Problem Solving Forum
April 27 - May 3, 2015
When refurbishing an old concrete secondary containment wall around a storage tank, what criteria should be used to determine if a crack can be repaired for coating or if the section of the wall should be rebuilt?
Selected Answers
From
Larry Muzia of Exceletech LLC on
April 28, 2015:
Death, taxes and concrete cracks are 3 of the cons ...read more
Death, taxes and concrete cracks are 3 of the constants in our universe. Provided the wall is sound enough to support a loss of the primary containment structures' liquid, then making repairs to insure the wall is leak-proof is good practice. If the crack is static, then a route and grout method can be successful. Should the crack be moving, then a flexible repair method which also has suitable resistance to pass the 72-hour test to resist the product exposure within the containment area is required. There are numerous flexible materials available with excellent resistance to a broad range of chemical exposure. It should be noted that the pH of the area should be tested and should be above 8 as a minimum. Remove foreign contamination in the areas to be repaired and address any exposed rebar. Major settling causing a large crack may also indicate a soil stabilization issue.
From
Warren Brand of Chicago Corrosion Group on
April 27, 2015:
If the wall is deemed structurally sound, there is ...read more
If the wall is deemed structurally sound, there is no reason to rebuild it.
