Trend 4 Trade supply and source products

Cleaning the outside of Windows

Window cleaning is always a time consuming job. In a commercial environment, actually using a window cleaner can be unproductive but the inside surface may need a solvent from time to time as kids sticky fingers can make quite a mess.

Outside surfaces only require a good wash mainly and this can be done even better with a little help of a cap full of "Neutral Floor Cleaner" in the bucket of water. Don't make it too strong as it will just make them streaky when they dry. It helps cut through grim and won't hurt the window rubbers when they are fitted with alloy frames.

This tip can be also used for washing off walls and other paintwork and it's also great for washing cars.

Don't use this in the venturi of your water blaster as it will foam up everywhere.

Smells coming from Urinals

Urinals and Toilets

Smells can be caused by all sorts of things.

Blocked or partly blocked drains,
Urine getting into crevices and wall linings,
Urine being absorbed by concrete floors. All these require different solutions.
A brown scum build up on the urinal walls and fittings.

Concrete floors can produce smells when they get wet and this can be cured by 2 processes.

Firstly, the floor can be etched with hydrochloric acid. This is a tricky job that needs to be attacked when no kids are around. The time the acid is left on the floor surface is critical. Start with a small area first. Try different timings of application before washing off.

Secondly, A good coating of Bicarbonate of Soda ( also known as Buffer in swimming pool language) can be sprinkled and left to work on the surface for a while before washing off. This is the safest solution to try first.

The Brown Scum build up can be removed with a product known as "Ultra All Purpose Cleaner"
Mix with water about 1 : 3 ratio and spray onto affected areas. Gently foam it up with a toilet brush and leave for 20 minutes. Come back and wash off. The scum should wash away leaving stainless steel shiny and bright.

The other causes listed above have to have the same treatment but are harder to access. All should be followed up with a good spray with "Eliminator" which gets rid of any bacteria that causes smell in the first place. A good disinfectant should follow.

Trend 4 Trade can supply the products listed in this posting if required.

Louver Windows with Missing Handles

It's mainly the older schools that have this missing handle problem. The louver windows at the top of the window areas of the classrooms have rods that come down to a window winder fitting and the handles just pull off the square drive. These handles over the years have been lost or missed placed and replacing with the originals models are very expensive.

We have made arrangements with a local engineer to manufacture replacements of these in a very simple form. As there are no stocks held for these items they would have to be made to order.

There are other winding windows which are much later design and these also have breakage problems. We have arranged to access parts for these in some cases so if you have problems, contact us for further details.

Pot Holes in Hard Areas

In the wet weather pot holes occur more frequently in driveways and hard court areas. When the rain water gets under the surface it starts to lift off more tar seal. These pot holes need filling as soon as they start to appear as to wait causes major problems and a costly job is called for.

When you see a pot hole starting, clean out the hole of stones and water and use a tar emulsion to create a glue. This only needs to be wet buy not puddled in the hole. Once this is done, get some plant mix from you local supplier and overfill the hole. Tamper down with the end of a 4 x 2 timber or run your car over it several times. With the small hole fixed early, then it won't grow into a bigger hole and start to lift the whole driveway up. You can use plant mix in cracks in concrete also. It make good fill if a crack or slight step appears that can trip up the kids.

We do have plant mix and emulsion available but we can only supply these "Pot Hole Kits" in Auckland as the weight of the products are so heavy, the couriers won't accept them. Out of Auckland, check for a supplier of roading materials.

Line marking on Grass

Grass field line marking is an art. If you are lucky enough to have a spraying machine then a real professional job can be achieved. Finding a good and economical machine of this type is hard to find. The few that are still around are very expensive and the manufacturers may try to make you buy their line marking paint at their prices. If you have a roller type machine then the process is much simpler.

Pour you paint into the tray and add water to at least 1 : 1 ratio. Sometime you can get away with a higher mix of water. The paint we supply is acrylic White and it's been especially made for line marking with extra white added.

There are a few tricks to this job. Firstly, make sure you mow the grass where you are going to mark as the line then lasts longer. Secondly, just add a very small amount of Glyphosate or Round Up to the paint mix. About a cap full is plenty. This won't kill the grass but just brown the tops of the grass leaves to stump the growth a bit. Too much will kill grass and create a muddy line. The parents of kids will hate you for it.

Don't use waste oil and diesel mix to mark with. This has been outlawed years ago and is frowned upon by the authorities. Oily marks on kids clothes put a stop to this practice.

Clean up the machine as soon as possible after use as the paint hardens up real quick. The rollers don't operate very well with old paint all around.

We can supply both the roller machines and the correct paint if required.

Line Marking on Hard Court Areas

Marking lines etc, on hard surfaces is easy when you get the right products and tools. The paint comes usually in spray cans that work upside down. These usually have a nozzle built into the cap. The better ones have a slot instead of a hole for the paint to exit. This means a thinner line can be made by turning the can 90 degrees when painting.

These spray cans need a lot of shaking before use so make sure the ball bearing inside is floating around and making a lot of clicking noise.

The best way to get these cans operating to their full extent is to warm them up first before shaking them. This can be dome by placing cans in a bucket of hot water before starting your painting job. The paint flows better.

As this paint dries very quickly, you would have to get any mistakes wiped up really quick. If you leave it too long you will need to use a black colour as a "Twink". Don't forget to keep wiping the tip of the spray can regularly to stop it clogging.

The best results are with a "Line marking machine" as lines can be made a lot neater and if a wider line is required, then several runs can be made adjacent to each line. To make clean up easier, spray your machine with silicon spray before use and then the paint overspray will come off a lot easier.

If you need to make circles or tight curves etc, then you may need to either hand hold each spray can or use a "Spray & Mark Spot handle". This is a can holder with wheels on the end so tight corners can be made. Problem is, the line will have a fuzzy edge as these handles don't have facilities to catch the overspray on the edges.

Trend 4 Trade uses only NZ made spray cans as the paint seems to be better and last longer. Colour rage is "White, Yellow, Red, Blue & Black"( twink). The machine we provide will fit the NZ cans but if you have a different brand machine, we may be able to get that machine modified to take the NZ cans. These cans are a lot cheaper to buy and are better than the imported ones.

It would be a bit uneconomical to use this type of marking on a grass field.