Exploring the Benefits of Eco-Friendly Striping Materials for Sustainable Projects
- clearworksmail
- Feb 13
- 6 min read
In today's world, where sustainability is a hot topic, the choices we make for even small projects can greatly affect our environment. One area that often gets overlooked is the use of eco-friendly striping materials in construction, roadwork, and maintenance. Current surface option include concrete and asphalt, both of which are very fossil fuel intensive in their production and placement, as well as their eventual removal and potential recycling. During the lifecycle, both of these options require maintence, water sealers for concrete, and sealcoating for asphalt, as well as pavement markings on both to make them safe and functional. For the purpose of this posting, we will look at only pavement markings. These materials are essential not only for safety but also for reducing our negative impact on the planet.
As industries globally strive for greener operations, understanding the advantages of eco-friendly striping materials is increasingly important.
What are Some Different Striping Materials?
Pavement markings are materials are used for marking roads, airports, parking lots, bike paths and similar surfaces, designed with a focus on sustainability. A lot of pavement markings include lines, so we typically just say "striping" although in the traditional sense of the word the lines are not usually close enough to really say that we have "striped" the parking lot :) Unlike traditional alternatives using various harsh solvents to chemically melt into the asphalt, these materials contain fewer volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and may be derived from renewable sources. Examples of modern pavement markings include:
Water-based paints: These contain significantly fewer VOCs, making them safer for both users and the environment. After being sprayed, there are no harsh solvents to evaporate out into the air as the paint dries, in addition to sparing the manufacture, transportation, and eventual evaporation of approximately 10 gallons of solvent per machine per week. It is truly amazing! However, despite favorable ratings by the manufacturers, it does not seem like the adhesion is quite what is was when placed into practice.
Thermoplastic materials: These are notably durable and can last up to five to seven years longer than traditional paint due to the thickness of application. What is thermoplastic? It starts as plastic beads or pellets in the desired color, which are then heated into a liquid at a high temperature to create the "slurry" which is drizzled out like melted chocolate before cooling and setting into its new shape. Thermoplastics hold up better because they are pigmented all the way thru, plastic is not as brittle as paint, and they are super thick, 1/8" or possibly even up to 1/4". Although durable, these require significant costs in terms of specialized equipment, materials, and the amount of energy used to melt down the plastics. Any potential off-gassing of the plastics during heating could also be a potential concern, but this is what you will see on all highways and roadways.
Reflective coatings: These enhance visibility and help reduce accidents, especially at night. A coating is made to become "reflective" by distributing glass beads onto the wet surface of a pavement marking, where the beads will partially submerge into the paint or plastic, and become attached when the marking has set. There are a variety of beads available with different DOT ratings, which essentially determines how smooth the shape are of the bead and thus how effective at reflecting light making the marking brighter.
Benefits of Using Eco-Friendly Striping Materials
1. Reduced Environmental Impact
One of the main benefits of eco-friendly striping materials is their lower environmental impact. Traditional striping products can release harmful chemicals, worsening air quality and polluting soil and water sources. For example, using water-based paints can cut VOC emissions by nearly 70% compared to solvent-based paints, or arguably at the user level, cut solvents by 100%.
There is the sustainable argument to these materials, but more importantly, in Ohio, they are not available for sale as regulations continue to develop.
2. Enhanced Safety Features
Safety is crucial in public spaces, and eco-friendly striping materials improve the experience for both pedestrians and applicators by reducing risk of fire, odor, and hazardous waste leftover. Of the current options for striping, these products can still be combined with beads to create reflective properties, increasing visibility during nighttime and poor weather conditions. Safer application, and safer use.
3. Long-Term Cost Efficiency
There may be costs associated with adopting modern materials such as more frequent re-application, but the long-term savings and sustainability are substantial. As technology advances there easily could be a product that meets or exceeds the performance of the high VOC solvent paints, which would mean fewer re-applications or restripes. By sourcing water based materials, it communicates to suppliers that the demand is there, and they are encouraged to invest all the more to develop even better water options.However, for the absolute best pavement parking, nothing seems to beat thermoplastic right now. The cost is high, but in applications like highways where continued repaints are not an optoin, and traffic is extreme, it seems to be worth the cost. You just cannot compare the durability of paint which is brittle and the thickness of a piece of paper, up against a durable pigmented plastic that is applied at a depth of 1/8" or 1/4".
4. Supporting Local Economies
Sourcing eco-friendly striping materials from local distributers supports our local economy. By shopping We purchase original, full strength, label specific materials from reputable national brands, but have local relationships with sales representatives and product support staff that live and work where we do.
5. Positive Public Perception
With growing consumer awareness about sustainability, many individuals and companies prefer to engage with eco-conscious practices. Implementing eco-friendly striping materials can enhance the public image of businesses and public entities, showcasing their commitment to sustainability, plus in Ohio, it is no longer an option. Even if the trend towards or attention to the environment were not a factor, it would be what we want to do, because its safer, its the right thing to do, and it just makes sense.
Implementing Eco-Friendly Materials in Your Project
Integrating eco-friendly striping materials into your project is a good idea. Learning about the options gives a better understanding of what can be expected from these materials.
Research Available Products: Identify eco-friendly options within your region and look for low VOC compliant paints in the needed quantities.
Partner with Knowledgable Suppliers: Collaborating with suppliers that are committed to sustainable practices can be equally beneficial for both end users as well as manufacturers as feedback is received.
Plan for Longevity, but Expect the Maintenance: You always want to do the best job possible and try to get the longest life that you can get out of the paint application. But, assess the long-term costs and consider expected maintenance schedules. Even if re striping is necessary more frequently, if it is done quicker and easier and at a lower cost, it could have its own side benefits. Running any paint out for years exposes fading, chipping from snow removal equipment, not to mention all the dirt and rubber buildup from tires and traffic. Painting more frequently DOES seem to keep a sharper image by more frequently touching up the defects instead of trying to run the paint out to the end of a longer lifecycle.
We always get the question - "well how long is this paint going to last"
Paints of any formula cannot be expected to stand up against a snow plow or even the sharp edge of a snow shovel, as often you see scratching right into the ashphalt or concrete itself. This is why an expected maintence schedule is important, but its not one size fits all, the use cycle that you will get out of a painted striping job will depend on:
- the type of surface
- condition of asphalt or concrete on a 1-10 scale
- any previously applied chemicals EVER applied, especially important with concrete which is porous and can hold chemicals from within
- traffic quantity - 50 cars per day or 500 cars per day
- traffic duty - 50 light duty cars weighing 2K ea, or 50 semi trucks at 80K ea
- geographic region - 15 hrs of sun per day in Texas at 110degrees versus 1 hr of sun per in Alaska at 30 degrees.
- layout of your lot, cars driving straight across the lines, versus turning all the way around a drive thru and scrubbing the rubber tires on the paint the entire way
- weather - 15 snow storms per year at 1" each will cause a lot more plowing and scraping than 1 snow storm per year at 15" deep.
So as shown - there is no set time to how long paint lasts, its a matter of maintenance so, it is up to each property owner to determine what they want or can budget to keep the markings fresh. Plus, when a line or stripe is "worn" and due for a re-coat is totally subjective as well. When is it time to repaint the walls in your house-When they show fading? When a child scratches the wall? When you want a simple refresh? Each person can answer differently, but with line striping its usually time to repaint when the back of the line where all the traffic drives starts looking noticably different than the front of the line where cars dont normally drive.
Communicate Benefits: Clearly inform stakeholders and local communities about the sustainable practices in place. Effective communication provides understanding and thereby community support.
Evaluate Performance: After implementation, track the effectiveness of the chosen materials. Use collected data to improve future projects and to adjust expected maintence schedules.
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