Case Study:
Water Tank - Ripon
Overview
This plastic water tank is located outside on the site of an industrial unit in Yorkshire.
The supply of water is vital to the business and during winter months, the water tends to freeze over and become unusable. Our client was looking for practical ways to provide a proper thermal seal of the water tank exterior to help prevent the water freezing over. With winter fast approaching, time was of the essence to prepare the tank with its new winter jacket!
Installers
British Insulation Solutions
Location
Ripon, Yorkshire
Project Type
Water Tank Insulation
Product Used
Nexseal Closed Cell Foam
Install Date
September 2023
Install Size
25m2
Install Duration
1/2 Day
The Project
Brief
Our brief was simple – Insulate the outside of the plastic water tank to help it with stand freezing winter temperatures to reduce the chances of the water freezing. Insulating irregular shapes with pre-manufactured insulation materials is extremely difficult to achieve for long term performance and our client had come across spray foam whilst browsing the internet for alternative solutions. Although spray foam insulation will adhere to most substrates, it does occasionally struggle to adhere and bond to some plastics. We were confident that our Nexseal LE Closed Cell Foam would do the job.
Specification
With the brief crystal clear, we recommended a 75mm thickness of Nexseal LE Closed Cell Foam to all external surfaces of the water tank. Unlike pre-manufactured insulation materials, spray foam insulation reaches the substrate as a liquid and rapidly bonds and expands to a solid layer of thermal insulation. This airtight performance would ensure that the water tank had a thermal blanket around it to reduce the threat of winter time freezing. Due to the water tank being located outside and spray foam insulation being sensitive to UV light from the sun, we also specified a waterproof protective coating which would also protect the insulation from breaking down in sunlight.
Results
The water tank needed to be cleaned off the day prior to the installation. For excellent adhesion, it was vital that the surface was free from dirt, dust and grime. Once cleaned off and bone dry, the installation team applied an initial bonding layer of 15mm to the plastic surface. Following the bonding layer, the Nexseal LE was sprayed at a further layer of 60mm to reach the final specification of 75mm. With all surface areas covered with closed cell foam, the team managed to complete the install in just 45 minutes, leaving the foam to cure for a couple of hours before spray applying the waterproof and UV stable paint coating to protect the insulation. Whilst cold winter temperatures are yet to set in, we’re confident there will be no more frozen water this winter now that Nexseal LE closed cell spray foam has been installed.