Remedial Waterproofing

Remedial waterproofing refers to any waterproofing works on an existing building that is suffering from water penetration to the internal areas and unfortunately for the construction industry, its the most common service we provide. 

Imagine that a building's external skin is an envelope, working to protect the internal spaces and its structural components from weathering and deterioration. 

On the whole, this envelope works - but it is a common principle that 90% of water penetration issues are from just 1% of the total building exterior surface area caused by anything other than material failure. 

It only takes a minor crack, hole or breach for moisture in all its forms (liquid, vapour, solid)  to infiltrate the envelope (sometime with help from wind, mortar shrinkage, movement, freeze / thaw cycles, etc) 

As a specialist in this field, we employ the following sequence when inspecting projects; 

• Inspection of damage and leakage
• Determine the cause of the leak
• Choose the most appropriate system for repair
• Clean and prepare any substrate 
• Carry out restoration / repair work to the substrate 
• Application of the waterproof system. 

Our consultancy and remedial services pinpoint the areas of leakage to create a plan of action, solving problems in common areas such as concrete rooftops, balconies, wet areas, etc. 

We are able to fix issues with existing waterproof membranes and coatings, sealants, cement rendering, joint seals and flashing to areas such as:

• Rooftops 
• Balconies 
• Podiums
• Box Gutters and Rain Heads 
• Doorways
• etc

Concrete Cancer 

 Concrete cancer is a serious problem that occurs within concrete and it is caused by the steel reinforcing inside the concrete rusting.  As the steel reinforcing rusts, it expands, causing the concrete around the steel to be displaced.  As the concrete becomes more displaced, more water gets into the steel, causing more rusting and the problem gets worse.  The expansion of the steel causes the concrete to delaminate, and results in spalling. 

Spalling is where the concrete initially cracks, and then starts to break away.  While spalled concrete looks terrible, it can also be dangerous as pieces of concrete fall off and possibly hit people underneath.  Spalling also weakens the strength of the concrete.