The very best way to prevent landscape graffiti is to use as many non-porous planters, receptacles, lighting fixtures and site furnishings as possible. Other ways to prevent landscape graffiti include adding security fencing or planting thorny bushes around the perimeter of your building. There are many tactics you can use in order to decrease the likelihood your property is targeted by vandals.
10 Tips To Help Prevent Landscape Graffiti
#1. Go With TerraCast Products
TerraCast planters and landscape furnishings are made from a unique non-porous resin-blend that is nearly impossible to stain. Even graffiti disappears after using a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Wipe to remove it. We make planters, lampposts, receptacles and a number of site furnishings that are highly resistant to graffiti.
Learn more about our graffiti-resistant resin-based products here: https://www.terracastproducts.com/why-resin/
#2. Create Barriers To Protect Landscaping From Graffiti
Fences, gates and locks can all be used to prevent people from easily accessing your business or home after hours. Metal link fences tend to attract the least graffiti simply because it’s nearly impossible to tag anything of substance on the thin metal chains. Painted fences tend to attract less graffiti than non-painted fences.
#3. Use Plants As Protective Barriers
Use plants to protect walls and other common targets. You can even use a row of TerraCast Planters with tall lush plants or small trees to protect the lower and mid-regions of walls or other structures. Since our planters don’t stain from graffiti, you’re virtually adding a double layer of protection, plants plus planters.
You don’t have to actually plant poison ivy, but to help deter intruders you could add a sign that reads, “beware of poison ivy.”
Planting bushes with sharp thorns, like rose bushes, also make great deterrents.
#4. Beat Them To The Chase
Have a local artist or high school paint a mural or graffiti art that represents your business morals or mission on blank building walls. Graffiti artists are far less likely to paint over someone else’s artwork than they are to tag a bare wall. Not only do you score an eye-catching conversation piece, but also you deter vandals from adding unwanted graffiti to your building.
By commissioning local artists or high school students to add artwork to your building, you create a community effect in which you make a good impression and provide a positive outlet. Who knows, it might even end up on the news in which case you receive free publicity.
#5. Keep Your Property In Tip-Top Shape
A well-maintained property is less of a target than a property in disarray. Vandals are more likely to make their mark on properties that don’t look as well cared for because they assume there’s a higher likelihood of getting away with the crime. Broken fences, litter and messy landscapes signal that no one is around or no one cares, making your property more tempting to vandals.
#6. Add After-Hours Landscape Lighting
Lighting fixtures help deter vandals because they are looking for darker locations where it’s less likely to get caught. You can use automatic motion-detecting lights that’ll turn on if anyone comes within the area. LED lights that run throughout the night are cost effective and can also prevent vandals.
Your actual lighting fixtures are potential targets for vandals as well. No need to worry when you have TerraCast lighting fixtures. We make all of our lighting fixtures from our specially formulated non-porous resin-based blend. Plus, our LED lighting fixtures come in all shapes and sizes, from tree-ring lights to full lampposts.
Shop our full collection of graffiti-resistant lighting fixtures here: https://www.terracastproducts.com/commercial-landscape-lighting/
Quick tip: Add lighting fixtures to hard to reach places, such as up in the trees. This helps prevent vandals from damaging lighting systems to create greater privacy in order to get away with vandalizing your property.
#7. Remove Anything That Makes It Easy To Access Your Roof
Vandals are looking for higher locations and well-light canvases to make their mark so that more people see their creations. Trespassers can climb up to your roof or tag higher aspects of your building by using a dumpster, bench, etc. to climb. Make sure there isn’t any large fixture that would facilitate someone climbing up to your roof or scaling the building in order to gain better access.
To further safeguard building walls against graffiti, consider adding the mural mentioned above or creating a living green wall.
#8. Alert Your Local Authorities
If graffiti is a cause of concern for you, make sure to speak with your local sheriff’s department in order to see if there’s anything that can be done. For instance, providing additional security personnel to monitor your area after dark.
#9. Add Real Or Fake Security Cameras
Add signs that warn of security cameras, or add real security cameras. Signs and faux cameras can deter vandals because people don’t want to get caught. Real cameras should be kept out of sight so that vandals cannot destroy them. Instead they are unknowingly caught on camera causing damage to your property. Visual evidence changes everything when seeking justice in a court of law.
#10. Remove Graffiti As Soon As Possible
If other street artists see graffiti left on your building for weeks on end, it’ll provoke them to leave their mark on your property as well. Graffiti is an art form and the artists behind it take great pride in the work that they create. The hope is that their work remains up for as long as possible. If street artists know their artwork will be gone within hours of sunrise, why bother tagging the location again?
Quickly removing graffiti helps protect your business image while deterring future vandals from acting out on your property. Albeit, cleaning graffiti is often easier said than done. Some materials are nearly impossible to clean up without sanding down and repainting or blasting with a power washer. That’s why our landscape furnishings are so uniquely convenient, you can literally remove all traces of graffiti right away without any help from a professional power washer or painter.