Concrete floor in water tank

cj maxx

Hi all.
There is an old concrete water tank ( home made years ago) in a field and the floor has broken and flaked off over the years and is now seeping water.
I want to use this tank for drinker for animals and need to lay a water proof slab as a floor in it .
How do i ensure a good bond between the slabs and what should i use as a sealer between slab and wall to water tight it .
Also i may have to use it now and again as a mixing tank so sealer should be a good quality 'industrial' one that will stand up to time and weather as it wont be easily fixed
Hope this makes sense:)

Safehands

cjmc wrote: »

Hi all.
There is an old concrete water tank ( home made years ago) in a field and the floor has broken and flaked off over the years and is now seeping water.
I want to use this tank for drinker for animals and need to lay a water proof slab as a floor in it .
How do i ensure a good bond between the slabs and what should i use as a sealer between slab and wall to water tight it .
Also i may have to use it now and again as a mixing tank so sealer should be a good quality 'industrial' one that will stand up to time and weather as it wont be easily fixed
Hope this makes sense:)

Is the floor concrete? If it is, then is the concrete breaking down, can you scrape it/mark it easily with a screwdriver?

cj maxx

Safehands wrote: »

Is the floor concrete? If it is, then is the concrete breaking down, can you scrape it/mark it easily with a screwdriver?

Yep , its a concrete floor which has broken down and i imagine you could easily scrap / mark it. Lumps have flaked off
Its underwater constantly so thats why i hoped to just pour a slab on top and seal the edges ( where it meets the walls) as i have to pump it out and keep it dry till the concrete sets which is a job !
Its bonding it to the existing floor and water proofing it so it doesn't leak which is my worry

Safehands

cjmc wrote: »

Yep , its a concrete floor which has broken down and i imagine you could easily scrap / mark it. Lumps have flaked off
Its underwater constantly so thats why i hoped to just pour a slab on top and seal the edges ( where it meets the walls) as i have to pump it out and keep it dry till the concrete sets which is a job !
Its bonding it to the existing floor and water proofing it so it doesn't leak which is my worry

From that description you are not going to be able to bond a new concrete to the old and be assured of a watertight seal. Your best bet will be to form a new tank inside the old one. Use the old one as a permanent shutter. Pour a new floor, with a small "kicker", (a small upstand) all around. Then pour new walls on top of the kicker. It will have to be kept dry while you are doing it.

kieran.

Why not line the the tank with a HDPE liner cheaper quicker and will last 30 years plus.

http://www.liningtech.ie/page/slurry-lagoons

Safehands

kieran. wrote: »

Why not line the the tank with a HDPE liner cheaper quicker and will last 30 years plus.
]

Absolutely. But would it be cheaper than doing it himself, as I thought he was suggesting??

cj maxx

Safehands wrote: »

Absolutely. But would it be cheaper than doing it himself, as I thought he was suggesting??

Its not a big tank , only 10x4 x 7h or so.
Cheap and cheerful job if i can do it:)
Do i need the kickers or could i pour walls directly on a new floor , maybe with a water bar nailed down to the floor in the centre of the new wall to help seal it a or should i put a key in also .
Even thinking of waterbar nailed to the walls as a sealer and maybe a bit of light mesh drilled to floor (inch or two above floor) to keep it down
Water repellent in concrete also ?
Just throwing ideas out for opinions

kieran.

Safehands wrote: »

Absolutely. But would it be cheaper than doing it himself, as I thought he was suggesting??

Cost for the sheet would be approx €300 for a 6.5 x 5.5m sheet to do his 3.0 x 1.2 x 2.1m tank. I assume he would still be installing the membrane himself.