The official December 2020 opening of the Leroy Merlin Fourways in Gauteng is already the company’s fourth retail outlet in an expanding South African network. The Penetron System was specified to waterproof the project’s key concrete structures.
Leroy Merlin is a French home improvement and furniture retailer known for its flat pack furniture, inspiring “room mockups,” and speedy service. The company maintains a global network of stores across Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa. The company’s newest flagship store in South Africa, the Leroy Merlin Fourways, features an enormous 15,000 m2 of floor space and is situated adjacent to the well-known Fourways Mall in Gauteng.
Protecting Exposed Concrete
“The Penetron System was specified by the project engineers at WSP Consulting to waterproof key concrete elements of the project,” explains Jonathan Whitehead, Technical Engineering Support at Penetron South Africa. “These include the exposed ground floor concrete slabs, the below-grade water storage tanks, and the parking garage deck.
Penetron-approved applicators waterproofed the concrete floor slabs with PENETRON, a topically applied crystalline material. The two 800,000 liter water tanks – a drinking water storage tank and a firefighting water tank – and the attached sectional retaining walls were cast with PENETRON ADMIX-treated concrete supplied by Scribante Ready-Mix. PENEBAR SW waterstop strips were installed to permanently seal the construction joints. The 1,000 m2 (11,000 ft2) concrete parking deck was waterproofed with a topical application of PENETRON to ensure durability of the slab. A combination of PENETRON and PENECRETE MORTAR was used to fill the form-tie holes, waterproof construction joints and repair cracks throughout the new retail outlet.
Waterproofing Unaffected by Climate
PENETRON ADMIX is easily mixed in during batching and unaffected by climatic conditions. It quickly becomes an integral part of the concrete and lasts for the life of the concrete. Topically applied to concrete, PENETRON and PENECRETE MORTAR also provide the same self-healing capabilities as PENETRON ADMIX-treated concrete. All hairline cracks that form throughout the service life of the concrete will now automatically self-heal in the presence of water.
“The complete Penetron System provided VDVL, the project contractor, with a fully reliable – and permanent – concrete waterproofing solution,” concludes Jonathan Whitehead.
Waterproofing Leroy Merlin: South Africa’s newest retail outlet applied the Penetron System to protect ground floor concrete slabs, below-grade water storage tanks, and the parking garage deck.
