Frank Capasso and Sons of Northford, Connecticut, used the Ergo to repair a New Haven parking garage. 

With 1,016m2 of thick floor slab to remove. Company president Vinny Capasso knew it would be a difficult feat for jackhammers to complete the repair, so he paired the Ergo with the Aquajet power pack 250SM high pressure pump, a compact unit that was small enough to be moved throughout each level of the parking garage, including the top floor. “Working in the parking garage restoration world, we are surrounded by multiple tenants ranging from retail to hospitals to schools/colleges and more,” Capasso said. “There is no sensitive way to repair concrete in a garage structure. By utilising the Ergo, however, we are able to perform the task at hand while keeping the sensitive nature of the surrounding patrons in mind relating to noise and dust control.”

Limited access

A unique project occurred in the basement of an industrial building in Montreal, Quebec. The building required a new layout for tanks, each of which needed a drain line. The contractor tasked with the job needed to create trenches in the basement’s concrete to install new drainpipes. The building owner didn’t want jackhammers or saws to be used because they wanted to keep the rebar intact. The concrete slab couldn’t be damaged because of water pressure from the ground water under the building. Furthermore, the basement setting offered limited access that restricted larger equipment from entering.

Montreal based Groupe MGC took on the project and used an Aquajet Ergo purchased in 2021. “Based on the space we had to work in, the compactness of the Ergo was an advantage,” Groupe MGC president Carl Henri said. “We could have used larger equipment in the work area itself, but limited access made it impossible to get the equipment into the building. One of the main reasons we invested in the Ergo is for projects that require us to work in tighter spaces where we can’t bring larger machines.”

The crew removed 20m3 of concrete at a depth of approximately 600mm for the challenging project. Groupe MGC completed the job in about 22 days using a crew of four to six people. Handling wastewater was particularly challenging given the location of the job where only compact equipment could access the work area. The crew collected water and debris from the work zone with a vacuum truck and transferred it to a holding tank for treatment.

Subzero setting

During the frigid winter in northern Alberta, a pulp and paper plant removed a pump from a below grade chamber for maintenance. After pulling the pump, they discovered that the surrounding concrete was deteriorated to the point of having exposed rebar. The concrete walls were about 300mm thick with around 100mm of the concrete chewed away with the ceilings being similarly deteriorated. The plant engineer had worked with Restocrete, Inc., a concrete repair specialist based in Edmonton, Alberta, in the past. Restocrete managers Nick and Justin Downar needed an efficient hydrodemolition machine that could be operated from a safe distance above the chamber, so they turned to the Aquajet Ergo.

“Once we decided to make the jump and invest in the equipment, we saw the ROI. The equipment was smooth and the relationship with Aquajet has been great,” said Nick, Restocrete’s general manager. “It requires less workers, gets rid of silica dust, keeps time off tools reducing opportunities for injuries and has been easy to take care of. The Ergo also allowed Restocrete to remove deteriorated concrete without vibrating the existing structure, which was mandated by the client. It was a big win for us.”

The environment presented multiple challenges, beginning with the area for removal. The pit with the damaged concrete was below the water table with the weather also presenting another hurdle. Temperatures during the project got as low as -42o so the Restocrete crew constructed an insulated hoarding for the Ergo and Jetstream pump to reside in with heaters running throughout the project. 

Visibility also became an issue as the temperature difference between the air in the pit and inside of hoarding produced a great deal of steam. At project end, Restocrete completed concrete removal and repair on three of the five chambers at the plant, taking out all deteriorated concrete and extended behind the rebar. 

“Even with the timeline slightly drawn out due to pausing at points because of the steam, this project was significantly faster, leaving better quality surface profile and overall concrete condition with hydrodemolition than what it would’ve been with jackhammering,” said Justin, Restocrete’s commercial manager.