CASE HISTORY:

• This manufacturing facility had been losing water from both their primary and secondary containment ponds for many months due to an aged and failing hypalon membrane liner.
• The head of maintenance was looking for possible ways to repair the existing membrane as well as save costly down time and money.
• Several contractors in the area were contacted in order to submit an extensive plan of action along with their bid proposal.
• The major failure of seams in the existing liner was a serious problem and cost for the manufacture but complete removal of the old liner was an extra expense the owner had not budgeted for.
• Due to the time of year, the owner decided to divide the ponds into two separate contracts or phases. The first phase would take place in the fall and the second phase would be completed in the spring of the following year.
• Water coming up through the existing liner would prove to be a problem during phase I of the contract.

 SOLUTION:

• The Silicone manufacture at this facility decided to contract with Protecting Coating Technology, Inc. and Mike Francis the company’s president to complete both phases of the renovation process.
• Mike Francis proposed to install ElastoGard ARC-HP, a pure polyurea spray coating manufactured by Elastomer Specialties, Inc. directly over a geotextile fabric.
• The polyurea had to be applied using high-pressure spray.
• A minimum of 80 mils of ElastoGard ARC-HP was specified as the final film thickness of the coating.
• The overall size of the contract was 40,000 square feet. 20,000 square feet to be done in the first phase and the remaining 20,000 square feet to be done in May 10, 2005.
• The contractor operated two separate mobile spray rigs. One rig contained a GlasCraft MH with a Fusion Gun while the other spray rig was complete with GlasCraft MX and was outfitted with the new Probler PT gun. A minimum of 300 feet of hose was attached to each spray unit.

 MATERIAL:

• Products specified:
  

  1. ElastoGard ARC-HP- A 100% solids, 1:1 ratio, pure polyurea coating developed for application on concrete, steel, geotextile fabric, wood and many other substrates.
  2. Geotextile Fabric- Phase I was specified with a 4 oz. Non-woven geotextile fabric. Phase II was specified with a 12 oz. Non-woven geotextile fabric.

 INSTALLATION:

• Prior to installation of the ElastoGard ARC the existing hypalon coating had to be thoroughly cleaned and the existing water removed from the containment area. In phase I the problem was the constant intrusion of water from beneath the hypalon coating. In phase II the problem was not as severe although still existed.
• Once the hypalon coating was cleaned the geotextile fabric was rolled down. During the roll down process, the seams of the fabric were overlapped 6-8 inches and sprayed with the ElastoGard ARC. The fabric was laid directly over the old hypalon membrane.
• In phase I Mike Francis had a 7-man crew, and took a period of 2 weeks to complete the project. In the second phase, it only took the same crew 5 days to complete the installation.
• In the second phase the ElastoGard ARC was used to also coat the vertical support pipes creating a complete watertight coating system.
• Upon completion of each phase of the project, the owner was able to return to containment areas back into operation the same day.