Midway through construction in downtown Seattle, MacDonald Miller was relieved to find that the HOLDRITE® HydroFlame™ sleeving system not only fixed the leaks that had emerged but also provided more convenient, effective solutions to ongoing challenges the contractor faced. HOLDRITE provided reliable prefabrication services and resolved a persistent problem MacDonald Miller faced with its tub boxes, saving time and helping projects run more smoothly.
HOLDRITE Holds Tight
As MacDonald Miller was building the tower at 2030 8th Avenue, the steel sleeving system they had installed began to leak. With water leaking through the sleeves down to the finished floors below, the company needed a solution. MacDonald Miller decided to give the HOLDRITE HydroFlame sleeving system a try.
“Other manufacturers also offer prefabrication options, but HOLDRITE actually did it right.”
—Randy Borman, Piping Operations Manager, MacDonald Miller
Using HOLDRITE HydroFlame patented cast-in-place technology, the sleeve’s internal and external water seals offer double protection against water intrusion. Its patented midbody seal allows for contraction and expansion of piping systems and the surrounding concrete floor slab while still protecting against the spread of water, smoke, and gas. The product line meets and exceeds building code requirements.
“There were three things that sold us on HydroFlame,” explained Piping Operations Manager Randy Borman. “Number one, the HydroFlame does not leak. Number two, HOLDRITE would be able to fabricate all of the sleeves to our specifications, whatever we wanted them to do. And finally, HydroFlame would also solve some issues we’ve had with our tub boxes. We’ve had problems with other company’s tub boxes because their caps are not safe to walk on after the box is poured into place, and the boxes can be very difficult to water-seal.”
Plumbing Superintendent Mike Kunkel added, “The tub boxes we used in the past were not deep enough to house the bathtub drain with tubs that sat flat on the deck. We had improvised with various fillers, but HOLDRITE was able to offer a 4″-deep Styrofoam insert that alleviated that problem. The HydroFlame sleeve was ordered 1/4″ lower than the finished concrete slab. With the concrete coverage and the rated cap, this was safe to walk on after they were installed.”
Of course, the biggest concern for any sleeve is preventing water from traveling from floor to floor, and the HydroFlame sleeves worked very well in this regard. The system proved to be watertight as promised, which solved the water leakage problem. It also ensured that if any water issues should develop in the long run, the problem would be isolated to that floor and would not penetrate to the floor below.
HOLDRITE was able to deliver the prefabricated sleeves and tub boxes packaged into floor-specific crates—a much-appreciated convenience for MacDonald Miller.
“The whole process was much easier than we thought it would be,” stated Borman. “We were impressed that HOLDRITE was able to meet our order and delivery requirements for the job. Other manufacturers also offer prefabrication options, but HOLDRITE actually did it right. With other companies we’ve had two to three floors of products delivered incorrectly, then we had to sit and argue about who was responsible! None of that happened with HOLDRITE.”
HOLDRITE Offers “Very Solid Testing System”
Borman and Kunkel also decided to install the new HOLDRITE TESTRITE® test tee on this project. Unlike traditional clean-out tees, where the tee and the test device are sold separately, this product provides all-in-one convenience.
“We’ve found that typically the tee and the test device don’t work well together,” Borman notes. “You try to pull the test device out and you get water all over the place! With the HOLDRITE TESTRITE tee you can fill it up, test it, let water pass through the tee, put the cap back in and you’re done. It eliminates the ‘water everywhere’ problem and also provides an extremely watertight seal to test against. This is a very solid testing system, and water does not leak past the tee. Just like the HydroFlame sleeve, these proved to be a labor saver and watertight.”
For more information about HOLDRITE, visit www.holdrite.com.
