What We Did

• Facade coating system

• Balcony waterproofing

• Brickwork

• Concrete Repair

17-19 GOWRIE AVE required major structural repairs to its balconies. The Owners’ capitalised on this and carried out preventative maintenance works too to future-proof the building.

Balcony balustrades had failed and were not structurally sound. The existing hob that the balustrades were built off did not contain any steel and were also deemed not to be structural. A number of the balustrades had corroded so much that during the demolition we were able to push them over.

After a number of engineering solutions were considered it was decided that the most suitable repair would be to demolish the existing balustrades and cut off the existing hobs to expose the concrete substrate.

As the existing balustrade and hob was going to be removed, the Owners elected to have the existing balcony tiles and membrane removed and replaced. The new membrane is a sheet membrane which has given the Owners a 20-year warranty on all waterproofing.

With the existing hob demolished there was a requirement to install a structure for the new glass balustrade to be affixed. The existing slab was deemed not strong enough to impose the lateral loads of the balustrade to, so a new concrete hob was installed atop the existing slab. The hob was extensively reinforced to support the loads of the balustrade.

In addition to the waterproofing of the balconies, the Owners also elected to have the cavity flashings adjacent to the balconies removed and replaced. This eliminated the potential for any ongoing water ingress issues into the apartments following the completion of the waterproofing works to the balconies.

To carry out these works, scaffold was installed to the façade of the building. With this in place a number of preventive maintenance items were completed, including: rectification of aged movement control joints, rectification of concrete spalling, and replacement of any cracked and damaged bricks.

The Owners also elected to install a new coating system to the entire building façade. The system which was applied is a membrane coating which attracts a 20-year warranty. This system differs from a normal paint system in that it is completely waterproof and can accommodate ongoing building movement without cracking or becoming damaged.