Tipping floors found in waste transfer stations and MRF’s undergo attacks that are extreme and unique to the solid waste industry. In fact, there isn’t a more abused floor than one found in this industry. The attacks come in three forms: abrasion, impact and chemical.
What Doesn’t Work
Abrasion protection of a concrete floor is generally approached in a number of ways. A common method is to simply pour a sacrificial concrete floor slab, use it and then replace it after the surface has worn to the reinforcement steel. This process requires facility downtime and cost for a complete or partial floor replacement every few years or so.
Another method frequently used is a high strength topping that contains a mix of mild cast iron borings, Portland cement and water. While iron toppings are indeed considerably more durable than bare concrete, they are expensive to install and maintain. They can rust and are susceptible to chemical attack.
Abrasion Resistant Floors
The long-term solution is EMERYTOP 400™, a high strength concrete topping containing imported, high strength emery aggregates, Portland cement and special additives which internally seal the concrete surface. Emery aggregates used in EMERYTOP 400™ have been used in tooling industry for years for the purpose of grinding and sharpening iron and steel tools. Now, we use the same high strength, natural aggregates to provide the toughest, most impact resistant and chemically resistant floor topping in the solid waste industry.
Impact Resistant Floors
Due to its unique, high strength aggregate, EMERYTOP 400™ is not just another mineral aggregate topping. It is equal in impact resistance to iron aggregate toppings, and is significantly more impact resistant than normal, high strength concrete floors. This means a measurable reduction in maintenance costs over the life of the concrete floor.
Chemically Resistant Floors
EMERYTOP 400™ floors are internally sealed against chemical attack. This chemical issue is very important when considering the many aggressive contaminants that come in contact with the surface of a tipping floor. When cement paste becomes deteriorated chemically, the high strength aggregate becomes dislodged and useless, no matter how strong it is. By internally sealing the cement paste, the rate of chemical penetration and deterioration is greatly slowed, the aggregate stays in place, and the life expectancy of the floor is dramatically increased.
EMERYTOP 400™ floors cost less... to own and to maintain
The installation and life cycle cost of an EMERYTOP 400™ floor can save as much as half the cost of an iron topping floor. This product reduces the cost of floors for solid waste facilities in three important ways.
Service Life: Abrasion resistance is double that of an iron topping floor, and as much as 8 times the abrasion resistance of a typical high strength bare concrete floor.
Material Costs: Due the specific gravity difference between cast iron boring used in iron toppings and the high strength, abrasion resistant emery aggregates used in EMERYTOP 400™, your floor will require about 25% less material—savings which will be passed on to you right up front—making an EMERYTOP 400™ floor more economical to specify and install.
Ease of Application: Simple floor preparation procedures are all that is necessary for the successful installation of an EMERYTOP 400™ floor. While still requiring the skill and experienced of a high quality contractor, our simplified installation procedures reduce costly construction procedures, which are immediately returned to you in the form of reduced costs.
For waste transfer stations and MRFs, EMERYTOP 400™ is the high strength concrete floor topping of choice.