungs), no electrical or explosion hazards and no dangerous machinery.

Use On Many Substrates

Use on most metals such as cold rolled and hot rolled steel, aluminum, copper and ductile iron.

Typical Applications

End uses include building components (e.g. trusses, beams, girders, galvanized panels), pipes, conduits, metal roofing, siding, industrial/recreational equipment, water/wastewater facilities processing and storage, highway structures from signs to guardrails, mining, marine, food and beverage.

Application Summary

A soap-like liquid, GalvaGrip is simply brushed or sprayed on to the surface prior to coating. Leave it for up to 30 minutes to remove oxidation and contamination and to leave a deposit of AP-50. Power wash or scrub off the resulting residue with ordinary tap water and thoroughly dry. It is ready to coat with any protective coating that also contains AP-50.