Bridge River Hydroelectric Complex

BC Hydro’s Bridge River complex, located near Lillooet, British Columbia, Canada, consists of three distinct components, the Bridge River powerhouses, the La Joie Dam and Generating Station, and the Seton Generating Station.  Being the third largest development in the BC Hydro system, the operation and upkeep of these facilities is important for supplying power to the people of British Columbia.

With the majority of the infrastructure and facilities being built around the 1950s, the concrete is showing signs of aging, including cracks, spalls, AAR deterioration, and wetting-drying/freeze-thaw deterioration.  BC Hydro could see increased downtime and maintenance costs, as well as face huge replacement costs over the next several years if they were not proactively looking at ways to restore and protect this concrete. 

BC Hydro has been using Kryton International Inc.’s products since the mid-1980s to waterproof and protect their concrete structures throughout British Columbia.  Although they have numerous success stories with using products like Krystol T1 & T2 Waterproofin System and the Krystol Crack Repair System, they were interested in products that would provide good protection and provide a nice aesthetic finish.

Solution

Knowing that Kryton thrives on providing innovative solutions, contractors approached Kryton’s Product Development Team to see what type of solutions they could come up with.  Early on, Kryton trials were based on a modified version of the current Krystol T1 & T2 Waterproofing System.  However, after numerous brainstorming sessions and formulation changes, Kryton’s Product Development Team came up with the idea to develop a new complete system for restoring and protecting concrete.

Kryton’s new Hydrostop Restore & Protect System^TM greatly extends the useful life of aging concrete infrastructure and buildings, improves overall aesthetics and offers a more environmentally sustainable alternative to major rehabilitation or total replacement.

“The Hydrostop System is a cost effective way to extend the life of concrete that is showing signs of deterioration due to continual ingress of water” says Rob Emlyn, Project Manager for WRDE Management Ltd.

The systematic approach makes life easier for maintenance engineers and specifiers by offering a complete and compatible system that has been developed to work flawlessly together. There’s no need to piece together a solution based on various products or resolve conflicting application instructions.