FBE Pinholes

 

Repairing Pinholes in your FBE Coating

 

FBE REPAIR STICKS

For the most technically sound repairs on FBE, please consider using our Powercrete R65 Repair Cartridges.

Powercrete R65 Repair Cartridges

                A pinhole occurs when moisture, air or other fluids get trapped into the coating. This is very common with all epoxies.   It is important for these pinholes to be repaired correctly as they will cause you many issues down the road.  Luckily there is a quick and efficient way to rid yourself of these problems. 

                3M Scotchkote repair sticks are your answer.  These are specifically designed to cover holidays up to 2mm in diameter.  A few benefits you get with these repair sticks: easy to install, they are flexible, no potlife/expiration and are very quick to set so you can move along to the next assignment. 

A brief overview of installation:

1. You will scuff up the area with sand paper.
2. Preheat your pinehole and the surrounding area.
3. While still applying heat to the surrounding areas, slowly drag your repair stick across the pinhole.  With the correct amount of preheat and minor heat from your torch, these will start to melt. 
4. Continue until the patch is covered and smooth.  You will need to apply until you have a greater thickness than your original FBE coating. 
5. Allow a few minutes to cool while you are onto your next pinhole! 

                FBE repair sticks are designed with small pinholes and abrasions in mind.  Anything larger, we recommend seeking other products such as epoxies and shrink sleeves for the rehabilitation.  These FBE repair sticks are offered in a 5# box that contains around 90 to 100 sticks.  We keep these stocked on the shelf here at JSI and can get them shipped out the same day.

Please reach out to JSI for guidance on your FBE repair needs!    

FBE Pipeline Coating Repair

     So, your FBE coated pipe has some damage on it.  Don't panic, this happens all of the time!  It most likely wasn't damaged during the coating process (since it was jeeped at some point); but more likely there have been some minor damage that occurred while the pipe was being moved around or trucked across the state.  Fear not; we've got you covered.

A 5# pounds contains something in the neighborhood of 90-100 sticks.

Is this what the box you just finished looks like?  We've got more in stock.

    Now, these sticks are designed only to fix minor damage; preferably nothing more than pinholes.  If you have anything more significant (even something the size of a quarter or larger); we would always recommend that you install a shrink sleeve around the damaged area.  Just as shrink sleeves have successfully coated girth welds for the last 40 years; they can also repair a damaged pipeline coating.

     In order to recommend a shrink sleeve type; we'll need all of the typical information (found here) like operating temperature of the line; pipe outside diameter; size of the damage; etc.  All of those factors affect the price of course; but isn't spending $5 to properly fix a damaged area worth it?  You want to sleep at night don't you?  You want to finish this project knowing that you've done a good job, don't you?

     So, for pinhole sized damage on FBE coated pipe (which is more common than you might think), pick up a box of these FBE repair sticks.  If your damage is more significant; give me a call and I'll walk you through the different options we can offer.