Underground Parking Rehabilitation Ontario

ABSI has decades of experience offering professional consulting and design for underground parking structures.

Underground parking garages are popular amenities for municipal and multi-unit residential buildings. However, there are several disadvantages associated with underground parking garages; they incur a higher initial cost per parking space, and water pooling on the intermediate slab is all too common. Furthermore, the presence of salt or chloride-contaminated water brought in by cars causes severe damage if not corrected promptly.

Periodic condition assessments determine any necessary parking garage rehabilitation in Ontario, including repairs of structures like concrete, drains, ramps, membranes, and other items, as well as localized repairs to the foundation, walls, or other structures. A prioritized list of repairs will restore the parking garage to avoid disruption or closure, and reduce the risk of long-term capital expenditures due to structural damage. You are better able to maintain your underground parking garage for years to come.

Protect Your Underground Parking Garage

While conducting your parking garage rehabilitation assessment, we thoroughly assess all components of your garage, including, but not limited to, walls, foundations, and soffits. The main two components of an underground parking garage are concrete slabs and embedded reinforcing steel bars. The failure of either of these components can lead to failure or loss of strength of the garage structure, necessitating major repair and restoration efforts.

Deteriorating concrete is one of the most commonly reported failures in underground garages that require repair and/or maintenance. Problems that will require the repair or replacement of structures generally fall into one of several major categories, including:

Spalled Concrete
Concrete Delamination
De-bonded Concrete
Leaking Cracks
Leaching
Scaling

Chloride Contaminated Concrete
Carbonation
Corroded Reinforcing Steel
Joint Deterioration
Joint Leaks

Periodic targeted condition assessments will ensure that your underground parking garage deficiencies are identified early on. That way, building owners and condominium boards can create repair allowances that will be substantial enough to cover costly repair and replacement installation invoices.

Our building science specialists are skilled in identifying delaminated concrete and other deficiencies, so you have a clear idea of what structural and concrete repairs are needed. Call us today if you notice one or many of the above signs on your exposed concrete surfaces. We can help. We will prioritize and make recommendations on any repair, installation, replacement, or other restoration measures needed.

Reliable Garage Slab Waterproofing Membrane

Testing And Assessment That Goes Beyond The Exposed Concrete Slab Surface For More Than Just Superficial Concrete Repairs

Maintaining waterproofing systems is integral to protecting the key structural components of underground parking garages and multi-level parking structures. Water infiltration can cause deterioration, leading to costly repairs, long-term closures, and damage to vehicles.

Our consultants can offer support on both the project level and the assessment level. We can:

Identify deteriorated waterproofing locations using trusted testing methods
Design of mastic waterproofing, elastomeric waterproofing, or de-bonded waterproofing
Complete quality control to ensure the waterproofing membrane adhered and watertight joints installed are up to standards and move water away from the parking garage slabs

Infrequent or surface-level condition assessments often result in deferring major parking garage repairs, driving up the cost as small periodic repairs become a larger major repair project. Understanding concealed deterioration mechanisms is integral to ensuring that your parking garage performs optimally. We help underground parking garage managers avoid costly repairs by identifying critical preventive maintenance or restoration efforts needed to ensure a structurally-sound parking garage that will last longer. We also understand it is important for you to understand why a repair to a given structure or a replacement is really needed as part of your parking garage rehabilitation, so we take time to explain and answer any questions you have.

ABSI can complete thorough testing and assessment of your concrete slabs, waterproofing systems, and reinforcement to ensure that your parking garage is performing optimally. We use various proven testing methods, including chain drag surveys and test pits, as well as core cut tests and analysis to identify any deficiencies in a particular building component that will require restoration.

Chain drag surveys: The chain dragging process involves dragging a heavy chain across a concrete slab structure and listening for a deep hollow sound which is a sign of debonding.
Test pits: This invasive procedure involves excavating a sample area of roof deck overburden to expose the roof deck waterproofing and test the water management components.
Concrete Core Samples: The concrete core samples are tested for compressive strength, air content, and chloride ion content at three horizons.

Call ABSI today to learn more about our testing methods, and how they can help you plan your restoration and rehabilitation needs.

Give Us A Call

Protect your underground parking garage with the help of ABSI. We have the skill and expertise to provide a comprehensive parking garage rehabilitation assessment. Give us a call today to speak to a building science specialist.