Bitumen & Tar Removal Cardiff

Where bitumen marks come from

• Roofing work, where hot bitumen has splashed onto paving, walls or glass below.
• Tar tracked out of a freshly surfaced road or car park on tyres and boots.
• Sealant and adhesive overspray from flat roofing or waterproofing works.
• Bitumen based paints and damp proofing, misapplied or splashed.

Why scrubbing makes it worse

Bitumen is a soft, sticky solid. Mechanical effort at ambient temperature smears it: the mark thins and widens, works into the surface texture, and what was a defined blob becomes a large grey shadow that is much harder to remove. The correct order is soften, lift, then clean the residue, in that order and without hurrying the first step.

How we do it

A solvent based softener appropriate to the surface is applied and left to work, and the bulk of the bitumen is then lifted away rather than rubbed. What is left is a stain rather than a lump, and that gets a second treatment and hot water. On porous surfaces we may use a poultice for the same reason we use one on oil: to draw the residue out rather than push it in.

What we will tell you honestly

Bitumen on a dense surface, concrete, porcelain, glass, glazed tile, usually comes off completely. On a porous natural stone, particularly a light sandstone, it has often stained below the surface and the realistic outcome is a significant improvement rather than a perfect one. We say which of those we think you have before starting, and where it matters we test one mark and show you the result.

Fresh is easier than baked on

If roofers have splashed your paving, the best time to call is the same week. Fresh bitumen lifts far more easily than bitumen that has had a summer to soften, spread and set into the surface. Where the mark is on a frontage or a walkway we work early so the area is back in use for the day.

Solvent residue must not reach a drain

Bitumen removal uses a solvent softener rather than volume of water, which changes the containment problem. The softened bitumen and the residue are absorbed and collected as solid waste, and the small amount of rinse water is contained. Nothing solvent based goes into a gully, foul or surface.

Testing before we commit to an area

On dense surfaces bitumen usually comes off completely; on porous natural stone it has often stained below the surface. We treat one mark first and show you the result before doing the rest, so you are agreeing to an outcome you have actually seen. RAMS, insurance and product data sheets are supplied up front.