If the side of your building sports big black squiggles or lettering that's decidedly not a message from you, meet Graffiti Busters.
The small Seattle company specializes in cleaning graffiti drawn or sprayed on walls, fences and signs. The most common form is ``tagging,'' writing one's name or gang affiliation in stylized letters.
There's no doubt about demand for the company's services.
Bellevue recently awarded the company a $140,000 maintenance services contract for graffiti removal. Graffiti Busters is one of a half dozen such companies listed in the telephone book.
Ed Diamond, the owner of Graffiti Busters, said most graffiti he removes is found on the sides of offices or apartment buildings, along with bus stops and fences.
``These are usually young fellows who like to put their tags on things. If we get it off quickly there's less chance of it reappearing,'' Diamond said. ``We've removed a lot of graffiti. Bellevue is one of most aggressive cities around for keeping things clean.''
Diamond declined to say how much revenue Graffiti Busters generates annually, but did say most removal jobs cost $75 to $250 and take one to two hours.
Magic Markers are the most commonly used writing instrument, with spray paint a popular option, Diamond said.
His employees use a variety of chemicals to remove the graffiti, depending on the type of surface that's been defaced. For example, brick requires a different removal method than the surface of a car.
The company also provides protection, or ``abatement,'' services in the form of a special coating from which graffiti can be easily removed.
``Sometimes sandstone and stucco are very hard to get graffiti off of, but with the coating it's much easier,'' Diamond said.
In the past couple of years, Diamond said, a new and even more malicious form of graffiti has appeared in which taggers etch their names in glass using acid.
``They put it on windows. We can remove that by grinding it out but it's more costly,'' Diamond said.
Diamond is also the owner of Fuzzy Wuzzy Rug Cleaning Co. and Diamond Cleaning Services, a company he founded in 1961. He bought Graffiti Busters from a previous owner in 1995 and made it a subsidiary.
The custom license plate on his car partially spells out his moniker, ``Cleaning Man.''
David Grant can be reached at david.grant@kingcountyjournal.com or 425-453-4237.