Service · Mobile surface cleaning and priming

Clean it, prime it, bring it back

A powerful, portable blasting solution for surface prep. Vapour blasting uses less water, generates up to 92% less dust, produces little to no heat and creates less environmental impact than the alternatives — while getting the job done faster.

Graffiti, gum and mould off commercial exteriors. Markings off roads. Coatings off steel and hulls. It is also how we prime surfaces for the decorative systems Square One has installed across BC since 2000.

Request a quote 604-612-6209

A Square One operator vapour blasting a painted marking off the Granville Island boardwalk, Vancouver

Granville Island, Vancouver · marking removal

92%

less dust than dry blasting — the water holds it down

Low heat

little to no heat at the surface, so nothing warps or scorches

regions — Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island, one mobile rig

What it handles

From storefront to drydock

Vapour blasting works on almost every hard surface. The difference between a parkade, a patio and a yacht deck is the pressure and the media — not the method.

Square One removing painted parking symbols from an asphalt lot with the vapour blasting rig

Commercial parking lot · marking removal

01 · Commercial & municipal

Storefronts, plazas, roads

Graffiti, gum, mould and soot off brick, concrete and stone. Road-marking removal ahead of a new layout. Fire and smoke damage cleaned back to the substrate. Steel and concrete prepared for the next coat — faster than grinding, without the dust cloud of dry blasting.

Graffiti, gum, mould and soot removal
Road marking removal
Steel and concrete surface preparation
Brick and patio cleaning
Fire and smoke damage cleaning

Property managers · Municipalities · Strata

Square One stripping a red coating from a public walkway with the vapour blasting rig

Public walkway · coating removal

02 · Residential

Driveways, patios, railings

Paint and stain off wood, concrete and steel. Limestone, marble and stucco stains lifted without etching. Iron fences and railings taken back to bare metal before paint. Brick and patio surfaces cleaned, then primed for whatever comes next.

Paint and stain removal
Wood, concrete and steel cleaning
Limestone, marble and stucco stain removal
Iron fence and railing preparation
Priming before a coating

Homeowners · Estates

Square One vapour blasting a marina boardwalk at Granville Island, Vancouver, with False Creek behind

Granville Island · marina boardwalk

03 · Marine & industrial

Hulls, decks, equipment

Polyurethane deck coating removal for yachts. On-board coating removal and surface preparation. Steel taken to a clean profile without the heat that warps thin sections — the water does the cooling.

Polyurethane deck coating removal (yachting)
Marine on-board coating removal
Steel surface preparation
Equipment and frames

Marine · Manufacturing

Why wet beats dry

The dust stays on the ground

Dry sandblasting turns a cleaning job into a shutdown. Because the abrasive travels in water, vapour blasting takes a surface back to clean while the building beside it stays open — and leaves it primed rather than scarred.

The vapour blasting nozzle mid-pass over pavers — the wet fan of abrasive and the clean line behind it

The nozzle mid-pass · pavers

Up to 92% less dust

The abrasive travels in water, so the particulate that makes dry blasting a shutdown job stays on the ground. Occupied buildings and busy frontages keep operating around the work.

Little to no heat

No friction heat at the surface — no warping thin steel, no scorching stone, no glazing the substrate you are trying to save.

Less water, less impact

Less water than pressure washing, less environmental impact than chemical stripping. The finish is a clean, primed surface — not a chemical residue.

Faster, and it comes to you

A portable rig that gets the job done faster than the alternatives, dispatched across the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. Nothing gets trucked to a shop.

The supporting trade

The same rig primes our own work

Before StreetBond goes on a spray pad or DecoMark goes on a plaza, the surface has to be clean and open. Vapour blasting is how we get there on our own installs — which is why we offer it to everyone else as a service in its own right.

Decorative coatings Preformed thermoplastic

A finished StreetBond retail plaza entrance installed by Square One

Retail plaza entrance · StreetBond, over a prepared surface

The method

Photos to primed surface, four steps

Photos and a postcode

Send a couple of photos of the surface and where it is. We identify the substrate and what is on it.

Written quote

A written estimate with the approach — pressure, media, containment — and how long the site is affected.

The rig on site

Adjacent surfaces protected, runoff managed, the surface taken back to clean in passes.

Primed for what's next

Ready for paint, coating, sealer or the decorative system we install ourselves — same crews, same day if it suits.

The photographs on this page are Square One’s own jobs, from the record.

Demonstration videos on our YouTube channel

Scope

What we take on, and where

Surfaces

AsphaltConcreteBrickLimestoneMarbleStuccoSteelIronWoodPavers & patiosMarine decksHulls & on-board coatings

Environment

Less water than pressure washing, up to 92% less dust than dry blasting, and less environmental impact than chemical stripping — with little to no heat at the surface.

Adjacent surfaces are protected and runoff is managed on every job. Ask for the approach in writing with your quote.

Service area

Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island — the rig is mobile, and it comes to the site.

Vancouver · North Vancouver · West Vancouver · Burnaby · Richmond · Surrey · Coquitlam · Maple Ridge · Langley · Abbotsford · Chilliwack · Victoria · Saanich · Langford · Duncan · Nanaimo · Parksville

Questions

What people ask about vapour blasting

How is vapour blasting different from pressure washing or dry blasting?

It uses less water than pressure washing, produces up to 92% less dust than dry blasting, and puts little to no heat into the surface — so it cleans or strips without the mess or the damage of either.

What can it remove?

Road markings, graffiti, gum, mould and soot, paint and stain, fire and smoke damage, and marine coatings — from concrete, steel and wood.

Do you come to the site?

Yes. The rig is mobile across the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island, and it is how Square One prepares surfaces for its own coating and thermoplastic work.

Get a quote

Send us a photo, we send back a quote

The fastest path to a quote is a couple of photos and a postcode. We identify the surface, suggest the approach and come back with a written estimate.