Buildings

Premature Corrosion of Porcelain Enamel-Coated Panels

Buildings, Coating Assessment, Coating Failure, Coatings, Commercial, Lab Testing / By

Background of Design Specifications – Five stations of a commuter rail transportation system were exhibiting corrosion and coating adhesion problems.  The train stations were constructed approximately six years prior to observed coating failure. The steel surfaces (column covers, wall and ceiling cladding, soffit, security screens and structural support systems) were to receive a porcelain enamel protective […]

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Foaming of clear topcoat

Concrete Floor Coatings Forensics Case History — Part 2

Buildings, Coating Assessment, Coating Failure, Coatings, Commercial, Concrete Floors, Lab Testing / By

Concrete Floor Coatings Forensics Case History- Part 2 When examining a coating problem in the laboratory, background information gathered during discussions with the involved parties and information obtained during a field investigation help to direct the course of the laboratory investigation. The background information collected for this case was included in last month’s F-Files, “Concrete

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Concrete Coating Failure

Concrete Floor Coatings Forensics Case History — Part 1, Field Investigation Phase

Buildings, Coating Assessment, Coating Failure, Coatings, Commercial, Concrete Floors / By

The field phase of this concrete floor coatings forensics case history included five steps: project familiarization and interview; moisture detection; coating thickness measurements; adhesion testing; and microscopic examination, sample collection and photographic documentation.This edition of the F-Files presents the field investigation undertaken to determine the cause of a concrete floor coating failure (Fig. 1). The

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weathered coating

Keeping Coatings in the Game

Buildings, Coating Assessment, Coating Failure, Coatings, Commercial, Maintenance Painting / By

Testing at five-major league baseball stadiums offers insights into paint and coatings performance While grand architectural and aesthetic considerations for buildings may be less common than in past generations, they still matter to professional and collegiate sports stadium owners. They have important fan bases to consider. Keeping stadium structural steel looking sharp can be as

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Tools and Techniques for Measuring Coating Quality- Part 2, Moisture Detection

Buildings, Coating Standards, Commercial, Concrete Floors, Concrete Walls, Inspection, Instruments, Moisture / By

This is Part 2 of a 2-part series describing the instrumentation used to inspect the quality of cleaning and painting.  Part 1 described the instruments used for determining the quality of cleaning and paint.  Part 2 addresses moisture detection.  The moisture content of the concrete should be determined prior to painting. In the author’s experience,

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wagner gage

But I Can’t Wait 3 Days

Buildings, Coating Standards, Commercial, Concrete Floors, Inspection, Instruments, Moisture / By

No time for standard concrete slab moisture evaluations? Try these accelerated methods. Let’s face it; we live in an age where instant results matter. Assessing concrete floors for moisture is no different. Most owners, contractors and manufacturers agree that these assessments are necessary prior to installing flooring treatments to achieve quality results. Numerous resources exist to

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Tools and Techniques for Measuring Coating Quality- Part 1, Cleaning and Painting

11 Comments / Buildings, Coating Standards, Commercial, Concrete, Concrete Walls, Dry Film Thickness, Inspection, Instruments, Surface Preparation, Surface Profile, Wet Film Thickness / By

When you spend money on a product or service, you expect quality, regardless of the cost.  If you purchase the most inexpensive Chevrolet that is made, you still expect quality.  While the braking system in the Chevrolet may be less sophisticated than a Mercedes, the brakes better work and exhibit quality commensurate with its design. 

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peeling paint on concrete

Why New Coatings Fail on Old Concrete Floors

Buildings, Coating Failure, Coatings, Commercial, Concrete Floors, Moisture / By

While it’s hard to put an exact price tag on what concrete-floor coating failures cost building owners, contractors and retailers each year, two things are clear. First, these failures, nearly all of them avoidable, happen a lot. Second, if it happens to you, it costs too much. Concrete is a complex material and many issues

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Coating Failure

Clues to a Coating Failure

7 Comments / Buildings, Coating Assessment, Coating Failure, Coatings, Commercial, Inspection, Lab Testing, Roofs / By

A consultant follows the facts to discover why perfectly good, recently applied paint fell from a new steel ceiling and to find the source of the coating failure. It wasn’t like the sky was falling, but when large pieces of paint dropped from the roof deck onto machinery being installed in a newly built manufacturing

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Industry Standards for Surface Preparation

Buildings, Coating Standards, Commercial, Concrete Floors, Concrete Walls, Inspection, Instruments, Surface Preparation / By

Fig. 1: A number of organizations provide written standards and guidelines for surface preparation Coatings are applied to commercial buildings to protect a variety of materials from corrosion and deterioration, and to maintain the brand and aesthetics of the structure. Three key factors must be addressed during design and construction in order achieve long-term coating

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