OTHER SERVICES WE SUPPLY
BEFORE
AIRCRAFT CORROSION CONTROL AND PAINT REPAIR
Corrosion is the scourge of aircraft based in Florida and the southeast United States. Even aircraft that are hangared are still subject to corrosion. A key to the reduction and/or elimination of corrosion is the proper application of paint. We offer corrosion control and paint repair.
The example next to this paragraph is an airplane that was not repainted properly.The story behind this airplane is that the plane was featured in the ABC television show Extreme H,ome Makeover. As part of rebuilding the home of the featured family the producers had the airplane repainted and other modifications done to the plane. This in itself was a blessing to the owner (who has a ministry bringing clean water around the world, Air Mobile Ministries). The problem began after the production of the show was over. To repaint an airplane takes longer then a week. It is about a month-long process so in the show the airplane was wrapped in vinyl to make it look repainted. After the production was finished the airplane went to an aircraft paint shop. The plane was stripped, cleaned and repainted. Halfway through the process the company went defunct and the owner had to fight with the paint shop to finish the plane to make it flyable again. The shop did a good job at stripping the paint but did not clean the entire plane before applying the primer, resulting in peeling paint, blemishes, and runs all over the plane.
What we did was to remove all of the chipping and peeling paint. The surfaces were cleaned and primed with zinc chromate. After a two part epoxy primer was applied, we applied Imron from DuPont, letting the proper cure time lapse after each application. This serves as a triple threat protection to the surface. The Imron is the outer shell, the epoxy primer seals the metal, and the zinc chromate is a sacrificial coating to protect the bare metal from corrosion. As long as everything is applied properly this will protect the metal for many years.
In the case of an airplane with surface corrosion, the same process would be used after the corrosion is removed through a physical or chemical process.
AFTER
WASH AND WAX
Just like cars, airplanes need to be washed and waxed. Taking care not to damage the critical flight instrument and communication components are key to a good wash and wax. A thorough wash and wax is essential to maintaining an aircraft. Not only does it serve as a good cleaning but it also can reveal problems that must be addressed with a mechanic.