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News and Insights on the Masonry Repair and Maintenance of Institutional, Commercial, and Condominium Buildings in
Eastern Massachusetts
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Volume 12 No. 2
July/August 2020
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In our
Case Study article, we discuss the continuation of Abbot's large masonry repair project involving 24 interconnected brick and stone apartment buildings in the Grove Hall neighborhood of Boston's Dorchester section. In our Masonry 101 tutorial, we describe the benefits of elastomeric coatings in providing a weatherproof shield against the elements.
We trust that you will benefit from the information provided in this publication. If you have any comments or questions, or would like an estimate on a masonry repair project, we can be reached by telephone at 617-445-0274 or at our web site at www.abbotbuilding.com.
Sincerely,
Abbot Building Restoration Company, Inc.
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Case Study
Abbot Continues Large Masonry Repair Project in Boston's Dorchester Section
In our last issue, we discussed Abbot's comprehensive masonry repair project on the exterior front elevations of
24 interconnected brick and stone apartment buildings in the Grove Hall neighborhood of Boston's Dorchester section.
In this article, we will discuss Abbot's continuation of that project which focused on the exterior rear and side elevations of these buildings. In this portion of the project, Abbot continued to work
in conjunction with the professional architectural/engineering firm of Thompson & Lichtner (Canton, MA) who surveyed the properties, identified deficiencies, and developed a set of remediation plans.
Based on the survey, it was determined that
the coated brick walls displayed numerous defects, including spalled brick, missing mortar between bricks, and debonded coating.
As a remedial action, Abbot power washed all of the brick to remove the debonded coating, repointed the brick masonry where necessary, replaced over 5000 deteriorated bricks in various locations to match the original size and shape, and recoated the walls with a high quality waterproof elastomeric coating.
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Masonry 101
Elastomeric Coatings
In our
Case Study article, Abbot coated the back and side walls of the Grove Hall Apartment buildings to provide a weatherproof shield against the elements.
As its name implies, an "elastomer" is a rubbery synthetic polymer that has the unique ability to recover its original shape without damage after being stretched to a great extent. Without getting too technical, the elasticity is derived from the ability of long molecular chains to reconfigure themselves to distribute an applied stress.
Formulated into a coating, elastomers can provide maximum water resistance plus the durability to withstand a wide range of environmental conditions. Further, elastomeric coatings also offer superior UV resistance and deter growth of mold and mildew.
For best results, surface preparation and coating application should be performed under optimum environmental conditions to help prevent potential coating failure.
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Abbot Building Restoration Co., Inc.
28 Allerton Street, Boston, MA 02119
Tel: 617-445-0274 ยท Fax: 617-445-0277
info@abbotbuilding.com
www.abbotbuilding.com
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