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Swedish Medical Center, Issaquah, WA

Scope of work: Moisture mitigation & finishing concrete with self leveling underlayment

  Project size: 500,000 sq ft

  General Contractor: Sellen Construction

  Architect: Collins Woreman

At Swedish Medical Center, ABW Construction was hired to proactively address a foreseeable moisture problem in concrete .This inevitable circumstance was eliminated by applying Aquafin VAPORTIGHT COAT – SG3. These types of coatings are typically applied just before floor covering installation when excess relative humidity is identified at a crucial time in the schedule. The performance characteristics of the Aquafin SG3 product allowed us to address the moisture concern shortly after concrete placement allowing us to control the RH of the slabs in their entirety. Installing the moisture mitigation coating up front in the project provided savings to the owner that typically aren’t available in traditional moisture remediation environments. Early application eliminated the need to “finish” the concrete in the traditional sense resulting in cost savings, accelerated schedule, predictability, and overall increased efficiency for other construction activities on the job. In all, we applied Aquafin SG3 Moisture Vapor Mitigation technology to 500,000sf of concrete and encapsulated the coating with self-leveling cement. The final step of pouring self-leveling, engineered cement allowed us to meet the flatness requirements of the finished floor goods.

This project was the first in King County WA, to implement BIM(Building Information Modeling) technology, IPD (Integrated Project Delivery) and Lean Building principles. These systems lead the project team to investigate the options available to address moisture and flatness issues proactively. With ABW’s state of the art pumping technology, we had the answer. We could address slabs from 25,000sf to 45,000sf in 4 days, leaving behind a slab free of moisture and flatness issues. On this project we achieved FF values over 90. The contractor stated that this system contributed to saving 30 days on an aggressive 18 month build schedule.

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University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA

Scope of work: Moisture mitigation & finishing concrete with underlayment

Project size: 90,723 sq ft

General Contractor: Skanska

Architect: NBBJ

We were involved from the beginning on this project, creating a plan to address the anticipated moisture and flatness issues. This project was an 8 story cast in place concrete designed building, with each floor footprint being 25,000 sq. ft. Once the concrete formwork was removed, we went to work installing a moisture mitigation system and flattening the floor with self-leveling underlayment. Our pump truck has the capability of pumping over 50 stories high.  This coupled with material output of up to 35,000lbs of material an hour from outside the building was attractive to the contractor, and allowed us to address each slab in just 4 days.

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Covington Multicare, Covington, WA

Scope of work: Slab Moisture mitigation and finishing concrete with self leveling underlayment

Project size: 18,000 sq ft

General Contractor: Sellen Construction

Architect: Collins Woreman

The project team decided to address the predictable moisture and flatness issues, inherent in new concrete construction, early in the project.  ABW Construction was chosen as the preferred contractor to address these issues . The contractor just bull floating the slab on grade concrete slab and we took it from there. We got to work with our skilled moisture mitigation technicians and pump truck capable of pumping 50,000 square feet in a single day.  Four days later the contractor had a floor free from moisture and flatness issues and could continue in their schedule knowing that they would not incur any delays or change orders later in their schedule. This slab achieved a FF value of 75.

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The Everett Clinic Smokey Point Medical Center, Marysville, WA

Scope of work: Moisture mitigation, slab remediation & slab leveling

Project size: 42,500 sq ft

General Contractor: JR Abbott

Architect: ZGF

ABW were brought on board to address a number of issues on this project. On the first floor there was a rain out that need to be repaired, along with some deflection in the slab on metal deck. Along with these issues a moisture problem was uncovered and needed to be resolved. We installed a 100% solid epoxy and poured High Tech Cement MB 10 self leveling underlayment, via pour pump truck, in 5 days.

Before the installation of finished flooring on the ground floor, which was a slab on grade, a moisture problem was again discovered. The solution was the same system as the first floor, 100% solids epoxy and self leveling underlayment. We worked with the contractor to come up with an aggressive schedule, as they had no time to spare. We start on a Thursday night and by Monday morning the floor was ready to receive finished goods.

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BMW Dealership

ABW Construction had the opportunity to demonstrate to Foushee and Associates the Power of the Pump Truck. Floor tolerance specification for the 14,000 s/f showroom was stringent. Time was of the essence and we were asked to help engineer a solution. We surveyed the floor to determine the exact quantity of material necessary to achieve the ceramic tile specification (1/8" in 10').

Once Foushee, Western Tile and Marble and ABW agreed to the plan, we mobilized. In just two days we cleaned the substrate, set grade with level pegs, applied primer, and poured an average of 3/4" of Self Leveling Underlayment.

The first day was spent setting elevation pins and priming. On the second day, the power of the Pump Truck allowed us to pour all 85,000lbs of material in just 3.5 hours! Our impact on the job was minimal. Nothing went into the building accept 1 hose and 4 men. The results were outstanding.

We always do moisture and temperature testing prior to installing any self-leveling material.

Our team primes begins to prime the floor with the manufacturers recommended primer.

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Garfield High School

Garfield High School was an exciting job for ABW. The concrete in this century old building required major restoration. The ABW team was invited in to help determine the best way to address several issues with the concrete. Weight restrictions, moisture issues, and weather were just some of our challenges this project presented us with.

The mangled surface one of the structural slabs once several layers of topping slabs and magnesite had been removed.

Large chunks of magnesite, mortar bed and topping slabs lay on the floor. We never knew what the concrete would look like until we removed all these layers…

ABW employees break bags of underlayment into our mixing and pumping equipment.

Shotblasting the substrate after the demo phase. This process removed any further contamination and loose debris that we might not be able to see...

An ABW employee “broadcasts” a recycled sand into the wet epoxy primer to act as a profile for the underlayment once dry.

Wet underlayment, approx. 1.5” deep in a corridor at the high school. The plastic acted as a barrier to keep necessary heat in the area we were working in.

Looking down the same hallway after we poured a self-leveling underlayment back to existing elevations.

[abwconstruction-blog]

Harborview Medical Center

The Harborview project presented the general contractor with many challenges typical of any major, fast-track construction project. ABW has helped with several unforeseen issues including moisture remediation and finished concrete elevation.

The aggressive schedule on this project didn’t allow the time frame necessary for concrete to dry to suitable standards recognized by floor covering manufacturers. Floor finishes needed to be installed and ABW was hired to help the project stay on track. We were hired to address the moisture issue in timely manner that would impact other trades as little as possible. Our performance with this scope of work led to the GC keeping us around to help with the concrete leveling.

We installed dozens of “insitu probs” throughout the building to determine the extent of the moisture problem.

Holes are drilled and the probes are placed beneath the surface allowing us to continually monitor both the moisture content and temperature of the concrete.

We also used several calcium chloride moisture tests throughout the building to determine the PH level of the concrete.

Extensive protection was placed on the walls to protect the paint prior to shot-blasting and applying any products that could damage the finish.

A picture of the profile left by the shot-blasting process.

The epoxy moisture membrane on the prepared concrete floor.

Spreading the epoxy with appropriate notched squeegee.

Spreading the material with the squeegee allowed us to place the material at the appropriate system thickness necessary to block the moisture migration.

We then pour a self-leveling underlayment to encapsulate the moisture barrier which will protect it from damage caused by the construction process as well as future TI work.

The substrate will be ready for floor covering in just a few hours, free from potential moisture damage…

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Washington Square

Trying to keep a project on schedule and work around the severe weather Seattle has to offer can be quite a task. Often times a contractor is forced to pour concrete in less than perfect conditions which can lead to repair working further down the line. ABW was hired to do just that repair work at Washington Square. 

Do to some of the rain-out conditions in these buildings, the flooring contractor was unable to install the floor coverings on time and on budget. We were called and asked to act quickly as to maintain the aggressive project schedule. We identified the damaged areas, presented a solution, and finished the work in a very short window. We enabled the flooring contractor to keep moving and helped the whole project stay on schedule for a very affordable price.

Washington Square Condominiums, Tower 1.

Checking levelness and floor flatness with a laser to determine the quantity of material necessary to achieve the specified tolerance.

Applying the manufacturers recommended primer after shotblasting was completed.

Waiting for the last of the primer to dry before pumping the self leveling underlayment.

Smoothing approximately 1/4” of underlayment in one of several condos on the 9th floor.

We always work with the finished floor installers to make sure we use products that are recognized by their warranty.

The hard wood was installed without a glitch once we provided the 1/8” in 10’ tolerance in the substrate.

[abwconstruction-blog]

Clover Park

When Clover Park Technical College decided to expand one of there buildings, they realized that the concrete that was once suitable for exterior use, would not offer the same benefits once the expansion took place.

The exposed aggregate that provided slip resistance would not make a smooth enough substrate for the new floor covering.  ABW was hired to pour a self-leveling underlayment over the exposed aggregate and make it suitable for the installation of VCT.

Step one we mechanically cleaned (shotblasted) the substrate to remove any sealers, contaminants or bond breakers and to provide an aggressive profile for the new material to bond to.

We always do moisture and temperature testing prior to installing any self-leveling material.

Our team primes begins to prime the floor with the manufacturers recommended primer.

ABW employee uses a stiff bristle brush to spread the primer over the once- exposed aggregate.

By pouring the underlayment at only 3/8” deep, we provided a smooth flat floor that was suitable for any floor covering.