Tag: Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape

Case Study Data

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Site
Pig farm
Location
United Kingdom
Repair Type
Leak Repair
Defect
Damaged stainless steel pipe in biodigester tank

Products Used

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Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Repair tape with high pressure and temperature resistance to seal the leak

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Provided an impact-resistant layer to protect against possible future damage

SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit
The products were supplied to the farm in a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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Biodigester systems are installed on farms for the purpose of turning waste into fertiliser and gas. The process involves organic material such as plant matter and animal manure being diluted with water and mixed in an airtight tank. Microorganisms present in the waste ferment the mix, creating a liquid called digestate.

During fermentation, the bacteria responsible for decomposition produce methane. Also known as biogas, this methane is captured and used to help power the farm. Digestate meanwhile is either kept in its liquid form and sprayed back onto the farm as fertiliser, or it can be dried out to a solid material which is used for animal bedding.

The biodigester system at the pig farm consisted of a wide circular tank 20 metres in diameter and around five metres tall. Inside the tank were a number of stainless steel heating pipes which warmed the digestate to aid fermentation. The digestate itself was mixed by a large propeller blade attached to a metal pillar.

Over time, the propeller mixer had pushed the metal pillar backwards to the point where it came into contact with one of the heating pipes. This in turn led to a breach of the steel and a leak developing.

The farm were alerted to the problem through a noticeable drop-off in the efficiency of the biodigester. They accessed the inside of the tank, discovered the damage and attempted to try and seal the pipe via patch welding.

Not long after the repair and again the biodigester began underperforming. A second inspection revealed that the patch welding had failed, with water sprouting out of numerous pinhole leaks through the weld.

The farm opted for a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit for their second repair attempt. The pipe was cleaned and the patch weld ground down prior to Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape being applied as the first stage of the SylWrap repair.

There being multiple leak areas across a 600mm area of pipe made it easier to wrap along the length of the line using Wrap & Seal than trying to encapsulate or plug each individual hole with Superfast Epoxy Putty.

When applied to the pipe, Wrap & Seal amalgamated to form a solid rubber band over every pinhole leak present. The tape was easily capable of withstanding both the pressure and temperature which the heating pipe operated at.

To reinforce and protect the repair should the mixer blade and pillar come into contact with the pipe again in future, a SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage was applied over the top of the Wrap & Seal.

The resin within SylWrap HD was activated with water and the bandage wrapped and smoothed around the pipe. It cured in minutes, encompassing the entire repair with a rock hard sleeve capable of protecting the pipe from impact by the pillar.

Applying Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD took less than one hour. The biodigester tank was put back into service the following day and with no issues regarding the efficiency or performance of the system noticed, the pipe repair was deemed a success.

Case Study Data

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Site
Water supply network
Location
Brega, Libya
Repair Type
Live leak pipe repair
Defect
Cracks in two sections of 100mm steel pipe operating at 5 bar pressure

Products Used

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Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-amalgamating repair tape used to seal high pressure leaks on both sections of pipe

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Composite wrap applied to reinforce the repaired areas with a rock hard, impact resistant sleeve

SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit
Kit containing Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage for making fast, live leak pipe repairs

SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Case with enough products to make multiple pipe repairs, which could have been used here if available rather than 2 x Universal Kits

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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Around 80 percent of the population of Libya live along or near the northern Mediterranean coast. With freshwater scarce, they rely on supplies being pumped via pipelines from aquifers in the south – known as the Great Man Made River of Libya.

The town of Brega in the north east is serviced by a network of 100mm steel water pipes running both above and below ground, connecting to the Great Man Made River. At least one underground leak was known about through visible signs in the earth surrounding the pipe.

Attending to the problem had never been a priority because of the complexity and cost involved in excavating the pipe, shutting down the line and then either repairing or replacing the leaking section.

The leak was not visible and so it could be ignored. This school of thought was changed when a section of above ground pipe developed a longitudinal split, through which significant amounts of water were escaping at around 5 bar pressure.

A blind eye could not be turned to such a substantial leak causing flooding to the area underneath the pipe. The importance of the line meant it could not be isolated whilst the line was fixed or replacement took place.

It was decided to use a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit to make a live leak repair. All the products contained within the Kit are WRAS approved, meaning they are safe to use with drinking water.

First, Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape was applied to seal the pipe. Wrap & Seal stretches by 300 percent and self-amalgamates to form a solid rubber band capable of sealing high pressure leaks.

The tape was anchored to the side of the split and then wrapped towards and over it. Once the split had been covered, layers of Wrap & Seal were built up until no more water was detected leaking from the pipe. This indicated a successful repair.

To reinforce the line, a SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage was then applied. SylWrap is a composite wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes. It was wrapped and smoothed across the entire repair area, creating an impact resistant protective shell around the pipe.

Completing the repair took less than 30 minutes. Having seen how quick and easy the SylWrap Universal Kit was to use, the decision was taken to proceed with the repair of the leaking underground section of water supply pipe.

A trench was dug to reach the line with enough clearance underneath so that both Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD could be applied. The defect in this pipe was a smaller crack easily arrested using the same repair method as with the above ground pipe.

Two leaking sections of water supply pipe had now been successfully repaired without disruption to homes and businesses in Brega. More importantly, there was now an awareness of how quick and easy pipe repair can be.

Future leaks are now set to be tackled with SylWrap Pipe Repair Kits as soon as they are identified, something which can help make a huge difference in an arid country like Libya.

Case Study Data

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Site
Public building
Location
United Kingdom
Repair Type
Live leak pipe repair
Defect
Pinhole in a 50mm steel district heating system pipe

Products Used

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SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
The energy company responsible for the district heating system equip every van with a Contractor Case

Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-amalgamating silicone repair tape used to seal the leak on the pipe despite the difficulty in gaining access to the ceiling

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Composite wrap applied to encapsulate the repaired section with an impact-resistant, protective sleeve

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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The district heating system was operated by a United Kingdom based company who specialise in installing and maintaining sustainable energy generation systems in public buildings, residential developments, factories and manufacturing sites.

Because of the importance of pipes to these systems, Sylmasta already had an established relationship with the company prior to the repair. Each of the company’s vans are equipped with a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case in case of emergencies, enabling contractors to make up to four live leak repairs as soon as problems are identified.

The repair in question was to a large pinhole leak in a section of 50mm pipe suspended in the ceiling of the building. Pressurised water was jetting out in numerous directions, causing substantial damage to surfaces and surrounding pipework both above and below the leaking pipe.

Flow could not be turned off, as this would have involved shutting down heating across the entire building. A live leak repair to the district heating system was therefore necessary, using lightweight materials which could be easily carried and applied from the top of a ladder used to reach the ceiling.

From the Contractor Case, Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape was used to successfully seal the leak. Despite the difficulty in accessing the pipe caused by the minimal space to work in the ceiling cavity and the surrounding pipes, Wrap & Seal was still stretched by 300 percent, amalgamating to form a solid silicone band over the steel pipe.

The entire section was then encapsulated with a SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage. SylWrap HD is a composite wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes. Once cured, it reinforced the pipe from any future breakages.

After seeing the extent of the damage that escaping water managed to cause in the short space of time between the leak being identified and the Contractor Case arriving on site, the company were appreciative of their partnership with Sylmasta.

Had a Contractor Case not been so readily available, then this could easily have turned into a major incident for the district heating system and the building. Instead, the company’s reputation was enhanced for the swift manner in which they reacted to and repaired the problem.

The company have since used their Contractor Cases to make live leak repairs to pipes in various systems they operate made from aquatherm, a semi-rigid polypropylene material.

Aquatherm pipe is popular because it does not react with water, preventing leaching, corrosion, scaling and erosion – major causes of water contamination and long-term pipeline failure.

Once thought to be foolproof, it is now known that failures can happen in aquatherm. Reasons for this include excessive clamping, elevated temperatures, extreme vibrations, flow velocity, water pressure and chemistry, or the presence of copper ions.

There is also the danger posed when a section of aquatherm pipeline has been repaired by inserting copper or iron pipe, leading to different coefficients of thermal expansion and severe cracks.

In the event of any failures in aquatherm piping, the presence of Contractor Cases across the company’s fleet of vehicles means that leaks and bursts can be attended to instantly, instead of suffering delays waiting for materials or parts to be delivered.

Case Study Data

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Site
Pumping house
Location
Malaysia
Repair Type
Live leak repair
Defect
Pinhole leak in 150mm steel pipe elbow joint

Products Used

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Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-amalgamating silicone repair tape used to seal the live leak on the elbow joint

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Composite repair wrap applied to reinforce the initial repair via an impact resistant protective layer

SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Contains enough products to make up to six live leak repairs, now approved for use on Kuala Lumpur’s vast network

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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The steel pipe was an important part of the system at the pumping house, operated by a water company. A pinhole leak had appeared on an elbow joint weakened by corrosion where two sections of metalwork joined together.

Because the leak was on an elbow, a repair clamp could not be fitted. The pipe could not be taken out of operation for repair or replacement due to its importance to operations at the pumping house.

The water company’s maintenance team therefore used a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit to carry out a live leak repair which would be effective on the 150mm elbow operating under 6 bar pressure.

Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape was used to seal the pinhole leak in the pipe. Wrap & Seal is made from self-amalgamating silicone. It stretches by 300 percent and fuses to form a solid rubber band over holes and cracks in pipework.

Once the Tape had successfully sealed the hole in the pipe, it was overwrapped with a SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage. SylWrap HD is a composite wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes.

The Bandage was wrapped around the elbow and smoothed down whilst water from a bucket was poured over it at sporadic intervals. Once cured, SylWrap HD provided an impact resistant shell around the elbow, preventing it from any future leaks or bursts.

Within 30 minutes of the start of the application, the maintenance team had successfully repaired the elbow with no interruption to operations at the pumping house.

Both Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD are WRAS approved, meaning that they are certified as safe to use on pipes and fittings carrying drinking water according to British Standards.

Numerous other successful pipe repair applications have since been made in Malaysia using Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD supplied in a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case.

This has led the Case to be approved by the national supplier in Malaysia for carrying out leak repairs across Kuala Lumpur’s vast pipe network.

Each Contractor Case contains enough products to make up to six live leak repairs on pipes of all diameters and types without the need for any training.

The Case can be easily stored on-the-van, providing a lightweight and more versatile alternative to carrying around heavy, bulky pipe repair clamps.

When leaks and bursts on the water network are identified, a contractor simply has to reach for the Case on their van to repair the problem in under 30 minutes.

Case Study Data

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Site
Underground fuel oil line
Location
Brega, Libya
Repair Type
Leak repair
Defect
Small crack in 200mm pipe

Products Used

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Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Multiple self-fusing silicone repair tapes used for creating a high pressure seal over the crack

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Provided an impact resistant protective shell over the initial repair, reinforcing the line

SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Contains multiple Wrap & Seals and SylWrap HD Bandages to carry out up to six live leak repairs

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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The town of Brega serves as a major export hub for Libyan oil, being home to one of the five oil terminals operating in the eastern half of Libya. It is also the starting point of the 670 km Brega-Khoms Intisar gas pipeline.

Heavy corrosion had caused a small crack to appear in a 200mm fuel oil line buried underground. Once the pipe had been excavated for inspection, it became clear that it was in terrible condition, badly pitted and covered in escaped oil.

To add to the complexity of the application, the line operated under 44 bar and at temperatures of up to 70°C. Any repair had to be able to withstand these pressure and heat extremes.

Prior to the application, the pipe was cleaned as best as it could be. Oil and dirt was removed and the surface smoothed off to enable a good connection between the line and Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape, which made up the first stage of the repair.

Wrap & Seal is a self-amalgamating silicone repair tape which stretches by 300 percent and fuses to form a solid rubber band over holes and cracks. Multiple tapes can be applied over each other, where they will also fuse together, building repairs with high pressure resistance.

Once several Wrap & Seals had been used and the team carrying out the repair was satisfied that the leak was suitably sealed, the repair was reinforced using SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage.

SylWrap HD is a composite repair wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes. It provides an impact resistant protective shell to pipes and structures, increasing life span and hoop strength.

Four SylWrap HD Bandages were used to cover the repair area, reinforcing the fuel oil line before it was reburied. Each Bandage cured within 2 to 5 minutes of application.

Both Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD have a maximum service temperature of 250°C and using multiple products created a repair capable of withstanding the pressure that the line operated under.

It took less than two hours to complete the application, notwithstanding the time to excavate and inspect the pipe. The repair was a cost-effective and less time-consuming alternative to replacing the damaged section, which could have left the line out of operation for a prolonged period.

The maintenance team who carried out the job in Brega have since gone onto use Sylmasta products to make numerous repairs to other oil lines in the region, taking advantage of the ease and convenience offer by the SylWrap range.

Case Study Data

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Site
Airport
Location
Bahrain
Repair Type
Live leak repair
Defect
Leaking step joint on a 100mm UPVC plastic pipe

Products Used

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Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-amalgamating silicone repair tape which sealed up and over the leaking step joint

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Applied over the sealed step joint to reinforce the repair by providing a rock hard, impact resistant layer

SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Products were supplied as part of a Contractor Case, capable of making up to six live leak repairs

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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UPVC is a strong and versatile pipe material which is assembled using a solvent cement to bond pieces together. Sometimes, these bonds can loosen and begin leaking, which is what happened to the 100mm pipe at Bahrain Airport.

The leak in question was through a step joint connecting two sections of pipe together. The pipe could not be shut off for a repair because of the importance of the airport system it supported.

This meant that the normal method Sylmasta recommend to clients for sealing a leaking step – by using a Superfast Epoxy Putty Stick to plug the gaps between the joint and the pipe – would not be effective because the pipe was wet.

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The airport therefore had to use Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape as their sealing material. Wrap & Seal is a self-amalgamating silicone repair tape which stretches by 300 percent, fusing to form a solid rubber band over leak areas.

Using Wrap & Seal on a step is not as straightforward as wrapping a straight section of pipe. To create a repair capable of sealing the step between the 100mm UPVC pipe and the sleeve, the maintenance team carrying out the application began wrapping approximately 100mm away from the joint.

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After approaching the sleeve by overlapping the Tape by 50 percent, they then built up layers of Wrap & Seal immediately next to the joint. This created a ridge. When this ridge reached near-level height with the step, the application of the Tape continued for a further 50mm across the step joint to fully encompass it.

Two 50mm x 4m Wrap & Seals were required before it was established that water had stopped escaping the joint and the leak was fully sealed. The repair was then completed by applying a SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage over the Tape.

SylWrap HD is a composite repair wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes. The Bandage was wrapped around the pipe and smoothed down using water poured onto the pipe from a bottle. It cured to provide an impact resistant, protective shell.

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The entire repair was carried out in less than 30 minutes whilst the pipe remained in operation. The two Wrap & Seal Tapes and SylWrap HD Bandage were supplied to the maintenance team as part of a SYL-PRO-633 Pipe Repair Contractor Case.

A Contractor Case contains enough products to make up to six live leak repairs on pipes of all types and diameters. The Case is easy-to-store on site and transport, ensuring that everything needed to fix a leaking pipe is close to hand and enabling repairs to be made as soon as problems are identified.

Following the success of the 100mm UPVC pipe repair, the maintenance team have since gone onto use Contractor Cases at the Airport to fix 150mm and 200mm pipes suffering from similar problems.

Case Study Video

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Case Study Data

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Site
Inspection Pit
Location
United Kingdom
Repair Type
Live leak repair
Defect
650mm ductile iron pipe leaking from coupling joints

Products Used

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Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Multiple self-fusing silicone repair tapes used for building up a repair to seal the coupling joints

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Reinforced the coupling repair and fortified the pipe from further deterioration before it was reburied

SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Contains multiple Wrap & Seals and SylWrap HD to carry out up to six live leak repairs

Case Study PDF

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Case Study Details

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The pit had originally been an inspection chamber housing a valve. Many years ago, the valve had been replaced with a two metre section of straight ductile iron pipe attached to the existing pipe carrying mains water via two coupling joints.

After the straight section was fitted, the whole chamber had been filled in with earth and covered over, where it remained forgotten. That was until the water company responsible for the pipe rediscovered it during maintenance work.

Soil within the pit was found to be extremely muddy, suggesting that the pipe was leaking in the chamber. After excavating the entire pit to investigate further, the water company discovered that the pipe was in poor condition with slight seepage from both couplings.

The water company decided to seal the couplings to prevent further leakage. Each coupling was 80mm wide but 100mm higher than the 650mm pipe, presenting contractors with an awkward ridge that the repair needed to wrap over.

There were also challenges with the clearance in the pit. The two couplings gave only 35mm underneath in which to work. Conditions within the chamber meant that any repair material wrapped around the pipe would be in danger of picking up mud and dirt off the floor.

To overcome this, a polythene sheet was squeezed underneath the pipe. For sealing the couplings, multiple Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape were used to build a repair over and around the couplings.

Wrap & Seal is made from self-amalgamating silicone which fuses to form a solid rubber band for live leak repairs. Separate Tapes will also fuse to each other, this being how the repair was built up and the difficult ridge shape of the coupling sealed.

Each coupling and the surrounding area was then encompassed with a SYL1266HD SylWrap Pipe Repair Bandage. SylWrap HD is a composite repair wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes to provide an impact resistant layer of protection.

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SYL1266HD Bandages are 300mm wide, giving them more than enough coverage to be moulded around the raised coupling. With the reinforcement provided by SylWrap, the water company could rebury the pipe safe in the knowledge that the leaks were sealed and the pipe had been suitably fortified to prevent further deterioration.

Both Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD have WRAS approval, meaning that they are certified to British standards as safe to use on pipes carrying drinking water. Because the pipe carried mains water, it was a legal requirement that any repair materials used had to be WRAS approved.