Tanks and Liners

[mzaitz]

Morning,

I inspected some tanks at a plant that have a fair amount of cracking in them and in some locations are evidence of leaks. I am looking at using a liner to stop the leaks. I researched some sprayed on epoxy liners such as the Raven 405 and for some of the tanks this will work fine. In other tanks, I do not think an epoxy liner will work (talked to Raven about this and they are looking into it) and I think I need something with a better chance of withstanding some movement and the like. Some of the cracks were epoxy injected in the past and they are leaking again. Any recommendstions on who to talk to regarding liners? Or, does anyone have any other suggestions to stop the leaks. I briefly investigated tearing down some of the walls and replacing but that did not work out. Any suggestions are welcome. Also, in case it matters, this is in Georgia.

Thanks,

Mike

 

[JedClampett]

You can line the tank with HDPE or similar flexible liner. But if there are a lot of inlets, outlets and miscellaneous openings, it makes lining more difficult. There are any number of lining firms around that can give you advice on materials and methods. Unfortunatly, most of them are local operations, so the good ones in Phoenix, don't work in Georgia.
You're right about a spray on material. The cracks will transmit through the coating and the problem will reoccur. Are the tanks designed correctly?
Usually, concrete tanks have leaks, but they slow down and stop over time. Are the leaks in joints? What's in the tanks? Is it corrosive?
The usual method for stopping leaks in concrete tanks is to inject either epoxy or a swelling material (Sikafix HH) into the cracks. It's tedious and iterative. But it works and for a long time.