What’s happening in this video… A urethane cement mortar [Garon’s Mortarthane™ HF], applied 4″ up the wall in a baking facility to make concrete wall and floor joints contaminant free and bacteria free from flour and corn meal spillage during the food production process.

Hot water wash-downs are easier now with this “bathtub” effect as water and contaminates will not become embedded in the joint.

Frequently asked questions about floor/wall joints…

Hot steam cleaning is a twice daily process in our food processing plant. In the past we had delamination of the floor surface, especially near the wall and floor joints, after less than a year. How does urethane cement perform under these conditions?

Urethane cement floor coatings perform extremely well under hot steam cleaning conditions. This is explained by the concept of thermal coefficient of expansion.

The primary reason urethane cements perform so well is that they are a good match to the expansion and contraction properties of concrete floor areas including the floor/wall joints.

The wall area that is just as important as the floor areas is about four inches above the floor because it is also exposed to water from hot water washdowns.

Urethane cement flooring systems can be applied in the form of a cove, even if the wall is made of wood, brick, precast concrete walls or decorative concrete. Urethane mortar products are best suited to make a seamless cove at the floor/wall joint.

Thermal expansion affects floor & wall joint areas

Other flooring systems, like epoxy flooring, do not have similar properties to concrete in the thermal expansion arena. The slab beneath the urethane cement system is expanding and contracting. It’s doing it on a very microscopic level, but it is doing it.

So how does it withstand cleaning and steam cleaning over time? It withstands it much better than epoxy floor coatings. An owner or facility manager would be properly cautioned not to use an epoxy floor coating in areas subject to these conditions.

In our experience, we have seen countless floor coating failures where epoxy overlays were used in thermal cycling environments. We always explain the pros and cons to owners of using urethane cement compared to an epoxy floor coating.

Armed with this knowledge, there have been numerous instances where the facility owner chose the correct flooring system. We are always gratified when an owner or manager achieves success. We feel that problems can be avoided when the necessary knowledge is provided.

In summary, urethane cement mortars were designed around and for steam cleaning, high radical temperature changes, hot oil falling on the floor, etc.

These conditions have little or no effect on urethane mortars. Areas around hot oil fryers and commercial ovens are ideal areas for urethane cement systems.

Related video – You may also be interested in:

	Food plant floor coatings and how to select them.
	How to create control joints before applying a floor coating.
	How to reduce shutdown time with industrial concrete floor repairs — using urethane mortars
	Sealing concrete floors using a “bathtub” technique to prevent bacteria build-up and corrosion from water seepage.
	Watch these quality installers apply a urethane floor resurfacer to an almost impossible to reach floor area.
	Applying a cement urethane resurfacer is perfect for this floor refinishing project
	An important consideration for a concrete floor drain on a continuously wet floor.
	Floor erosion on this sugar processing plant floor receives the ulimate solution.
	Watch this simple food safe flooring coating application.
	See the most popular resurfacer for bakery floors.

See more videos about sealing concrete wall and floor joint areas.