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March 10, 2009

What about Bed Liner in a Can

Filed under: Vortex — admin @ 9:23 am

When your are looking for a way to protect an investment like your truck, saving money might not actually by saving money. Consider buying a mess of “Bedliner in a Can” and tackling the job yourself. While you are indeed, spending less money, you are also getting much less back in Return.

In order for any spray, like a bed liner or automotive paint, to work out of a can, it has to be premixed in that can. In order to have a liner material premixed and remain liquid, it is going to have to be dissolved in a solvent. So plan on keeping oils and solvents out of your truck bed in order to keep the soluble liner from staining or being washed off. The biggest problems with solvent based liners is that, as the solvent evaporates, the liner looses volume and shrinks. This can lead to re-exposure of the bed’s paint over time.

This doesn’t even consider the danger of the fire hazard and health hazards associated with the airborne solvents you are exposed to in order to spray on a liner. Vortex liners a solvent free. They contain no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) or chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). So not only is Vortex environmentally friendly & much safer to apply, but since it has no solvents to release, will not shrink, or be washed out by the same solvents that put it in.

March 6, 2009

More Than Skin Deep

Filed under: Granitex — admin @ 1:56 pm

When most people look into a coating for their concrete surface. They are mainly looking to increase the aesthetics of an area. What many home owners or business owners don’t even consider is increased life the are giving with a protective coating.

Water, oil, and so many other products found in your garage slowly deteriorate your garage floor and cause if to fail. Granitex repels these products so they don’t soak into your floor. Not only does this prevent chemicals from contacting and destroying your cement, but the non-porous surface makes cleanup of spills a breeze. This has made Granitex an amazing success in automotive shops looking for a better way to keep their work areas clean as well as save on building repair.

February 25, 2009

Spraying a Liner Safely

Filed under: Vortex — admin @ 10:45 am

The Culprit

Methylene Bisphenyl Isocyanate (MDI) is used in hundreds of materials, such as fire retardants, protective coatings, automobile bumper components, and rigid foams found in almost every refrigerator and freezer in existence. It is also an essential part of any spray-on bed liner.

MDI

This extremely useful chemical must be used with caution. As a vapor, it is a very powerful respiratory sensitizer, as well as an eye, skin, & mucous membrane irritant. Exposure to high concentrations cause cough, shortness of breath, increased secretions, and chest pains. OSHA’s maximum amount or concentration of MDI that a worker may be exposed to is 20ppb.

The Claim

Some bedliner companies have been making big claims about the safety of application when it comes to their products. Even going as for as commissioning independent labs to conducts MDI level tests of their spray areas. They are even so bold as to tell you how effective their ventilation system removes vapors from the workplace. This should be a big red flag.

The Truth

A system that requires a custom ventilation system not only doesn’t sound safe, it also definitely doesn’t sound portable. This doesn’t even take into account the extra air compressor and air dryer that have to go with the system, not to mention the size of the generator needed to operate everything for real portability. Be careful about systems that make these types of claims. These alleged low pressure systems still require at least 50psi in order to move enough air to effectively spread the liner effectively. Only Vortex has the patented Whisper-Jet™ technology which can move higher volumes of air with only 8psi.

The extra pressure these systems require greatly increases atomization and spreads a cloud of overspray into the spray area. A Vortex system does not require a spray booth or special ventilation system in order to achieve a safe work environments. With only 8psi of pressure, Vortex virtually eliminates overspray and mess.

When your looking at a spray on bed-liner system, think what safe really is, as well as what it costs to achieve safe. When looking at the costs to start a business, ask about the need for a special spray environment and additional startup costs in order to even operate at what is considered legally safe.

Reclaim your garage!!

Filed under: Granitex — admin @ 10:39 am

The Problem

The garage of most homes is an inhospitable place where your car sleeps at night in the company of your Christmas decorations and other rarely or never used items. Of course you do see garages where there is no room for the car at all, where the space is occupied by so much stuff that garage is turned into a dead area of your home which is wasted. This may be due to the fact that a dingy garage is never going to be an inviting place to spend your time.

Where to start

When a part of your home looks good, your more likely to keep it clean and organized not to mention actually utilizing it. When you first step into your garage, look down. If you’re like many homeowners you see a dirty, stained, maybe even cracked floor. Granitex not only protects your garage floor, but keeps it looking great so you will actually want to be there. You garage can be a functional part of your home where you can park, service, and show off your mechanical wonders, such as ATVs, PWCs, and automobiles. Depending on the layout of your home, many garages also make excellent pantries.

Don’t wast one of your home’s great assets. turn your homes darker side into a valuable & attractive space that you and your family can use & enjoy. There are endless color choices, and chip combinations that can match any theme. Contact a dealer in your area to see how Vortex & Granitex can transform the look of your garage.

February 12, 2009

What About Doing It Yourself

Filed under: Granitex — admin @ 4:29 pm

Home improvement has always been one of the biggest facets of the “do it yourself” world, among other things such as car repair, electronics and even healthcare. This has allowed people to find ways to use their own ingenuity to produce results rather than paying a professional. People do home repair or improvement in order to save money or even as a hobby. This trend has led to the great success of home improvement superstores such as Lowe’s or The Home Depot. Many projects are great to keep busy on the weekends and involve little risk. Other projects can be a little more tricky, sometimes requiring reading a “how to” book or watching a video.

Some home improvements such as long term floor coating can be more difficult or dangerous than others. The higher quality products require mixing materials which will then harden to form a protective coating over the surface, these substances can be very unforgiving if used improperly. Vortex offers a hands on training to every new dealer so that every chemical is handled properly to ensure the safety of the workers and the homeowner as well as insuring the quality of the end result. Specific surface preparation techniques are demonstrated to ensure that the Granitex will perform at it’s best (Granitex can easily last over 10 years when applied correctly). Nothing takes the satisfaction out of a home improvement project like watching it deteriorate, sometimes in less than a year. Not to mention all of that money you thought you were saving by doing it yourself, lost to recoating your floor every couple years.

February 10, 2009

Exceeding Expectations

Filed under: Misc — admin @ 5:34 pm

In 1998 Kott Koatings put its decades of experience in chemical engineering into a new venue and developed the Vortex Sprayliner material. In less than 6 years the incredible Granitex product and GTX roller system were added to the Vortex line of products, offering incredible application flexibility that set Vortex Sprayliners far apart from the competition. Vortex not only tailors the chemical makeup of their products for optimum performance. The also manufacture all of their own application equipment specifically for each material. In less than 10 years Vortex Sprayliners has grown to over 1500 independent dealers in the coatings business.

Vortex offers an amazing business opportunity to anyone with the desire to succeed. Starting at under $5 thousand for entry level and under $30 thousand for the complete package, Vortex Sprayliners has taken the market by storm. Check us out and see why.

January 30, 2009

New Production Facility in Wisconsin

Filed under: Granitex, Vortex — admin @ 4:15 pm

Vortex is proud to announce an expansion of their new facility in Wisconsin. If you have been watching what the economy has been doing to other liner companies, you know that they have been falling by the way side. All they can do is trucks, they simply aren’t versatile enough to do much more than that.

Vortex has expanded to a larger State of the Art facility in Wisconsin to meet the increase in demands for products needed by our Dealers. Vortex is the only 100% portable system on the market today. No ifs ands or buts about it.

Along with our Granitex system, Vortex can give you the greatest diversity of application in your coatings business. Whether it’s a truck, floor, roof, deck, restaurant floor, trailer, or anything else, only Vortex & Granitex can take care of every coating need.

Think about it:

  • 100% portable
  • 98% material transfer efficiency
  • 5 times stronger than the competition
  • 100’s of colors
  • up to 50% less material costs

Start your own business, or add to your existing business. Vortex & Granitex are great way to be your own boss.

PLUS… call now to see how you can generate a greater return on your investment with free material

January 26, 2009

A damp basement can be a huge problem

Filed under: Granitex — admin @ 4:17 pm

The water in most basements is actually traveling through the concrete by passing thought the pores that make up 12% to 18% of your concrete’s volume. After concrete is poured, in order for it to dry, the water on the inside must work it’s way out. As it does this, it leaves behind a network of invisible capillaries that wind throughout the cement. Even after all of the original water from the concrete is gone, these pores remain in place and continue to move water through the process of diffusion.

Initially, most water that is passing through the pores is in the form of water vapor. Water vapor passes though pores much more readily than liquid water because it is not held back by cohesion (the attraction of a molecule to the same type of molecule). Liquid water tends to stick to itself and stay in globs. Over time, the concrete becomes more saturated with water molecules from the vapor continuously passing through the pores. The water saturating the concrete will begin to pull water from the outside via capillary action.

Just like rain water eroding a hill or a small river digging out the grand canyon, the water starts to make all of the pores in the concrete bigger. Since molecules will want to travel to areas of lower concentration by diffusion, installing a dehumidifier in a basement increases the rate that water passing though the pores and thus increasing the rate that the water will increase the size of the pores by dissolving and displacing lime and other minerals. Now you not only have more water than before, but you also have a bigger path for radon gas to enter your home.

What can be done to keep this from happening? The key is filling the pores to prevent water from traveling through the concrete. Super Sealer™ as mentioned in an earlier article, can penetrate the concrete’s surface, expands to fill capillaries, and hardens to prevent water passage. The best way to fix a problem is to stop it at the source. Save yourself the headaches over expensive drainage systems or radon mitigation systems by do getting to the root of the problem.

January 15, 2009

Tire Stains

Filed under: Granitex — admin @ 10:43 am

Some tires stain paints, coatings and floor tiles made from petroleum based products including: Epoxies, PVC, Urethanes, Acrylics, and others. The stain is caused by a material called 6PPD which is in some natural and synthetic rubber products to resist degradation by ozone and UV light. As well as a parent compound in vulcanization accelerators and in antioxidants for rubber industry. 6PPD helps improve a product’s chemical, heat, and electrical resistance by preventing oxidation of a product by becoming oxidized itself.

6PPD in tires will stain all tiles made from Flexible PVC regardless of the color or manufacturer. Since 6PPD is designed for use in so many rubbers, plastics and other polymers, once it has stained a surface made from one of these compatible compounds, it is going to become a permanent part of your floor. Short of removing or covering the coating or tile, there is not much you can do.

The best thing you can do for your floor if it’s going to be in contact with tires, is find something that won’t stain. Granitex III Glaze has been developed to resist staining from tires to keep garage floors looking like new.

You have to be flexible

Filed under: Granitex — admin @ 10:34 am

How do I know that a Granitex coating will not chip, flake, or peel like other floor coatings? We showed you in an earlier article how our patented Super Sealer will be absorbed by the pores in the concrete to create a mechanical bond to the cement that won’t peel up like products that try to use a surface bond to adhere to concrete.

We applied a Granitex coating to a non-stick surface to test the Flexibility of Granitex without any surface to bond to. As you can see in the pictures below, Granitex coatings are incredibly flexible and won’t chip or flake like brittle epoxies or paints.

Bending a Granitex Sheet Folding a Granitex Sheet
Bending a Granitex Sheet Rolling Up a Granitex Sheet

As you can see, the material can be flexed and shaped into many forms without showing any signs of cracking or weakening. Granitex is strong yet flexible.

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