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A Proper Fit
Project: Albion Community Centre Pool
Client: City of Toronto
Type of work: Refinishing of community pool block walls and metal baffles
PROBLEM
Improper coating specification - The tender documents called for the use of an acrylic block filler and a "Kitchen & Bath" latex finish. This was a "cut and paste/one size fits all" specification provided by a paint supplier who, clearly, did not visit the site. Severe environment - Chlorinated splash water and constant humidity will quickly degrade conventional paint coatings. Failing coatings & lead abatement issues - Exposed columns were peeling & rusting and some previous coats of paint contained lead — a known health hazard. The preparation of the columns would require a thoughtful and environmentally sensitive approach to avoid contaminating the facility with lead dust, where the general public and facility staff would be exposed.
ANALYSIS
Our initial site visit revealed that the walls and columns in the facility had previously been painted with several coats of paint. The top coat was a gloss alkyd coating. The coating was generally stable on the block walls with some localized areas of peeling. The exposed metal columns were peeling and rusting extensively.
We immediately realized that the specifications for the coatings (as detailed in the tender documents) were inappropriate for the environment in which they would be exposed. The specifications required the use of acrylic block-filler as a primer and "kitchen & bath" latex paint for the finish coats.
The acrylic block-filler specified was superfluous as the walls were previously sealed and painted several times. Block filler is designed to fill porous, unpainted block. As well, block-filler is not a recommended tie-coat over alkyd paint, especially in a severe environment.
Kitchen and bath paint is appropriate for drywall in a residential kitchen or bathroom, but again, we were not comfortable with a residential-type coating in an indoor pool environment.
The columns were rusting and peeling and a subsequent environmental analysis concluded the presence of a small amount of lead in one of the many coats of paint.
RECOMMENDATION
Our recommendation was to prepare the block walls by repairing all fractures in the mortar, cleaning the surface with tri-sodium phosphate (TSP) and installing the following coating system:
One coat of Sherwin Williams' Tile Clad Waterborne Epoxy Primer - This high performance epoxy primer demonstrates tenacious grip and low VOC's (volatile organic compounds). Two finish coats of Sherwin Williams Waterborne Acrolon 100 Polyurethane Coating - This advanced technology coating is a VOC compliant, water based, acrylic urethane. A urethane resin (solvent or waterborne) is abrasion resistant and has excellent weathering properties. It retains its appearance over a wide range of chemical exposure, weather, and mechanical conditions. This waterborne variant has performance characteristics that compare favourably to the premium solvent borne urethanes with the following advantages:
- Low odour
- Non-flammable
- VOC's of less than 100 grams per litre
- HAPS (Hazardous Air Pollutants) Free
For the columns, IKS recommended removing all layers of paint using the Peel-Away 1 chemical coating removal system. This method of coating removal eliminated any issues of air-borne lead contamination of the facility that is inherently a byproduct of mechanically sanding, grinding or blast cleaning the substrate. The lime content in the product also stabilizes the lead content in the paint to under 5 ppm leachable lead, thereby removing it as a hazardous waste issue.
Once down to a sound and stable substrate, IKS recommended the following coating system for the ferrous metal columns:
One coat of Sherwin Williams Macropoxy 920 Pre-prime - This is a low viscosity, thin film, slow curing epoxy resin system. It is designed for marginally prepared steel. Because of its thin film and slow-cure construction, it can thoroughly wet the surface of the columns. It uses capillary-action to creep its way around, into, and underneath rust and old paint; locking it in. One intermediate coat of Sherwin Williams' Macropoxy 646 Surface Tolerant Epoxy - This high performance, rust inhibitive epoxy coating can be applied as an intermediate or finish coat. This coating is an high-build, fast curing, rust-inhibitive polyamide epoxy that will protect steel in industrial environments. Two coats of Acrolon 100 Waterborne Polyurethane. - The same aforementioned finish applied to the block walls.
RESULTS
An appropriate system that is a "good fit" for the environment in which it will serve:
Corrosion Resistant - The columns now have an appropriate rust inhibitive epoxy / urethane coating system, solving the existing problem without the significant expense and disruption of sandblasting. Chemical/Abrasion Resistant - Urethane coatings demonstrate excellent resistance to a wide array of chemicals. They are also tough and durable and maintain their colour and gloss longer than most other resins. Low maintenance - The coating system is low maintenance. Virtually no further maintenance will be required. Low environmental impact - relative to their solvent-borne brethren, the waterborne epoxy and urethane coatings are lower in VOC's (volatile organic compounds) and HAP's (hazardous air pollutants).
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Welcome to Indu-Kote System's quarterly newsletter. Each quarter, we feature an industrial or commercial coating project completed by IKS. This quarter, we present a refinishing project for the Albion Community Centre Pool in Toronto.
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