Sweating warehouse floor in feed mill 2

[SteveMorgan]

Any sealer suggestions for stopping warehouse floor in feed mill from sweating in humid weather.

 

[sbi]

where are you , deep south, plains states?
cool floor and warm humid air will condinsate on floor
is the water table real close to the surface?
did the contractor put down a plasic vapor bariar before they poured the concrete?

for us plains state guy, this time of year is cold and dry mostly, if you can get the floors dry, you might try the white concrete block sealer on areas with mild trafic, this will keep the mosture below the surface.

Location has a lot ot due with how you can fix this problem


Bill Loutzenheiser VP-CTO
Phoenix Castings
Central Nebr., USA

 

[SteveMorgan]

My plants are in Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, and North Carolina. All these facilities are older and if they had a vapor barrier it may have failed by now but most have always had this problem when a weather front moves through. The floor can be dry and dusty one day and if you have a front or rain it will be so wet and slick you can not drive on it the next day.

 

[sbi]

You may try a 2 part epoxy paint, i have seen it at my local ACE store
You ned to super clean the floor first, with a mild acid ( yuk)
then after you roll down the paint, sprinkel it lightty with dry sand,, it makes sweeping dificult but you get added traction from the sand
also you may find that the paint may help a lot??
we get some of that same thing up here in Nebraska
bill

Bill Loutzenheiser VP-CTO
Phoenix Castings
Central Nebr., USA

 

[griffengm]

Steve,
Do you notice moisture on metal items in the area when the floors show up wet? I'm thinking grinders, motors, metal castings, etc..
If you do, it is due to condensation and not ground moisture.
I have this problem in a shop that has a well insulated floor with a good vapor barrier.

Griffy

 

[SteveMorgan]

We are going to do a simple test. We are going to place a 5' X 5' section of plastic over a pop can and tape down with duct tape on 2 sections of the warehouse floor. We will leave for 36 hours and see if moisture accumulates under the plastic.

 

[sbi]

how did your test go?
any moisture or was it dry
Bill

Bill Loutzenheiser VP-CTO
Phoenix Castings
Central Nebr., USA

 

[ornerynorsk]

I'm in Minnesota, where our temp range is from -50 F to +110 with humidity often at 100% in the summer. The key thought here is AIR CIRCULATION. Ceiling fans, air movers, whatever you have.

 

[ElysianFields]

Folks,

I'm not an engineer...........but I think the sweating is a result of a hydroscopic effect from perhaps the salt contents of the feeds and dust and not a sub floor moisture problem.

My first day here; nice site and forum!

Be safe.

Royal A. Purdy
The Elysian Fields Pasture Project