Diagnosing Failures in Fireproofing Detroit

Fireproofing is the application of the intumescent or fire-resistant coating on surfaces that are likely to catch fire. Intumescent coatings are designed to passively protect the substrate materials from reaching combustion temperatures. The coatings act by swelling or charring when they are exposed to high temperatures like when there is a fire. After charring, the coat acts as an insulating layer that slows the transfer of heat to the substrate. The performance of a coating is rated according to how long the coating can protect the substrate. Below are some of fireproofing failures and how fireproofing in Detroit experts deals with them.

Cracking and disbanding

Disbanding and cracking of the intumescent may prompt for a comprehensive evaluation of the coating by the fireproofing in Detroit experts. Sometimes the structural steel may show some scattered and pervasive areas where the coating is disbanding, cracking or may be slightly raised up from the steel. The raised areas of the coating are sometimes visually apparent because they bulge out from the surface. Some raised lifted areas are less apparent and may be identified by tapping or sounding the steel with a hammer or a metal wood chisel. Sounding on areas with a lifted fireproofing from the steel produces a hollow thud while sounding on areas that are not lifted will produce a metallic ring. Fireproofing in Detroit contractors may use a chisel to fracture and remove the lifted areas.

Causes

The causes of fireproofing failure such as peeling off may be caused by weathering exposure. Another cause may be the application records whereby there weren’t proper recoat intervals. Coating fills which is properly cured and dry form a skin on the surface, and the film naturally dries from the surface going downward to the body of the film. The film on the surface provides a line of demarcation between the coats, and the line is usually visible when the cross section is viewed using a microscope. If there is lack of clear line of demarcation between the coats, then this is proof that the multiple coats of fireproofing were not cured sufficiently before the subsequent coats were applied. When a successive layer of fireproofing is applied over an insufficiently dried layer, it may lead to the layers being melted together and appear as a single layer. The layer that did not dry properly may remain soft and cause peeling off.

Have system knowledge

It is important for fireproofing in Detroit contractors to understand the coating material they want to apply especially when the material is playing a very important role like fireproofing. This is to avoid problems such as having to remove and replace much of the coating system. The contractor should, therefore, seek advice from the manufacture on the procedures involved in the application of the particular coating material. Sometimes the problems do not arise from the application method but from the material itself. Some fireproofing materials are substandard and may not function properly. In some cases, different materials are designed for different surfaces.