American Furniture Warehouse Slab Stabilization

Concrete Stabilization Technologies was contacted by Opus Northwest, LLC, concerning American Furniture Warehouse’s Longmont Colorado distribution location. The distribution warehouse was experiencing problems with the facility’s floor slabs. The warehouse floor slabs had deflection at the construction control joints caused by slab curl. When the edges or corners of a slab curl up, often at construction joints, it’s caused by concrete at the top of the slab shrinking or contracting faster than concrete at the bottom. Drying shrinkage is the usual cause. Water leaves the top surface of the slab faster than it leaves the bottom, creating shrinkage forces that can raise slab edges or corners.

CST used a dial gauge micrometer at the construction control joints to monitor slab deflection during load transfer from fork-lift traffic. Slab deflection was approximately 1/8” prior to slab under sealing and stabilization with CST expanding structural polymer. The uneven floor slabs were causing excessive wear and tear to the facilities forklift and loading equipment used on a daily basis in the warehouse and also creating a trip hazard for employees working in the facility. It was determined that 222 of the warehouse floor slabs, approximately 50,000 square feet of floor, would need to be stabilized.

Stabilization of the warehouse slabs began with crews mapping out, drilling, and placing 5/8 Inch injection probes through the concrete slabs.

CST polymer was injected in a pattern of every 4 feet below the slabs, filling voids, stabilizing, and providing a positive seal between the underlying soils and the concrete slabs.

Different sections of the warehouse floor area were stabilized over the course of the next eight days. Slab deflection was tested with forklift traffic after CST polymer injections. Zero movement on the dial gauge micrometer verified that the slabs were completely stabilized, thus extending the service life of the existing slab. On the five year inspection in November of 2014, no additional settlement or deflection has occurred since CST completed the stabilization of the Longmont American Furniture Ware-house in June of 2009.

Benefits of Slab Stabilization & Under Sealing using CST Expanding Structural Polymers:

• Eliminates high costs associated with tearing out and replacing faulted concrete.
• Provides a positive seal between underlying soils and existing concrete slabs, stabilizing and increasing the use life of the existing concrete.
• Little to no disruption to business operations. CST polymer cures quickly, within approximately 15 minutes after injection. This allows for full use of the treated areas, immediately after repairs are completed.
• State of the art equipment and highly trained technicians provide quick, clean, and surgically precise repairs.
• Long lasting, environmentally safe, hydro-insensitive material has no negative impact on surrounding soils or adjacent water supplies.
• High resistance to manufacturing chemicals and oils.
• Puts businesses in control of repair and restoration requirements of problems associated with industrial, commercial, and residential concrete assets.