Here is a fantasic business in Vancouver, B.C. that a couple of entrepenurs started recently. Do-it-yourself sandblasting! Now why didn’t I think of that?  Don’t we all have old furniture, rusted equipment, & gardening supplies that could use a facelift?

Everything from vintage metal toys and wooden chairs to bathroom tiles and car parts are being scoured clean at a Victoria do-it-yourself sandblasting company.

Customers pay $1 per minute (minimum 15 minutes) to blast their items, or $1.35 per minute (minimum 20 minutes) for a staffer to do the work at Blast It!, located in the Hillside industrial area at 2639 Turner St.

It’s easy. An item is placed inside a self-contained cabinet. Once the door is locked, a customer standing outside the cabinet slips his or her hands into heavy duty gloves which run into the interior. Turn on the control with your foot, point the nozzle of the wand at the item and the blasting starts.

While the air pressure from the machine can be felt, it is simple to aim the nozzle at an object to blast off the rust or paint.

Staff help customers decide the best blasting material, which include garnet sand, a fine red sparkling grit collected from beaches in India; glass beads with the consistency of a powder; or tiny, sharp-edged walnut shells.

Ross van Adrichem, who co-owns the business with wife Carol, holds up a piece of metal blasted in part with walnut shells, leaving a dull finish. “All it takes off is paint. It is not strong enough to damage the metal,” he says.

 

 To see a great video clip of their ship and equipment or to read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/business/Blast+fresh+start+just+about+anything/6005420/story.html#ixzz1kExSg2uV

On the Web: www.blastityourself.ca.

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

What a wonderful way to recycle and reuse equipment – breathe new life into worn out or neglected items.  Something we should all think about today…