How To Waterproof Precast Concrete Buildings

- May 20, 2024-

Since prefabricated exterior walls are assembled in pieces, we will inevitably
encounter the problem of waterproofing the connecting joints. Therefore, we
must attach great importance to processing waterproof nodes of prefabricated
exterior walls. This article will analyze and introduce several existing prefabricated
exterior wall panel waterproofing technologies, and also discuss some issues that
need attention and attention in the waterproof construction of prefabricated
exterior wall panels.

Design Concept Of Waterproofing Of Precast Concrete Buildings：

Precast concrete construction is to disassemble the building structure such as wall
panels, columns, beams, floor slabs, stairs, etc. according to certain specifications,
and then prefabricate them in the factory, and then transport them to the site for
assembly. Since the components are assembled on-site, a large number of
assembly joints will be left. These joints can easily become channels for water
penetration. Therefore, precast concrete buildings have certain inherent
weaknesses in waterproofing. In addition, to resist the influence of earthquake
forces, the exterior wall panels of some precast concrete buildings are designed
to be movable within a certain range. The movable wall panels further increase
the difficulty of waterproofing the joints of the wall panels.
Given the above factors, the design concept of waterproofing of precast concrete
buildings must be adjusted. We believe that for the waterproofing of
prefabricated buildings, water conduction is better than water blocking, and
drainage is better than waterproofing. Simply put, it is necessary to consider the
possibility of certain problems during design. The water flow will break through
the outer waterproof layer, and the water that breaks through will be guided to
the drainage structure through a well-designed drainage path and then
discharged to the outside to prevent it from further penetrating indoors.
In addition, using the principle that water flows naturally due to gravity, the wall
panel joints are designed into a tongue-and-groove shape with a high inside and
low outside, combined with a certain pressure-reducing cavity design to prevent
water from crawling backward into the room through capillary action. In addition
to concrete In addition to structural waterproofing measures, the use of rubber
waterstops and multi-component weather-resistant waterproofing glue to
complete the waterproofing system of the entire precast wall panel can truly
ensure that there is no leakage.

Precast Concrete Exterior Wall Panel Joint Waterproofing Treatment

At present, the joint waterproofing forms of prefabricated exterior wall panels

commonly used in practical applications include the following:
1. Prefabricated Exterior Wall Panels
(i.e. PCF panels) with internal pouring and external hanging mainly adopt the
drainage cavity and glue on the outside and rely on the self-waterproofing of the
joints of the cast-in-place concrete on the inside.
This form of exterior wall panel joint waterproofing is currently the most
commonly used. Its advantage is that the construction is relatively simple and
fast. The disadvantage is that the waterproofing quality is difficult to control, and
cavities are often blocked. Once the inner concrete cracks, it will directly lead to
The siding failing to waterproof.
2. The Closed Line Waterproof Form Used In External Precast Concrete Exterior
Wall Panels
This type of wall panel waterproofing mainly has three waterproofing measures.
The outermost part uses highly elastic weather-resistant waterproof silica gel, the
middle part is a decompression space formed by the physical cavity, and the inner
part uses waterproof rubber strips pre-embedded in the concrete to press each
other up and down. To achieve a waterproofing effect, add a layer of
polyurethane waterproofing in addition to the rubber water stop at the cross joint
between the walls. Its main function is to use the good elasticity of polyurethane
to block the slight differences that may occur when the rubber waterstops move
against each other. For rooms or buildings with particularly high waterproofing
requirements, polyurethane waterproofing can be fully constructed on the inside
of the rubber water stop to enhance the reliability of waterproofing. A drainage
pipe is installed on the waterproof silica gel of the exterior wall every 3 floors or
so, which can effectively guide the rainwater that has penetrated the
decompression space to the outdoors.
The waterproof structure of closed-line waterproofing adopts a method of
combining internal and external waterproofing and blocking. Its waterproof
structure is very complete, so the waterproofing effect is also very good. The
disadvantage is that the accuracy during construction is very high, and the wall
panel misalignment cannot be greater than 5mm, otherwise, the water-stop
rubber strip cannot be pressed tightly. The weather-resistant and waterproof glue
used has relatively high-performance requirements. It must not only have high
elasticity and aging resistance but also have a service life of not less than 20 years.
The cost is relatively high, and the quality requirements during the construction of
structural glue are It is relatively high and must be operated by a professional and
experienced construction team.
3. Open-line Waterproofing
This form of waterproofing is the same as closed-line waterproofing in that the
two waterproofing measures on the inside are the tongue-and-groove
decompression space and the pressure-tight waterproofing rubber strip on the
inside. However, the waterproofing measures on the outside of the wall panel are
open. Line waterproofing does not use glue. Instead, one end is embedded in the
wall panel, and the other end extends outside the wall panel. Curtain-shaped
rubber strips overlap each other up and down to play a waterproof role. At the
same time, the outer rubber strips are spaced Stainless steel air guide grooves are
set up at a certain distance to balance internal and external air pressure and
drainage.
The outermost waterproofing of the open line waterproofing form uses pre-
embedded rubber strips, making the product quality easier to control and inspect.
Workers do not need to apply glue on the outside of the wall panels during
construction, eliminating the need for construction measures such as scaffolding
or hanging baskets, making it safer and more convenient. , the disadvantage is
that it requires high product protection, it is difficult to replace the embedded
rubber strip once it is damaged, and the cost of weather-resistant rubber water-
stop strips is also relatively high. Open-line waterproofing is currently the most
advanced form of exterior wall waterproofing joint treatment, but it is a patented
technology developed by a foreign company. Due to the impact of patent usage
fees, there are currently very few domestic projects using this technology.

Construction Points For Waterproofing Joints Of Prefabricated Exterior

Wall Panels
At present, the waterproofing treatment technology of prefabricated exterior wall
panel joints is relatively complex in terms of technology, so it is also relatively
difficult to construct. During actual construction, we should make targeted
formulations based on different exterior wall panel joint design requirements.
construction plans and measures. Specifically, we should pay attention to the
following construction points during construction:
1. Carry out product quality inspection before wall panel construction
The processing accuracy and concrete maintenance quality of prefabricated wall
panels directly affect the installation accuracy and waterproofing of the wall
panels. Before installing the wall panels, you must carefully review the geometric
dimensions and flatness of the wall panels, and check the surface of the wall
panels and the concrete around the embedded window frames. Whether it is
dense and whether there are cracks, wall panels with unqualified concrete quality
are strictly prohibited from use.
In addition, we also need to carefully check the installation quality of the
embedded rubber strips around the wall panels, check whether the rubber strips
are pre-embedded firmly, whether there is damage at the corners, and whether
there is concrete slurry leaking into the rubber strips, causing the rubber strips to
harden and lose elasticity. , the rubber strips must be strictly inspected to ensure
that they are flawless. If there are quality problems, they must be replaced before
lifting.
2. Strictly control the installation accuracy during wall panel construction and
carefully measure and set out the wall panels before hoisting them.
Not only should the reference line be placed, but also the position lines of the
wall panels should be laid out to facilitate the positioning of the wall panels
during hoisting. The accuracy adjustment of wall panels is generally divided into
two steps: coarse adjustment and fine adjustment. Coarse adjustment is to
decouple the wall panels in place based on the control line. Fine adjustment
requires adjusting the wall panel axis position and verticality deviation to within
the allowable deviation range of the specification. In actual practice, It is generally
required not to exceed 5mm during construction.
3. During the waterproofing construction of wall panel joints, strictly follow the
process and conduct a quality inspection of each process.
Gluing on the outside of wall panel joints must be carried out in strict accordance
with the design process, and the base layer and reserved cavity must be cleaned
with high-pressure air. The depth of the backing should be carefully checked
before gluing. The thickness of the gluing must meet the design requirements.
The wall panels in the gluing area should be treated with primer to enhance the
bonding force between the glue and the concrete wall panels. When gluing is
interrupted, the construction should be left. The construction joints should be
high on the inside and low on the outside, and the overlap should not be less than
5cm.
The connecting iron parts and cross joints on the inside of the wall panels are
sealed with polyurethane. Since there are no rubber water stops on the iron
parts, rust removal and rust prevention of the iron parts must be done carefully
before applying polyurethane, and the polyurethane must be applied tightly. No
gaps should be left. After the construction is completed, a water splash test must
be conducted to ensure that there is no leakage before the cover can be sealed.
4. After the construction is completed, conduct a waterproofing effect test to
properly and effectively deal with leakage problems promptly.
After the waterproof construction of the wall panels is completed, a water spray
test should be carried out in time to check the effectiveness of the waterproofing.
The focus of water spraying is the cross joints of the wall panels, the connection
between the prefabricated wall panels and the cast-in-place structure, and the
window frame. It is recommended to use a fire extinguisher when spraying water.
Spray the test area with a water hose, check the outside to see if there is
degumming in the glued area, and whether the drainage pipe drains smoothly,
and carefully observe whether there are watermarks or water stains on the
inside. If local leakage is found, records must be carefully recorded to find out the
cause and dealt with promptly. If necessary, a layer of polyurethane
waterproofing can be added to the inside of the wall panel to improve the safety
factor against leakage.

Summarize
Precast concrete buildings are a new technology that is being vigorously
promoted in the construction industry. From a technical perspective, the
waterproof performance of exterior walls can be effectively guaranteed by taking
a series of improvement measures. On-site construction personnel should be
proficient in prefabricated exterior wall waterproofing construction. The key
points are to operate strictly by the relevant standard procedures and to control
the waterproofing quality. Only in this way can the waterproofing of prefabricated
walls be ensured and prefabricated residential products can be recognized by the
majority of users and the market.