Cleaning By the Gentlest Means

July 9, 2015
5:16 pm

Research is now showing that there is a direct link between achievement and behavior in school, and the overall condition and appearance of the school.

Okay. I’ll be the first to admit that I was not the best student in high school. There were just too many distractions for me while I was in school. And there were too many things that I wanted to do when I got home from school . . . and studying for a test or completing homework were not the things I wanted to do.

Algae and mildew growth on the limestone masonry took away from the beauty of this school.

A school that looks good helps students feel good, and that leads to improved achievement in school. If a building is beautiful, it can send the message that the students are valued enough to be provided with a beautiful building. That creates pride in the school, and pride helps foster achievement.

Maybe I should just blame my grades in high school on the appearance of the school I attended. But I’ve already admitted my problem and that would be minimizing the importance of a schools appearance.

I’ve always considered the school pictured here as being a beautiful school on a beautiful school campus. The architecture of the limestone blocks used in the construction of the school reminds me of a monument somewhere. But over the years, algae and mildew growth began to take away from the beauty of the school.

Limestone, by its nature, is a porous sedimentary rock commonly composed of tiny fossils and shell fragments. The school campus has many mature hardwood trees that provide shade and helps the porous limestone retain moisture, which is ideal conditions for algae, moss, lichens, and fungi to flourish.

After pressure washing, the natural beauty of the limestone was returned.

Masonry, like the limestone used in this school construction, is a very durable building material but it is susceptible to damage by harsh industrial cleaning methods. We chose to use a gentler water wash method of industrial cleaning and bleach to remove the algae and mildew stains from the limestone and restore the school’s beauty.

With a beautiful school campus to attend in a few weeks, students certainly can’t use the school’s appearance as their reason for underachieving!