Marking Paint

Marking flags and tape are used in a variety of industries to keep everybody on the job site safe and informed, and they come in a variety of colors to convey the type of underground utility.  Since there are so many colors, each with different meanings, it can be difficult to remember what color means what.  To make it easier, here is a chart showing what each marking flag and tape color means:

White: Proposed Excavation

Pink: Temporary Survey Markings

Red: Electric Power Lines, Cable, Conduit and Lighting Cables

Yellow: Gas-Oil-Steam, Petroleum, and Gaseous Materials

Orange: Communications, Telephone, Cable TV, Alarm and Signal Lines

Blue: Potable Water

Purple: Reclaimed Water, Irrigation and Slurry

Green: Sanitary Sewers, Storm Sewers, Drain Lines

Marking flags and tape are used in so many industries, like utility construction, pet containment, hardware, forestry, landscaping, line locating, advertising, and lawn care, that it is good to have an understanding of what each color means so that you can stay safe.

If you need marking products, the only place to go is Utility Locating because you will get the best prices and best selection on everything from marking paint and marking flags to caution tape and underground tape.

There are many more barricade tape options than just the traditional yellow tape with the word “caution” printed on it.  It is easy to get the barricade tape you want with our customization options.  You have so many ink and tape colors to choose from, as well as message and logo options, so your tape will be completely personalized to suite your needs!

Tape Colors

• Black
• Blue
• Green
• Orange
• Purple
• Red
• White
• Yellow

Ink Colors

• Black
• Blue
• Green
• Orange
• Red
• White
• Yellow

Messages

Need a specific message on your barricade tape? No problem! Our customization allows you to print any message you need in a variety of colors!

Logos

Print your logo or other artwork on your barricade tape!  It adds visual interest and is a great way to brand and advertise your business.

Ready to get your custom barricade tape?  All you have to do is fill out a FREE Custom Barricade Tape Quote or call 1-800-975-0986.  Once your artwork has been approved, your custom barricade tape will arrive at your doorstep in about two weeks!

Since it is warming up outside, now is the perfect time to redo road surface markings.  Road surface markings give important information to both drivers and pedestrians, whether it is on the highway, sidewalk, or parking lot.  This means that it is extremely important to make sure that the markings are in good condition and highly visible.  In order to guarantee that the road markings are done correctly, there are a few tools that are necessary.

Of course, you need pavement striping paint.  Depending on what you need to do different colors are needed.  White and yellow are most commonly used on roads to designate traffic lanes and in parking lots to show the stalls.  Blue is used for any handicap markings, while red is for fire lanes.  Finally, there is black paint, otherwise known as cover-up, to correct any mistakes.

Unless you only have a very small job, a pavement striping machine is essential.  A great striping machine is made by Krylon, because it is easy to operate and extremely durable.  The 18-guage all steel construction features 7” wheels to elevate the carriage for an even ride over uneven surfaces, as well as storage room for 12 cans of paint.  It can paint strip widths of 2” to 4”, which makes it perfect for use in parking lots, warehouse, plants, factories, or anywhere else it may be needed.

Stencils make it easy to paint necessary information on parking lots.  We feature a parking lot stencil kit so that you can get everything you need all in one convenient set.  The Krylon Parking Lot Stencil Kit comes with the words “Visitor”, “Reserved”, and “No Parking”, as well as pictures of a curved arrow, a straight arrow, and the Handicap logo.

With just a few tools, your pavement markings will be easy to see—and therefore easy for people follow.

Inverted marking chalk is similar to marking paint, but in a chalk form. Used for marking utilities, job sites, electrical installations, communication lines, surveys and other ground markings, marking chalk is much more temporary than marking paint. It’s VOC compliant and comes in bright, APWA approved colors.

Marking chalk typically lasts about 14 days on common surfaces, but it can wash away sooner with rainfall. The temporary nature of inverted marking chalk makes it ideal for residential areas, roadways and job sites where markings are only wanted for a short period of time. You can remove marking chalk at any time with water and a wire brush.

While water-based marking chalk is recommended for soil and grass, solvent-based marking chalk is recommended for pavement, roadways and gravel. Like marking paint, solvent-based marking chalk will last longer than water-based. However, water-based marking chalk is much safer to use on grass and other natural surfaces.

If you do utility locating and surveying near roadways, you may like surveyor safety vests. These traffic safety vests are designed to meet the needs of surveyors and other roadside workers. You can get surveyor safety vests in hi-vis colors like bright orange and lime green.

Surveyor vests are different from other safety vests because they have multiple vest pockets. Safety vests with pockets can be used to store small tools and writing utensils needed by workers. These pockets can be on the inside or outside of the safety vests. Many surveyors and workers in related industries may need to carry small objects like measuring tape, calculators and other items. Surveyor vests have plenty of room for all of these objects.

Like other safety vests, surveyor vests can be ANSI class 2, ANSI class 3 or non-ANSI certified. Most surveyor safety vests are ANSI class 2 vests, meaning they are worn by workers near traffic between 25 and 50 mph. These vests come in mesh or solid material. Explore the benefits of surveyor safety vests with pockets for yourself.

Marking flags are used to mark underground utilities and surveying points. They can also be useful for lawn companies, property appraisal and other industries. There are two types of staffs for marking flags, plastic staffs and wire staffs. We offer both types in 2 x 3 flags, 4 x 5 flags and 5 x 8 size flags.

Plastic staff marking flags are the safer alternative to wire for being around pets or children. If there is the possibility of lawn equipment or machinery being around the marking flags, plastic staffs will cause much less damage than wire staffs.

Wire staff marking flags are more durable than plastic staffs, and have better chances against bad weather. If you are planning on leaving marking flags in a particular location for a long period of time, wire staffs are the way to go.

No matter which type of marking flag staffs you choose, you can get marking flags in all of the APWA approved colors, florescent colors and more. There are also plain marking flags, printed marking flags and custom printed marking flags.

Marking paint is used to mark underground utilities, construction sites, athletic fields, parking lots, and many other surfaces. When marking utilities, different colors of marking paint indicate different underground utilities. It’s very important that the correct colors of paint are used when marking underground utilities, so here are the color codes for utility marking paints.

There are two main types of utility marking paint colors: APWA colors, approved by the American Public Works Association, and fluorescent colors.

APWA color codes for utility marking paints are as follows:

APWA white marking paint marks proposed excavation.

APWA orange marking paint marks communication, alarm, or signal lines, as well as cables or conduit.

APWA green marking paint indicates sewers and drain lines.

APWA red marking paint is for electric power lines, cables, conduit, and lighting cables.

Both APWA light blue marking paint and APWA blue marking paint are used for potable water.

APWA high visibility/traffic yellow marking paint is used to mark roads and highway pavement.

APWA utility/safety yellow marking paint marks gas, oil, steam, petroleum, or gaseous materials.

Fluorescent color codes for utility marking paints are as follows:

Fluorescent orange marking paint marks communication, alarm, or signal lines, as well as cables or conduit.

Both fluorescent red/orange marking paint and fluorescent safety red marking paint indicate electric power lines, cables, conduit, and lighting cables.

Fluorescent caution blue marking paint marks potable water.

Fluorescent safety/neon green marking paint represent sewers and drain lines.

Fluorescent hot pink marking paint is used for temporary survey markings.

Fluorescent purple marking paint marks reclaimed water, irrigation, and slurry lines.

All of these marking paint colors are available in both water-based marking paint formulas and solvent-based marking paint formulas.

Interested in the color codes for marking flags, too? Check out this chart of Utility Locating Flag Color Codes.

For land surveyors, utility locators and workers in other related industries, it’s important to stay safe while you work near roadways. There are several safety precautions you can take to maintain personal safety on the job.

If you are working near the edge of a roadway, you should always wear a safety vest. If the traffic you’re working near is between 25 and 50 miles per hour, you need an ANSI class 2 safety vest. For traffic exceeding 50 miles per hour, you require an ANSI class 3 safety vest. These traffic safety vests have high visibility and reflective material so you can be seen by drivers. If you’re working in colder conditions, you can elect for a safety jacket instead of a safety vest.

Another way of ensuring you are seen by drivers is surrounding your work area with hi-vis items. Some traffic cones are available in hi vis orange or lime with bright reflective striping. You can also get hi-vis mesh barricade fencing or caution tape.

Unfortunately, tens of thousands of injuries and fatalities occur each year from roadside accidents. Ensure that you are meeting federal regulations and protecting yourself with the right safety measures.

If you use striping paint or athletic field paint, motorized paint striping machines can make your job much faster and easier. You can use a striping machines with bulk quantities of pavement striping paint or athletic field paint. This is quicker than using smaller aerosol cans. You’ll also save money when you buy Krylon striping paint in 5 gallon pails.

The best motorized striping machines are manufactured by Graco. The Field Lazer Striping machine is specifically for athletic fields and other grassy areas. The LineLazer 3400 is capable of striping both grassy surfaces and pavement surfaces. Both machines use airless technology to spray high concentrations of striping paint. The result is bright, long-lasting lines.

These motorized striping machines are also designed to make the job easier on the operator. They are lightweight and easy to control. Handle-bars make adjustments and fine-tuning simple, without having to stop and turn off the machine. The front wheels can glide effortlessly over bumps and curbs. The filter prevents striping paint from clogging up. There is an attached sprayer for stencils or large solid areas. They also have folding handles to make transportation an easy process.

Try painting pavement and fields with motorized striping machines. Save time and money when you buy Krylon striping paint in 5 gallon pails.

Presco is a leading manufacturer of commercial marking products, including marking flags. Made of durable, wind-tear resistant PVC, Presco marking flags are available in all APWA colors to meet the needs of various aboveground marking jobs. Ordering fluorescent flag colors is also an option. Presco marking flags are glued to staffs, not wrapped, so they can withstand breaking and tearing even in high wind conditions. Staffs come in assorted lengths, ranging from 12 inches to 36 inches, as well as in different materials, plastic or wire. Each staff type has its own benefits.

Presco’s plastic staff marking flags, made of sturdy, 1/8 inch PVC plastic, are the best safety option. Use plastic marking flags in situations where lawn mowers or other machinery could possibly run over the flags. Marking flags with plastic staffs are also ideal to use in yards or in other areas where children are around.

Presco’s steel wire staff marking flags, made of 16-gauge steel, are advantageous because of their tensile strength and bend ability. Marking flags with wire staffs are also cheaper than marking flags with plastic staffs.

This brand offers both solid color marking flags and custom printed marking flags. Solid marking flags identify underground utilities based on which APWA color the flags are. White marking flags, for example, indicate proposed excavation, blue marking flags indicate potable water lines, and green marking flags indicate sewers and drain lines. All color codes are listed on this APWA Uniform Color Codes chart. Custom printed marking flags serve a few purposes. Companies either order marking flags printed with standard utility messages, like “Gas”, “Water,” or “Danger,” or they order custom marking flags printed with their own company name or logo. Marking flags custom printed with a company name or logo serve as a great branding opportunity, since a company can promote itself at each job site.

Stay tuned to MarkingPaint.net for more information on products by Presco, a leading brand of marking products!