This article is an excerpt from Episode 14 of Alchemy-Spetec's podcast The Injection Connection, featuring veteran coatings expert Murray Heywood. (If you'd rather view or listen, an audio/visual version of this excerpt is posted at the bottom of the article.)

Charlie Lerman: From your point of view when it comes to grouting, what are some of the common mistakes or problems you see that people just deal with repeatedly?

Murray Heywood: Well, when it comes to my world, the coatings world, one of our biggest challenges is water, keeping it where you want it or not letting it get in where you don't want it. That water molecule creates a lot of damage. Concrete, which is predominantly the work that we do in the infrastructure world, 85% of water and wastewater structures are concrete. And concrete has very poor elongation properties, it doesn't stretch very well but it does move a lot because of settlement and this and that, and inflection when you're loading tanks, unloading, so you get cracks. If we don't address the water coming in or whatnot, it creates even bigger issues. So grout plays a huge role in doing that. And I think one of the challenges that I see is people don't understand that you just can't fill it with some cement because if it cracks again it's going to leak again. You just can't fill it with an epoxy injection because that's rigid. So just the misconception of how to deal with it is prevalent and it's something that we try to explain a lot. Mistakes are made where they'll, well, "We're just going to put hydraulic cement in and fix it that way." Or, "We're going to do this or the coating should handle it and we shouldn't have to do this extra work". So I just see the mistakes in the materials they select to do the repairs and not understanding necessarily that it has to be treated or you're just spending thousands and thousands of dollars to rehab this and you're going to skip that part. That's going to wreak havoc on your system. Those are the common mistakes. It's a lack of understanding really when you get to the bottom of it, of how it all works together.

Charlie: Yeah. And neither of us are engineers who have gone and got those types of degrees, so we're not always the smartest person in the room.

Murray: I may not be the smartest person in this room right here.

Charlie: I’ll give you that one. I'll take that. Thank you. But really what you find is, that it's not that this industry is rocket science or hard to figure out. It's that it's non-intuitive and most of the time, people just overlook it, they don't even understand. Again, it's not a fear thing of, "oh, you're just never going to figure this out and be able to launch a rocket to Mars". It comes down to people just making common mistakes with it. Like you mentioned with the epoxy, there's no elongation or very little elongation for concrete at all and you'll have people, they waterproof epoxies all the time and then they get a mirror crack right by it and they're like, "Whoa, didn't we just fix this last year?" And you're like, there it is.

View the video version of this excerpt...

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Save Time, Hassle, and Money!

Spray foam insulation guns are made for the process of spraying foam at constant pressures. Slab lifting requires a gun that is designed to deal with changing pressures and backpressure without backing up or crossing over.

• Get the new MixMaster Pro Version 7.0 for $2,450 (that's a savings of $355).
• Get an "I Am a MixMaster!" T-shirt (while supplies last).
• Mention the "I Am a MixMaster" promo for the discount and the T-shirt. Offer expires August 31st, 2022. Act now!

Contact your regional manager or call 404-618-0438 to place an order. (Be sure to mention your T-shirt size.)
Find your regional manager here.

MixMaster Pro 7.0 Features

• New CNC machined handle.
• Custom machined nipples.
• Less threaded connections.

MixMaster Pro 7.0 Benefits

• End-of-day cleaning time cut in half.
• The handle is built to last through the toughest of jobs.
• The nipples can be removed easily.
• Less threaded connections = fewer leak possibilities.

Want more info about the MixMaster Pro?

Episode 14 of The Injection Connection features Charlie "The Grout Geek" Lerman interviewing veteran coatings expert (and punk rock drummer) Murray Heywood. Don't miss this info-packed and entertaining discussion!

The Injection Connection features in-depth discussions with thought leaders and professionals in the infrastructure repair industry and is produced by Alchemy-Spetec, the premier manufacturer of Leak Seal and Geotech polyurethane concrete repair products.

Watch this episode in its entirety below, or check it out on TheInjectionConnection.com and the following platforms:

• Spotify
• Apple Podcasts
• SoundCloud
• Google Podcasts
• YouTube

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Many spray foam insulation installers are interested in adding slab lifting capability to their rig setup. If you're a spray foam installer considering slab lifting, we have all the info you need right here. With just four additional pieces of equipment and one set of material, you can add slab lifting to your service offerings. Let’s take a look at exactly what additional equipment and material are required to get started...

Slab Lifting Equipment

MixMaster Pro Slab Lifting Gun
The MixMaster Pro is a two-component resin injection gun manufactured specifically for lifting concrete slabs, designed to handle back-pressure. 

Titan Impact 440 (Modified) Pump with Flush Hose
The Titan Impact 440 (Modified) pump is used for flushing the MixMaster Pro gun in between foam injections. (It's also used for pumping one-component material in soil stabilization and seawall repair applications.)

3/8” MixMaster Ports
These heavy-duty ports create an airtight seal for injecting foam into drill holes. 

Dial Indicator Crane
This precision tool is used to measure the lift of the slab within 1/10” of an inch.

Polyurethane Slab Lifting Material

AP Lift 430, AP Lift 440, or AP Lift 475 (100 Gallon Unit)
Sunken concrete slabs can be lifted back into place with these two-component polymer foams designed to work in wet or dry conditions. The expansion force of these concrete leveling foams coupled with the pressure of a specialized pump generate enough controlled force to lift virtually any structure back into position with 1/8” precision.

AP Flush 125 (5 Gallon Unit)
Water-based gun flush specifically used for flushing out the MixMaster Pro impingement gun. Also used to protect concrete from resin stains.

AS Pump Flush (5 Gallon Unit)
High-performance pump flush that is friendly to the environment and does an excellent job flushing out injection pumps.

Want to talk to a spray foam to slab lift conversion expert?

Alchemy-Spetec customers Matt Chittick and Travis Germick of Lift It Rite LLC were recently featured in a Spray Foam Magazine article. SprayFoam Magazine is an industry-leading publication in the spray foam insulation sector. Because so many spray foam insulation professionals are adding slab lifting to their service offerings, the magazine is now covering this technology as well. The article featuring Lift It Rite is a profile of a sidewalk lifting job that was done in order to save an old tree in Winder, Georgia. The roots were disrupting the pavement. Here's an excerpt from the article...

Cities often hire a third party to take care of sidewalks, potholes, and wastewater management issues and it was this third party who contacted Travis Germick and Matt Chittick. They are the owners of Lift it Right LLC, and they were asked if they could help save Winder’s sidewalks.

Germick and Chittick went to Winder to review the situation and noted that several of the sidewalks around the town were obviously sunken. One of them was next to a very old tree and the roots were impacting the sidewalk. This had happened to another tree in the area, and the town took out the concrete and cut some of the roots of the tree. Once a tree’s roots are cut the tree will eventually die so they cut down the entire tree. After the tree was cut down, the residents of the town clubbed together and had a memorial for the tree. After that unhappiness, cutting down more trees in the future was not an option. There had to be another solution to save the additional old tree. Read more at SprayFoam.com!

Want more info on slab lifting with polyurethane?

Municipalities across the country have widespread problems with water infiltration undermining the integrity of manholes, pipes, lift stations, water collection systems, etc. High-flow leaks in these structures add millions of dollars to maintenance and water treatment expenses every year.

Limitless Leak Seal Market

We believe every qualified leak seal contractor should be prepared to take advantage of this type of job opportunity. Alchemy-Spetec offers environmentally-friendly leak seal resins for applications ranging from hairline cracks to gushing high-flow leaks. Our industry-leading technical support team (with decades of experience) assists infrastructure repair contractors on a wide variety of projects every day.   

Spetec PUR H200 is a one-component, water-activated, hydrophobic, low viscosity, closed-cell polyurethane injection resin. When used with Gen ACC Fast, it is the fastest one-component Alchemy-Spetec grout. So it’s an ideal solution for quickly cutting off high-flow leaks.

Spetec PUR H200 Applications

The primary application for Spetect PUR H200 is cutting off high flow leaks quickly and effectively in manholes, pipes, lift stations, tunnels, mines, water collection systems, parking garages, and more. It's also great for curtain grouting projects. In addition, it can be used for filling water voids in the soil around all types of structures, cutting off underground water flows, and consolidating loose soil.

Spetec PUR H200 Advantages

Spetec PUR H200 is certified for contact with drinking water. The low viscosity allows for very effective soil permeation. It's water impermeable. The set time is adjustable – as fast as 20 seconds. It's also phthalate-free.

Your 3-Step Action Plan

Eliminate the risk to your client’s property and call our team of experts now to partner with the industry's leading technical support team. With our assistance, you can save your client’s property, save them money, and save their peace of mind.

1. Start a conversation with one of our experts about your business and local market.
2. We will work with you to create an action plan custom-tailored to your market’s needs.
3. We will connect you with a local distributor and our technical service team to support you every step of the way.

Alchemy-Spetec offers a wide variety of online resources for current and aspiring infrastructure repair contractors. Let's take a look at what's available...

Literature Downloads

Looking for polyurethane concrete repair product Tech Data Sheets, Safety Data Sheets, Application Procedures, Case Studies, Environmental Safety Info, or Specifications?  All of these documents are available on one convenient page at Alchemy-Spetec's Comprehensive Download Resource Center.

Educational Videos

Watch brief, info-packed videos on crack injection, curtain grouting, slab lifting, and soil stabilization on the Videos page.

Spray Foam to Slab Lift Conversion

With just four additional pieces of equipment and one set of material, you can quickly and easily add slab lifting to your service offerings. Take a look at exactly what additional equipment and material you’ll need to get started on the Spray Foam to Slab Lift Conversion page.

Training Center

The Alchemy-Spetec Training Center is a password-protected resource-packed page featuring video presentations and product/equipment demos. This page is only available to established customers who have requested access from their Regional Manager.

Injection Connection Podcast

The Injection Connection podcast features in-depth discussions with thought leaders and professionals in the infrastructure repair industry.

Want more information on Alchemy-Spetec products?

The new and improved PolyShark 2.0 is here! 

Features

• Stacked hose reels.
• Smaller footprint.
• More portable.

Benefits

• Easy access to hose reels.
• Can be shipped on a standard 40" x 46" pallet.
• Easily fits on a barge, van, or trailer.

A Geotech Pump System Like No Other

The PolyShark system includes injection hoses, suction lines, flow meters, a custom solid steel frame, a skid-mounted setup, and top-of-the-line components. It is a complete turnkey unit, ready to go upon arrival. Let's take a closer look...

• Two 350 feet injection hose reels are included, allowing an exceptional amount of additional reach for limited access and/or remote location jobs.
• Suction lines make it easy to pump material from totes, drums, or even pails if needed. This type of flexibility is not common to all geotech pumps.
• Flow meters make it easy to accurately track the amount of material pumped.
• The custom solid steel frame, polyurea coated for excellent chemical resistance, is built to last and weather all types of environments.
• The skid-mounted setup keeps all system components together, allowing for easy transfer from truck to trailer to the ground on a job site if necessary.
• The Honda gas motor, Titan hydraulic pump, and Titan hydraulic fluid ram are top-of-the-line, tried, and true components. This means less maintenance and downtime when compared to competing systems.

Want more information on the PolyShark?

The new and improved MixMaster Pro Version 7.0 is here, built with the now-standard stainless steel gun block.

Features

• New CNC machined handle.
• Custom machined nipples.
• Less threaded connections.

Benefits

• End-of-day cleaning time cut in half.
• The handle is built to last through the toughest of jobs.
• The nipples can be removed easily.
• Less threaded connections = fewer leak possibilities.

Save Time, Hassle, and Money

Exclusively available to customers buying Alchemy-Spetec lifting foam, the MixMaster Pro slab lifting gun provides you with significant advantages over your competition.

Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight! Sprayfoam insulation guns are made for the simple process of spraying foam at constant pressures. Slab lifting requires a gun that is designed to deal with changing pressures and backpressure without backing up or crossing over. Issues like leaky port connections, constant cleaning, and constant fumbling around with a clamp can drastically reduce production - adding a lot of man-hours to each project. Not to mention long nights spent rebuilding and cleaning the gun after EVERY job. Did we mention that feeling in the pit of your stomach every time you have to call in yet another expensive replacement parts order? 

Want more information on the MixMaster Pro?

Alchemy-Spetec products are proudly made in the U.S.A.  Manufacturing at the Tucker, GA, and Reno, NV facilities (rather than outsourcing abroad) provides three distinct advantages to you and to the country we all call home: consistent quality, reliable supply, and more American jobs.

Consistent Quality

With our industry experts overseeing the production process, products are manufactured to the exact same specs with the exact same equipment every time. Outsourcing to a rotating line-up of the lowest overseas bidders would force us to sacrifice these advantages.

Reliable Supply

Being in complete control of the facilities in which our products are made ensures a reliable supply of products (within the boundaries of raw material availability of course). Outsourcing would leave us (and you) at the mercy of overseas facilities conditions, which we have no control over. 

More American Jobs

One of Alchemy-Spetec's core company values is an appreciation for, and a desire to benefit, the United States of America. If manufacturing superior products in a controlled, reliable manner also happens to create more jobs for American citizens - all the better! That is what we call a win-win situation!

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