Corn Blasting

Clean County

New Member
Has anybody heard of corn blasting as an alternative to chemicals to clean wood? There's a company out west that advertises it uses corn blasting to clean decks and wood sided homes instead of using water and chemicals to clean them. They claim that the soft grit abrasive strips exterior surfaces and prepares the wood for sealer/stain. They also state that the natural cell structure of the corn media makes the granules highly absorbent. The granules therefore absorb the finish to be removed and help speed up and intensify the cleaning process. They also advertise that doing it this way eliminates any concerns of water getting inside of the house and pollution problems due to using chemicals is also eliminated.
I have no experience what so ever with using this corn blasting and I would think that there is a very good chance of breaking a few windows cleaning like this and also possibly pitting the wood. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated. -John-


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TCross

New Member
John-
Corn cob blasting has been used in the log home restoration field for some time. We use it when we come upon a home with a finish that will not strip with chemicals or an older full log home that will leak heavily.

While some swear by it for everything I am firm in the fact that using water and chemicals is less agressive and more time efficient, however in some situations it can be a great tool for restoring wood.

The grit of the corn cob media that is used will not hurt windows, glass, etc. it can pit the surface if the proper distance from the substrate is not kept. If you are big on wood restoration it can be the answer for some tough stripping jobs.
Hope this helps,
Tim

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Don F

New Member
Hi, We use Cob-Blasting quite a bit. You need to make sure your air compressor is big enough. We ended up buying a Tow-Behind Compressor. Cob-Blasting helps a bunch if there are multi-layers of finish/paint on the surface. You can also stain the same day so there is no wait for drying. There is the added expense of the compressor, the fuel to run it, the blasting material, the blaster itself, etc. It is a big investment if you only plan to use it a few times a year. Good Luck. Don Farner


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