Alchatek Blog

Adam Tracy, of A-1 Foundation Crack Repair, is the guest on Episode 4 of The Injection Connection.  Adam offers a unique perspective into the residential leak seal industry through his Civil Engineering education. Adam and Jim discuss differences in residential vs.commercial projects, as well as finding new talent, learning from contractors, and more.

Host Jim Spiegel is Vice President of Alchemy-Spetec and Board Member at the International Concrete Repair Institute.

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

• Spotify
• iTunes/Apple Podcasts
• SoundCloud
• TuneIn
• Google Podcasts
• YouTube

Want more information on Alchemy-Spetec products?

The Injection Connection podcast features in-depth discussions with thought leaders and professionals in the infrastructure repair industry. Host Jim Spiegel is Vice President of Alchemy-Spetec and Board Member at the International Concrete Repair Institute. With 15 years in the industry and experience on job sites around the world, Jim is uniquely qualified to bring you a wealth of informative infrastructure repair content on a regular basis.

This episode's guest Kevin Earles is a long-time friend of Jim, and the National Sales Director for EPMS Supplies based in Nottingham, UK. Topics covered include how they met one another, the future of online distribution, Brexit, and more. Kevin has been in the speciality construction distribution industry for almost 25 years.

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

• Spotify
• iTunes/Apple Podcasts
• SoundCloud
• TuneIn
• Google Podcasts
• YouTube

Want more information on Alchemy-Spetec products?

Why Do Seawalls Deteriorate?

The Elements
Salt corrosion, tidal action, currents, boat wakes, storm surges and heavy rain events all deliver a constant beating on the seawall. Every time it rains, or the irrigation system runs, and every time the tide goes out; all of the groundwater above the waterline has to vent or equalize. Tremendous pressures can build up if that water is trapped and cannot make its way into the sea or the storm water system.

Structural Aging
Correct construction of a seawall includes a drainage system to handle the bulk of the water that comes from rain in addition to check valves, weep holes, or seams to handle the daily influx and outflow from tide and wave action. Over time the materials degrade or can be disturbed by settling. The result is a loss of soil and the inevitable sinkholes and / or low spots that will occur along the wall. Other times, the weep holes and vents become clogged and the water has no way to escape except to force its way down and out from underneath the base of the wall. When this occurs there will again be sinkholes and sometimes wall failure.

Why Use Polyurethane for Seawall Repair?

Non-Intrusive Application
Polyurethane can be injected through pipes directly into voids and loose sandy soil using small portable equipment.

Proven Solution
Seawall repair resins are used extensively seal cracks, voids and defects as well as for filling voids and stabilizing the soil.

Creates an Impermeable Mass
Polyurethane seals leaks along the wall, fills the voids that have occurred, and mixes with the soil to form a solid, impermeable mass.

What Are the Results of Polyurethane Seawall Repair?

Long Lasting Solution
Alchemy-Spetec seawall repair resins cure to a strength greater than crystalline bedrock. Combined with proper drainage, this method can greatly extend the life of your seawall.

Water Tight Seawall
The resin reacts with water or moisture in the soil and expands to fill voids while it permeates sandy soil to form a solid, strong, watertight mass.

Environmentally Safe
Alchemy-Spetec offers seawall repair resins that are approved for contact with drinking water (certified to NSF 61-5). That means they can be used anywhere without having an adverse effect on water quality.

Watch this brief overview of the polyurethane seawall repair process.

Want more information on seawall repair with polyurethane?

This blog post features Episode 2 of Alchemy-Spetec's The Injection Connection podcast.

This is a presentation given to an engineering firm regarding the new patented leak seal QA/QC system The QP Factor: the first patented method to quantify leak seal grouting and leak seal effectiveness.

As mentioned in our previous post on this system...

The method of testing requires additional drill holes to be placed at pre-determined locations along the crack, joint, or substrate being sealed. Prior to injection of chemical grouts such as Spetec PUR F400, Spetec PUR HighFoamer, or Spetec PUR GT500, the test hole is connected to a digital touch-screen device that is calibrated to provide water pressure, flow, and flow/pressure information that is extractable in excel format from a convenient USB port.  Following initial testing, the test port is then plugged during chemical grouting operations to avoid false-positive results after injection. 

The presentation was first unveiled at the International Concrete Repair Institute, National Convention in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2019. Due to the context, there may be some points that seem a little abstract to the average viewer. If you have questions or need more details, please call Alchemy-Spetec at 404-618-0438.

Want more information on The QP Factor?

We enjoyed meeting everyone who visited our Leak Seal and Geotech exhibits at World of Concrete 2020 last week!  It’s always an educational experience to catch up with so many infrastructure repair professionals from around the globe and hear about your projects, your goals, your concerns and your inspirations. 

If you were there, rest assured that you’ll be hearing from us soon to continue those conversations.  If you weren’t there, we highly recommend this key industry event and hope to see you at World of Concrete 2021.

Either way, feel free to reach out to us at 404-618-0438 with your infrastructure repair questions.  We’re always here and ready to help!

For detailed info on Alchemy-Spetec products, download our catalogs.

Tomorrow is the last day of World of Concrete 2020.  We've enjoyed meeting and talking shop with a wide variety of infrastructure repair professionals from all over North American and beyond.  If you haven't dropped by the Leak Seal Division Exhibit in the South Hall at location S11307 and the Geotech Division Exhibit in the Silver Lots at location O40551, you still have time today and tomorrow!  We look forward to discussing your infrastructure repair business goals for this year and taking a look at how we can help you achieve them.

We've posted these exhibit overviews before, but they're worth repeating...

Leak Seal Division - South Hall

The Leak Seal booth features a presentation/demo stage with comfortable chairs for audience members and a separate meeting area for in-depth discussions with knowledgeable experts.  You can look forward to the following educational activities:

• Polyurethane Leak Seal Overview Presentation
• Crack Injection Demos
• Crack Injection Presentations
• Curtain Grouting Demos
• Curtain Grouting Presentations
• Polyurethane Product Mixing Demos
• Acrylic Grout Presentation & Demo

Geotech Division - Silver Lots

The Geotech exhibit area features a fully equipped 20-foot lifting rig, a Polybadger compact slab lifting system, and a row of concrete slabs for live lifting.  You can look forward to the following educational activities:

• Slab Lifting Demos
• Lifting Foam Product Mixing Demos
• MixMaster Gun Cleaning Demos
• Fully Equipped Rig Tours
• Polybadger Demos

We look forward to seeing you today or tomorrow!

Greetings from World of Concrete 2020!  Today marks the beginning of the show and we're going the extra mile this year to make sure both Leak Seal and Geotech interests are served to the fullest extent possible.  We have an entire booth dedicated to the Leak Seal Division & Product Line in the South Hall at location S11307.  We have entire outdoor exhibit space dedicated to the Geotech Division & Product Line in the Silver Lots at location O40551.  Each booth is staffed by product and application experts ready to talk to you about infrastructure repair!

The Leak Seal Division

The Alchemy-Spetec Leak Seal Product Line combines a full-system offering of polymer chemical grouts and equipment with the most experienced technical team in the industry. For any concrete leak seal application, lean on the Alchemy-Spetec team for phone, field, or engineering support. Our growing network of Regional Managers, Independent Representation, and Nationwide Distribution offers industry professionals many levels of opportunity worth discussing with our team. Consultants at Alchemy-Spetec pride themselves on rapid, powerful, and painless scheduling of field and technical support. We invite all attendees to inquire about our bi-annual factory training held at the Tucker, GA-based manufacturing facility where they can learn from the 20+ year average industry experience of our Regional Management and Technical Team.

The Geotech Division

The Alchemy-Spetec Geotech Product Line offers industry-leading quality, full chemical grout lifting rig training and support, and unmatched contractor support in the field and with sales and marketing. Stop by our outdoor booth to see live slab lifting demos and to learn about some of the tangible benefits of joining the Alchemy-Spetec network of geotech contractors. The Alchemy-Spetec MixMaster Pro Gun is a maintenance and production cost-saver for any lifting contractor, while the flagship lifting foams have helped many contractors reduce volume usage while eliminating call-backs. From the Polybadger machine that fits into a pickup truck, to custom boxtruck and trailer rig buildouts, Alchemy-Spetec has successfully positioned themselves as an industry-leading geotechnical chemical grout supplier. With the additions of ground penetrating radar and penetrometer equipment and support, Alchemy-Spetec is truly on the cutting-edge of the chemical grouting industry.

Want more info on Alchemy-Spetec products?

World of Concrete 2020 is next week - February 4th through 7th, 2020 in Las Vegas, NV. 

Consult with the industry's premier infrastructure repair experts at our Leak Seal Division Exhibit in the South Hall at location S11307 and our Geotech Division Exhibit in the Silver Lots at location O40551.  Each exhibit will be staffed by experienced professionals in each respective product line.  

Leak Seal Division Booth - South Hall

The Leak Seal exhibit features a presentation/demo stage with comfortable chairs for audience members and a separate meeting area for in-depth discussions with knowledgeable experts.  You can look forward to the following educational activities:

• Polyurethane Leak Seal Overview Presentation
• Crack Injection Demos
• Crack Injection Presentations
• Curtain Grouting Demos
• Curtain Grouting Presentations
• Polyurethane Product Mixing Demos
• Acrylic Grout Presentation & Demo

Geotech Division Booth - Silver Lots

The Geotech exhibit features a fully equipped 20-foot lifting rig, a Polybadger compact slab lifting system, and a row of concrete slabs for live lifting.  You can look forward to the following educational activities:

• Slab Lifting Demos
• Lifting Foam Product Mixing Demos
• MixMaster Gun Cleaning Demos
• Fully Equipped Rig Tours
• Polybadger Demos

We look forward to discussing infrastructure repair with you!  If you want, you can even schedule a consultation in advance.

Alchemy-Spetec is pleased to announce The Injection Connection, a podcast featuring in-depth discussions with thought leaders and professionals in the infrastructure repair industry.  The Injection Connection is hosted by Jim Spiegel, Vice President of Alchemy-Spetec and board member of the International Concrete Repair Institute.  With 15 years in the industry and experience on job sites around the world, Jim is uniquely qualified to bring you a wealth of informative infrastructure repair content on a regular basis.

Jim Spiegel explains, "The point here is to create a new venue for discussion within the infrastructure repair industry. We'll have guests on: engineers, consultants, any other design professionals or architects, distributors, suppliers, contractors and pretty much anyone that’s involved in the industry. We want to have interesting conversations and an open medium that hopefully is interesting to all listeners."

Episodes of can currently be found on TheInjectionConnection.com and the following platforms:

• YouTube
• Spotify
• iTunes/Apple Podcasts
• SoundCloud
• TuneIn
• Google Podcasts

If you or someone you know has an interesting background in the industry, schedule a brief phone consultation to discuss a potential appearance on the podcast.

The MixMaster Pro slab lifting gun was designed based on years of feedback from slab lifting contractors working in the field. Every known point of frustration and difficulty has been addressed in this sturdy, single-purpose gun. Further benefits include a lower cost of consumables (you can reuse ports with this gun), beefy check valves designed to handle the back pressure, and a short 10-minutes or less breakdown/cleaning session at the end of each day.

This gun is also is a production BEAST - no leaky port connections, no fumbling with clamps. Watch your man hours on each project shrink accordingly. Did we mention you’ll have less replacement part orders? There are only a few inexpensive replacement parts on this gun - PERIOD.

Ask about the quick 10-minutes or less breakdown/cleaning session on the MixMaster Pro at our World of Concrete 2020!  Drop by to see us at our Geotech Exhibit Space - # O40551 in the Silver Lots (same location we were in last year). 

There will be a LOT to see and do at our Geotech space this year: 

• See the Polybadger Lifting System in action. 
• Mix foam samples at our live mixing station. 
• Learn about the Deep Lift process. 
• Tour a fully stocked slab lifting rig.

Read more about our separate Leak Seal and Geotech exhibits for WOC 2020.

Want more information on the MixMaster Pro?