Precast panel caulking in Fargo

Why panel joints fail here first

A precast or tilt-up wall is a set of rigid concrete slabs connected by flexible joints, and the joints do all the moving. In the Fargo metro that movement is severe: a panel that faces the sun swings from 20 below in January to over 120 degrees in July, growing and shrinking close to half an inch over a typical 40 foot width. Sealant absorbs that cycle for 8 to 15 years, then loses adhesion, usually at the panel edge where you can slide a putty knife behind the bead.

An open panel joint is not cosmetic. Wind driven rain enters the wall, saturates insulation, streaks interior panel faces and, once freeze up comes, ice pries the joint shoulder apart. The repair then involves concrete patching and interior finishes instead of a straightforward reseal at $4 to $8 per linear foot.

What a proper reseal includes

1. Cut out the failed sealant completely, both faces of the joint, no topping over old material.
2. Clean and, where the substrate calls for it, prime the concrete joint faces.
3. Install new closed cell backer rod sized about 25 percent larger than the joint width, setting the right sealant depth.
4. Gun and tool a movement rated polyurethane or silicone into an hourglass profile that stretches instead of tearing.
5. Photo log every run, panel by panel, for the closeout record.

Buildings this covers

• Tilt-up warehouses and distribution centers
• Precast frame office and flex buildings
• Manufacturing plants and ag processing structures
• Schools and institutional buildings with precast envelopes
• Panel to foundation, panel to roof and panel to storefront terminations

Most of this stock sits in West Fargo, along the Fargo interstate corridors, and in the rail served buildings of Dilworth. We survey anywhere in the valley, from Grand Forks to Wahpeton.