CRL gets started on water tower repairs

Specialist main contractor Concrete Repairs (CRL) has begun important refurbishment work on the Rusper and Betchworth water towers for Sutton and East Surrey Water, as part of a contract worth nearly £300,000.


The work began last month and is expected to take up to 28 weeks to complete. Both water towers were built in 1930 from conventionally reinforced concrete and over the ensuing period have stood up to the elements remarkably well, said CRL.

However, both internal and external upgrading is now required.

Within the water bowls, works will include the removal of the existing internal asphalt lining, cleaning and re-lining with Irathane’s Aqualine 650, repairs to spalled and cracked concrete areas, the application of protective coatings to the internal soffits and beams, and the removal and replacement of the existing internal access ladder.

Externally, spalled and cracked concrete on each water tower, including the roof parapets and the enclosed area beneath the bowl, will require repair prior to the application of an anti-carbonation coating. Irathane’s Aqualine 400a is specified as the roof waterproof coating over the bowl.

At the same time, the existing wooden access stairways are to be removed and will be replaced with new steel elements complying with the latest safety standards.

According to CRL, the refurbishment works will also provide an opportunity to replace numerous valves within each tower, upgrade the handrails around the roof bowl and generally extend the life of the tower by at least a further 25 years.

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