BAsement tanking

wazzoraybelle

Hi,

We are trying to specify an exterior tanking membrane for a basement. Ground conditions are good. We have narrowed it down to Preprufe or Sikaproof A. Does anyone have any opinions on these products?

Thanks
Wazzo

kkelliher

Have used preprufe on many projects and it works perfectly once installed correctly. I have never used sikaproof

hexosan

I used Sika proof on my project PM if you want the details.

Johnnyhpipe

Seriously - why are you doing this and not a qualified structural engineer??!! And if you have an engineer on board..why are you even involved in this decision? I've designed basements (from single storey to 3 storey built top down) all over Ireland/UK and not once has the client been involved in specifying tanking...

Do you have an assigner certifier who will sign off on something you've specified yourself?

wazzoraybelle

Johnnyhpipe wrote: »

Seriously - why are you doing this and not a qualified structural engineer??!! And if you have an engineer on board..why are you even involved in this decision? I've designed basements (from single storey to 3 storey built top down) all over Ireland/UK and not once has the client been involved in specifying tanking...

Do you have an assigner certifier who will sign off on something you've specified yourself?

We have a qualified engineer. I suppose we are involved because we are ultimately paying for and living in the building and would like to satisfy ourselves that we are getting a good product. We do have a certifier and are he will ultimately be specifying the product, and these 2 products are contenders.

Given the quality of a lot of the building work that has gone on in Ireland in the last 10 years, it would seem foolish to me not to ask questions or be informed in the materials used in such a big investment.

Beyond that, I have a passion for where I live and I choose to be involved.

Thanks for the input

Johnnyhpipe

Great that you have an engineer on board. No doubt he will make the right decision, however it generally boils down to the grade of basement waterproofing required. This is graded from 1-4 (damp carpark to bone dry art storage room and all points in between). Your temporary works and shuttering system will likely dictate whether you go for a cast against face or post applied membrane. Not sure if you have a drained cavity but this again will come back to required grade.

Your question is difficult to answer without any project specific details. I've successfully used both of your above mentioned products in the past for certain applications.

Basements are tricky and need to be given very careful thought - if it goes wrong in the future there really is no getting at it again, so hydrophilic strips, bar spacing, conc grade, construction joint layout, service penetrations, drainage etc etc etc all need careful consideration. If designed and constructed correctly however, as most are, then you'll have a fantastic new space.

Whichever product your design team choose, make sure the supplier will undertake regular pre pour inspections. Some of the cheap guys don't do this and I wouldn't even consider them if that's the case.

galwaytt

I have suspended deck over my basement. Preprufe used, and works. At work we are big SIKA users, so I would imagine their offering would be a quality one anyway.

But the key is quality of workmanship. I cannot stress that highly enough. No point using good materials and fitting them poorly. You never want to revisit your basement build. Ever.

I'd also externally insulate to a much higher degree next time.

I think basements are a brilliant idea.

wazzoraybelle

Thanks for the responses,
The basement design is a straightforward rectangular with no penetrations below ground level. The construction will be in reinforced concrete with no cavity. We will be tanking externally.The basement will be inhabited so we have a requirement for it to be of the highest quality.

What makes me think twice about the Sikaproof A (I believe it's the Sikaproof A 08 that has been suggested) is that it only received a BBA cert in December 2013 and the Preprufe has a long track record with a cert going back to 1997 (renewed in 2012).

BryanF

wazzoraybelle wrote: »

Thanks for the responses,
The basement design is a straightforward rectangular with no penetrations below ground level. The construction will be in reinforced concrete with no cavity. We will be tanking externally.The basement will be inhabited so we have a requirement for it to be of the highest quality.

What makes me think twice about the Sikaproof A (I believe it's the Sikaproof A 08 that has been suggested) is that it only received a BBA cert in December 2013 and the Preprufe has a long track record with a cert going back to 1997 (renewed in 2012).

sika are a larger multinational company.

id be more concerned with who is installing either product and what is the chain of ownership to the product guarentee

hexosan

Sika offer 20yr guarantee if you take two products i.e slab and walls. They're the only company doing this. They also only have 2 registered contractor who can install the product, they had a rep on site for both the slab & wall installation photographing and inspecting the install to verify it had been done correctly and to their standard.

galwaytt

wazzoraybelle wrote: »

What makes me think twice about the Sikaproof A (I believe it's the Sikaproof A 08 that has been suggested) is that it only received a BBA cert in December 2013 and the Preprufe has a long track record with a cert going back to 1997 (renewed in 2012).

That's irrelevant tbh. You have to renew your Cert every 3 years, so it doesn't mean anything. The Cert will stipulate the design life.

As someone who has taken products through from design to BBA approval, it is incredibly rigourous - a league above IAB.

hexosan

See post 15 I explained in detail what I used.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=91479459#post91479459