Saturday, August 24, 2019

Integrated Expansion Board Cap Waterstop


Integrated expansion board cap waterstop systems are designed to replace post-applied joint sealant, and provide a fluid-tight internal seal like a traditional waterstop with a one-step, integrated unit. Install Earth Shield® expansion board cap waterstop on top of conventional expansion board filler or Earth Shield’s chemical resistant, plastic expansion board. The expansion board acts as the form; therefore, no form splitting is necessary, significantly accelerating the project schedule and provides a long-lasting, attractive finished concrete joint. Earth Shield® screed key cap slides over the top of the metal screed key, eliminating the need for sealant. Like all our thermoplastic vulcanizate waterstops, Earth Shield® integrated cap system waterstop can be heat-welded using a standard waterstop splicing iron allowing for easy field fabrications and allows the waterstop to function as a continuous, homogeneous, fluid-tight diaphragm. Waterstop directional changes are available along with straight roll stock. Custom, fit-to-print waterstop modules are produced to order. Prefabricated ells, tees, tank pads, column fittings, and many others are in stock and ready to ship.

Saturday, May 11, 2019

Introducing Type NB190® Hydrophilic Waterstop Paste

Type NB190® Hydrophilic Waterstop Paste
Designed for use as a waterstop in new and retrofit concrete cold joint construction. May also be used as an adhesive for Type NB190® Hydrophilic Waterstop.

Properties

  • NB190® Hydrophilic Waterstop Paste is a moisture curing, hydrophilic, elastomeric sealant.
  • Exhibits flexible, resilient rubber that adheres to a wide variety of substrates. 
  • Over 100% hydrophilic expansion in 48 hours.
  • 250% hydrophilic expansion in 30 days.
  • Solvent free, 100% solids, will not shrink.
  • Tack free skin is formed in 60 minutes (@ 75°F / 23°C)
  • Typical cure takes place in 24 hours.
  • Available in 10.5-ounce cartridges.
  • Shelf Life: 12 months when stored at temperature not exceeding 80°F
  • Color: Red
Typical Uses
  • Concrete cold joints.
  • Expanded metal forms.
  • Pipe or circular penetrations.
  • Crack and joint repair.
  • Sheet pile interlocks.
  • Precast segment sealant.

Monday, February 11, 2019

Concrete Joints

Waterstops are used to fluid-proof concrete joints. (Pictured is Earth Shield® PVC Waterstop part no. PVC638.)

Contraction Joints
Contraction joints are used to divide large pours of concrete into smaller structural units. Contraction joints create a man-made plane of weakness to regulate and control (another name for a contraction joint is a control joint) the location of a crack formed by moisture loss of concrete. Without this formed contraction joint, the concrete would freely crack in unexpected and unattractive places.

Construction Joints
An interruption of the concrete pour 30 minutes or greater creates a construction joint.

Expansion Joints
Expansion joints are designed to negate the compressive forces from abutting concrete structures that may occur as a result of expansion, loads, or differential movements from the settlement. Expansion joints require an actual gap between the concrete pours, and a compressible joint filler material such as foam, rubber, cork, or cane fiberboard.

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Earth Shield® PVC Waterstop Achieves NSF 61 Certification

Certification to NSF/ANSI 61 demonstrates compliance with nationally-recognized 
health effects standard for all drinking water treatment chemicals.

J P Specialties, Inc. has earned certification to NSF/ANSI 61, the American National Standard for Drinking Water Treatment Components – Health Effects for its Earth Shield® PVC Waterstop from global public health organization NSF International. 

Government agencies around the world utilize NSF International standards to verify the safety and performance of water treatment chemicals, pipes, and plumbing components and to ensure these products do not leach harmful levels of contaminants into drinking water. 

To earn NSF/ANSI 61 certification, J P Specialties’ Earth Shield® PVC Waterstop was subject to rigorous testing and evaluation to verify the product met requirements for use in drinking water. NSF International also audited J P Specialties’ manufacturing facility to verify compliance with the standard requirements.

About NSF International: NSF International is a global independent organization that writes standards and protocols, and tests and certifies products for the food, water, and consumer goods industries to minimize adverse health effects and protect the environment. Founded in 1944, NSF is a Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Collaborating Center on Food Safety, Water Quality, and Indoor Environment.

Friday, December 21, 2018

Free DeWalt® Drill Driver With Qualifying Earth Shield® Retrofit Waterstop Orders

DeWalt DCF885C2 Drill Driver
The DEWALT® DCF885C2 20 V MAX lithium-ion 1/4-in impact driver kit is compact and lightweight for fitting in tight spaces and increasing productivity. Belt hook allows the user to be mobile.


  • DCF885C2 kit includes one 1/4-in impact driver, two 1.5 Ah 20-volt MAX Li-ion battery packs, one DCB107 fast charger, and belt hook
  • High-performance motor delivers 0-3,200 BPM
  • Variable-speed trigger (0-2,800 RPM) provides control, and the impact mechanism produces 1,400-in-lbs max torque
  • 1-handed, 1/4-in hex accepts 1-in bits
  • Two 20-volt lithium-ion batteries with 1.5-Ah and 30-min charge
  • Lightweight 2.8-lb design reduces user fatigue
  • 3 LED lights provide visibility without shadows
  • Made in USA with global materials
  • Convenient belt hook keeps the tool close at hand

Beginning now through while supplies last, every Earth Shield® Retrofit Waterstop order $5000 or greater will receive a free DeWalt® DCF885C2 Drill Driver. Contact your Earth Shield® sales representative for more information.

Sunday, December 02, 2018

PVC Caps for Metal Keyway

PVC158 installed on metal keyway.
If you use metal keyway in your project, you probably need our JPS PVC Caps. All of our PVC caps are manufactured with a specially formulated, UV stabilized flexible polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The caps are grey, blending perfectly with the cast concrete.

Sunday, September 30, 2018

I am proud to announce that J P Specialties, Inc. now manufactures PVC waterstop. Earth Shield® Polyvinyl Chloride Waterstop (PVC) is the perfect solution for most water and wastewater applications. Earth Shield® PVC Waterstop is manufactured from prime virgin resin and is the trusted choice for environmental engineered concrete structures.

Sunday, September 16, 2018

Understanding Waterstop

To understand what a waterstop is, it is helpful to understand what it is not. Waterstop will not prevent the migration of moisture through a concrete slab, protecting the installed flooring system (such as tile or hardwood) from adhesion failure or deterioration. Nor will waterstop have any effect on capillary water migration through concrete walls. Vapor barriers, drain boards, concrete admixtures, bituminous wraps, flashings, and multiple other construction products are available to the specifier, contractor, or end-user for these criteria and there are many good books written on the subject.

PVC Waterstop
Waterstop has a singular purpose: To prevent the passage of fluids across and along concrete joints. Waterstop does all of its work at the joint. Because concrete joints are frequently open and subject to hydrostatic loads, a strong case states that waterstop has the most critical role in fluid-proofing a concrete structure. A pinhole or imperfection in a vapor barrier will have little to no noticeable effect, but even the slightest defect in a waterstop product or its installation can be truly catastrophic to the fluid-tight integrity of the building envelope. 

The first waterstops used in construction were strips of lead or copper. In the early 1900s, the preferred waterstop material shifted to vulcanized rubbers such as neoprene or styrene butadiene rubber (SBR). While rubber waterstops had excellent mechanical properties (high tensile strength and elongation) they had one major weakness: they were challenging to fabricate as the rubber was vulcanized, meaning it had already taken a “set” (thermoset) and could not be heat welded together like the metals used previously.

In 1926, Waldo Semon of the B. F. Goodrich Company invented plasticized PVC. Semon was attempting to dehydrohalogenate (non-plasticized) PVC in a solution of boiling solvent to create an unsaturated polymer that would be useful for bonding rubber to metal. The results of Semon’s experiment was the creation of a thermoplastic with properties very similar to rubber.  

It took many years for plasticized PVC to find suitable commercial applications, and was first used as a waterstop material in the early 1950s. Back then, the material was properly labeled as fPVC or flexible PVC. The first wide-scale test of any waterstop was performed in 1954 by the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario, Canada. Many manufacturers still use the results of this test as a benchmark, and other than some new polymers, waterstop has not changed that much since then.


Sunday, September 09, 2018

HDPE Waterstop for Hydrocarbons

Earth Shield® HDPE Waterstop is a specialized thermoplastic that is ideally suited for hot petroleum oils, diesel fuel, aromatic hydrocarbons, industrial solvents, and other aggressive, non-polar fluids that would cause significant softening and swelling of other waterstop polymers.


Earth Shield® HDPE Waterstop is available in many of the same shapes and profiles as our industry-leading, chemical resistant, Earth Shield® TPV polymer.

Install Earth Shield® HDPE Waterstop in all concrete joints. Waterstop should be centered in, and run the extent of the joint. All changes of directions should be prefabricated (see Shop Made Fittings), leaving only butt-welding for the field. If installing in an expansion joint, keep center bulb unembedded to allow it to accommodate movement as designed. Use our factory-installed brass eyelets or #3 hog rings and tie wire to secure waterstop to reinforcing steel to avoid displacement during the concrete pour. Splice straight lengths of waterstop and Shop Made Fittings to straight lengths, with an ST-10® In-Line Waterstop Splicer with the iron temperature set to 410°F to 430°F. More detailed installation instructions are in our Standard 3-part Specifications.