NPS Fort Pulaski

The Warren Lasch Conservation Center Staff is performing preservation treatments on various artifacts, including prison bars, embrasure bars, and artillery at Fort Pulaski National Monument in Savannah, Georgia. The Preservation team is applying their extensive knowledge of preservation treatments for large outdoor artifacts and testing coating systems in real world conditions from their years of experience working with similar artifacts at Fort Sumter National Historic Park. The treatment protocol involves the application of an environmentally friendly paint stripper and the use of a pressurized, super-heated water and steam blasting system to remove the existing, failing coatings from the artifacts. The use of a non-abrasive blasting medium allows us to maintain the integrity of the existing surface and any inscriptions. The artifacts’ substrate is consolidated using chemical procedures to stabilize the surface before applying a marine industrial coating system that our testing has shown to be highly effective in aggressive coastal and marine environments. The conservation work at Fort Pulaski began in 2020 and is currently ongoing.