CASE HISTORY
"MOISTURE SEALING OF AN EARTH-SHELTERED HOME"
The Project:
Spray On Plastics has
been constructing an earth-sheltered home, in Rockwood, Ontario. It is a dome shaped,
reinforced concrete structure designed by Formworks Building Systems in Durango, Colorado.
www.formworksbuilding.com
The Problem:
The sheetstock polyethylene waterproofing system recommended by the designer was
labour intense, and would require a large amount of time.
Since winter was rapidly approaching, a fast solution was needed.
The dry shotcrete that was
used for the structure created a very rough surface which needed to be sealed completely. Current polyurea systems cured too quickly to be
applied without excessive material waste. The spray applied system to be used had to be
slow enough that the rough concrete surface could be thoroughly sealed.
Also, since the
first winter snows were falling, a coating system that had a low sensitivity to moisture
was needed to avoid foaming problems.
The Solution:
Spray On Plastics’ Flexible Mould
Skin polyurea was the perfect coating for the application.
Its slow gelling time allowed the applicator to run the coating around the bumps
and recesses of the concrete. What's more,
since Flexible Mould Skin is a pure polyurea, it is not dramatically affected by the
presence of moisture.
A layer of
flexible mould skin approximately 125 mils thick was sprayed over the entire dome, and was
covered with 2” of polyurethane foam insulation.
It was backfilled in sections to provide a level working platform for the
sprayers.
In the end, this
system provided a complete, seamless seal that was quick to apply.
To see more photos of the house in progress,
and the finished home click here |
