After nearly 40 years of service, it was time for a 200,000 gallon elevated storage tank in Sylvania, AL to undergo some renovation. Induron was selected as the coatings manufacturer and supplier on this project and enjoyed working with Greenhill Engineering and Robinson and Sons Construction to complete this project for the tank owner, Northeast Alabama Water District.
The tank was not only showing general signs of wear and tear, but it also had a leak that expedited the need to renovate. The coatings system specified was CeramaPrime 2.5-5.0, Perma-Clean 3.0-5.0 and PermaGloss 2.0-3.0.
The Interior
For the interior, Induron recommended Perma-Clean 100 Ceramic Epoxy. Perma-Clean 100 is a fast-curing, 100% solids epoxy tank lining formulated specifically for protecting steel and concrete for potable water immersion. Plus, Perma-Clean’s fast cure time allows for quicker inspection times, and can be placed into immersion service in 72 hours at 60F and above.
The Exterior
For the exterior of the tank, Induron specified CermaPrime Epoxy Primer and Perma-Gloss Fluorourethane.
CeramaPrime was used as the exterior prime coat. With CeramaPrime, Induron distilled the performance of thick-film ceramic epoxy liners into a thin-film primer to offer an alternative to zinc-rich primers. Greenhill Engineering was excited to use the new ceramic epoxy technology. CeramaPrime boasts a 45-minute time-to-recoat, a one-year maximum recoat window and low moisture vapor permeability. As an NSF-approved product, it mitigates undercutting corrosion, offers over four hours of pot life, cures hard enough for fabricators to stack steel plate in only seven hours and can be easily applied with standard airless spray equipment to both atmospheric and immersion exposure substrates.
Perma-Gloss was used as the exterior finish coat. It is a two-component, high gloss, fluoropolymer resin-based urethane coating that substantially increases the long-term color and gloss retention when compared to conventional urethane finish coatings.
While the tank itself did not present any unique challenges, the fluctuating weather was an obstacle. Fortunately, the fast-drying, easy-to-apply and abbreviated recoat window characteristics that CeramaPrime offers enabled the tank renovation to be completed despite the temperature changes.
The Results
The contractor loved the CeramaPrime because it dried even faster than zinc and was building mills much faster. The prime coat ended up with an average of 4.5 DFT the entire exterior was actually 10-11.5 average. Plus, they did not use any more material than expected, and the final top coat is super smooth. Check out this video for drone footage of the tank.
Editor's Note: Scranton Gillette Communications and the SGC Water Group are not liable for the accuracy, efficacy and validity of the claims made in this piece. The views expressed in this content do not reflect the position of the editorial teams of Water & Wastes Digest, Water Quality Products and Storm Water Solutions.
