For 36 years, GMS Concrete has been building the foundation of residential living in the Valley of the Sun. When they won the job to place the concrete slabs at a four-building apartment complex, the soil finding of one 15,000 sq. ft. building location presented a specific challenge: TCE.
Trichloroethylene – or TCE – is a commercial degreaser for machinery and for fluids like paint remover. The volatile organic compound is also particularly dangerous to human health in both the short and long term, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
The solution for GMS manager Matthew Medina came in two forms: Drago Wrap Vapor Intrusion Barrier and Beast Concrete Accessories.
Drago Wrap is specifically engineered to protect against volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like TCE, and serve as a below-slab moisture vapor barrier.
GMS could screed the slab using the Beast Screed point-to-point wet screed system while securing interior form work with Beast Foot and Beast Form stake without making a single puncture in the vapor intrusion barrier. Doing so could have exposed the slab and building occupants to the dangerous below-slab environment.
According to Medina, their success also relied on:
