Extended schedule projects that involve constant travel pose unique challenges.

Luckily Shook Construction are experts at “looking down the road,” and especially so at the Collins Park WTR project.

Collins Park is a lengthy project that featured some weather-related challenges.

The Shook team knew that, embarking on a two-year endeavor, they would need to plan for the big picture.

Even without the length, the project itself is a little different than what the team usually does. Shook specializes in rehabbing deteriorating water and wastewater tanks. Collins Park, on the other hand, required a brand new holding tank built from scratch. And then there was the weather. After pouring new concrete slabs the team needed to keep them from freezing. According to specifications concrete temperatures needed to stay above 50 degrees for at least 7 days after the pour.

January weather was especially brutal and Shook needed to keep their concrete warm.

Sure, freshly poured and hydrating concrete generates its own heat, but only for so long.

Concrete can only keep itself from freezing for a maximum of 2-3 days depending upon ambient conditions. This January gave us single-digit- and negative-degree weather—not exactly helpful conditions. To further complicate matters, the project has more than the usual architectural and engineering monitoring. A public works project, Collins park had a staff of on-site engineers who closely monitored the surface thermometers placed after pouring.

Shook trusted us to provide them with a cost-efficient solution.

The team—Matt Beck, Randall Beck, David Graf, and Lenny Krisha—didn't have far to look for the answer. Shook has been using Phipps for years for all of their patching, repair, and coatings needs. When we discussed the project they raised the question of maintaining concrete temperatures, and we were happy to provide a solution.

A hydronic system would easily address their situation.

A ground-thaw reel, manifold, and extended run fuel cell would ensure the unit could operate for long stretches, even without workers on site. The hoses (spread 2-3 feet apart) would continue to circulate hot glycol over the freshly poured areas underneath regular curing blankets. The result? Concrete temperatures that kept the engineers happy and the concrete from freezing.

Hydronic climate control is easily adapted for ground-thaw and concrete-warming applications.

Our congratulations go out to the entire Shook team at Collins Park WTR. Thank you for trusting us with your project.

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