Introduction
Dry Ice Blasting is used in a multitude of historic restoration projects including the one we recently completed in Rockport, MA on July 24th, 2025. We were contracted to dry ice blast barn board wood, in a fishing hut, to lighten the surfaces and bring them closer to their original state.
Originally, this fishing hut was only a small wooden enclosure but will now be preserved since a fully functional house has been built around it, acting as a shell. This home build was completed within the last year. The fishing hut was built circa 1700’s and has since been exposed to environmental contaminants for almost 300 years. This has caused the wood surfaces to darken significantly. The Nitrofreeze team used dry ice blasting technology to remove a thin layer of wood to lighten the substrate, bringing it closer to its original look from nearly 300 years ago.
Before Dry Ice Blasting
What is Dry Ice Blasting?
Dry Ice Blasting is a non-toxic and non-abrasive cleaning process that uses solid carbon dioxide pellets and compressed air. The pellets are propelled at a high speed by the compressed air and directed at the substrate–in this case the barn board. When the pellets hit the surface, they almost immediately sublimate into carbon dioxide gas. Some of the kinetic energy of the pellets is transferred to the surface removing a thin layer of wood. The minimal amount of abrasion is dependent on the thermal conductivity of the surface being blasted. In comparison to other blasting techniques such as soda blasting, sand blasting, or chemical treatments; this process is completely non-toxic, and non-conductive as dry ice is inert. In addition, the only waste being produced is the fine layer of wood being removed.
Dry Ice Blasting for Historical Restoration
Dry Ice Blasted Versus Untouched Surfaces
We utilized a fragmenting nozzle on our dry ice blaster and only passed about 2 lbs. per minute of ice pellets through it to maintain a minimal amount of abrasion on the wood surface in the fishing hut. This enabled us to protect the fishing hut from further damage. The project required that all wood surfaces including the walls, ceiling, beams, and posts inside the fishing hut be blasted.
Dry Ice Blasting is a very versatile tool that that has many applications in the world of restoration. In fact, we also recently completed a project at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston to aid in their preservation efforts of several statues. The substrate for that project was metal, but we can clean many building materials, including stone, brick, and many types of wood.
Conclusion
After Dry Ice Blasting
Nitrofreeze Cryogenic Solutions successfully restored the wood surfaces at the fishing hut in Rockport, Massachusetts. The customer was ecstatic with the results. Dry ice blasting effectively removed the layer of wood that contained environmental fallout that had built up over the course of almost 300 years. Our processes can be used in a wide variety of industries ranging from industrial manufacturing to the food and beverage industry, to historical restoration.
What Can You Do?
Nitrofreeze is determined to exceed customer expectations and requirements while maintaining rigorous environmental standards. We have been providing dry ice blasting services in the New England area for almost 20 years. If you are interested in having us review your next historical restoration project, you can contact us using this link or you can reach us at info@nitrofreeze.com or at (508) 459-7447 to learn more.