Grind It, Grip It, Then Keep It Thawed

A grip surface is only as good as the stone underneath it.

“Anyone can glue grit tape to a step. The question is what happens in February, under salt, on the third winter.” — From our scope-of-work letter

Day one is diagnosis: we take wet friction readings on each tread, probe the nosing for delamination, and check where water actually runs after rain. Day two the stone is profiled and flushed — years of absorbed chloride comes out with it, which is the step most contractors skip and the reason most coatings peel.

Day three the mineral grip matrix goes down in two passes, heavier at the nosing. Day four we return at dawn, hose the stoop and walk it wet before we invoice. If a tread reads below our threshold, that tread gets redone. No surcharge, no argument.

Handrail work runs in parallel. We mask the scrollwork, bring the grab-rail back to sound metal, prime the iron and lay the grip coat only along the hand path. Tenants keep a usable entrance the whole time — we phase half the stoop at a time and leave a temporary grit runner overnight.