A pig farm seals a leaking stainless steel heating pipe damaged inside a biodigester tank by a metal pillar connected to a propeller mixing blade after an initial repair made via patch welding was discovered to have failed.

Case Study Overview

Site Pig farm
Location United Kingdom
Pipe Type Stainless steel heating pipe
Repair Type Leak repair
Products Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape, SylWrap Pipe Repair Bandage

Pipe Defect

The biodigester system at the pig farm consisted of a wide circular tank 20 metres in diameter and five metres tall. Digestate was warmed inside the tank to aid fermentation by a number of stainless steel heating pipes and mixed by a propeller blade attached to a metal pillar.

A noticeable drop off in the efficiency of the biodigester system alerted the farm to a potential problem. They accessed the inside of the tank, discovering that the propeller mixer had pushed the pillar backwards to collide with one of the heating pipes, causing a breach in the steel.

An initial repair was made to seal the leak via patch welding. When the biodigester began underperforming again, another inspection revealed the repair to have failed, with water sprouting out of numerous pinhole leaks through the weld.

SylWrap Solution

The farm used a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit for their second repair attempt. The pipe was cleaned and the patch weld ground down prior to the application of Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape as the first stage of the SylWrap repair.

Wrap & Seal was selected instead of Superfast Epoxy Putty due to the multiple leak areas across a 600mm area of pipe. It was easier to wrap all the way along with Tape rather than to encapsulate the entire section or plug each hole individually.

Once applied, Wrap & Seal amalgamated to form a solid rubber band which sealed all leaks in the pipe. The tape was easily capable of withstanding both the pressure and temperature at which the heating pipe operated.

To reinforce and protect the repair, a SylWrap Pipe Repair Bandage was applied over the top of the tape. SylWrap was activated with water and within minutes, the resin had cured to form a rock hard, impact resistant sleeve.

Outcome

The repair took under one hour to complete and the biodigester tank went back into service the next day. With no issues regarding the efficiency or performance of the system reported following the repair, the farm deemed it a success.

Follow Up

After being impressed by the speed and ease with which a SylWrap repair can be made, the farm have since considered investing in a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case for future problems.

The Contractor Case contains enough Superfast Epoxy Putty, Wrap & Seal and SylWrap Bandage to make up to six permanent live leak repairs on pipes of all types and diameters.

It can be easily stored on-site, equipping the farm with everything needed to fix any leaking pipe as soon as a problem is identified. With pipes playing such a big role in numerous agricultural processes, an instant response in future will reduce downtime.

Products Used

Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-fusing silicone repair tape which forms a solid rubber band to seal high pressure leaks

SylWrap Pipe Repair Bandage
Water-activated wrap sets rock hard to reinforce, protect and strengthen pipework

Universal Pipe Repair Kit
Wrap & Seal and SylWrap Bandage were supplied in a Universal Pipe Repair Kit

Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Easy-to-store case with everything needed to make up to six emergency pipe repairs

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