The newly-renovated Charlevoix South Pier lighthouse's once bright red paint was nothing more than a faded coating, so Charlevoix Historical Society and the City of Charlevoix set out to find a new coating system. The new system would not only restore the lighthouse's historically-correct shade of red, but would also ensure the color and gloss retention of the coating.
“The existing urethane coating went from a bright, candy apple red type color to a light pink,” said coating consultant Anthony Hartwig of North Group, LLC. “People from the area did not want to see this faded eyesore, so they were looking for a coating system that was going to last and perform,” Hartwig further explains.
tnemec provided the community with the solution to their problem after the architects of Smay Trombley Architecture were referred to a water tank in Peck, Michigan. The tank had been coated with a red fluoropolymer coating system years earlier, and the architects were able to assess how well the fluoropolymer performed after exposure to ice, water, salt, and UV radiation.
The lighthouse's steel exterior was power washed in preparation for the coating system that was selected for the coating job.
“The finish color was Federal Standard Red, which matched he color they wanted,” Hartwig said. He states,“It's a very bright, in-your-face, high-visibility red. The application went well and the architect and contractor were happy with the project.”
The system was completed with the addition of Tnemec's Series 1070 fluoronar. The fluoropolymer coating employs Lumiflon FEVE resin, which offers exceptional weatherability and gloss and color retention capabilities. FEVE-based fluoropolymers like Fluoronar are ideal choices for high-profile projects like the Charlevoix South Pier Lighthouse, as the formulation will keep the lighthouse's vibrant red color for decades.
Photos courtesy of the Charlevoix Historical Society
Information courtesy of Tnemec