Case Study: Live Leak Pinhole Repair on 150mm Elbow at Pumping House in Malaysia

Fixing an elbow – a pumping house in Malaysia stays operational as SylWrap seals a pinhole

When a 150mm steel pipe elbow in a Malaysia pumping house developed a pinhole through which water was leaking out at 6 bar pressure, the company responsible for the facility turned to Sylmasta for a rapid live leak repair.

Case Study Data


Site
Pumping house
Location
Malaysia
Repair Type
Live leak repair
Defect
Pinhole leak in 150mm steel pipe elbow joint

Products Used


Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape
Self-amalgamating silicone repair tape used to seal the live leak on the elbow joint

SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage
Composite repair wrap applied to reinforce the initial repair via an impact resistant protective layer

SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case
Contains enough products to make up to six live leak repairs, now approved for use on Kuala Lumpur’s vast network

Case Study PDF


Case Study Details


The steel pipe was an important part of the system at the pumping house, operated by a water company. A pinhole leak had appeared on an elbow joint weakened by corrosion where two sections of metalwork joined together.

Because the leak was on an elbow, a repair clamp could not be fitted. The pipe could not be taken out of operation for repair or replacement due to its importance to operations at the pumping house.

The pinhole was located on an elbow
Pressurised jet of water spraying from the pinhole leak

The water company’s maintenance team therefore used a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit to carry out a live leak repair which would be effective on the 150mm elbow operating under 6 bar pressure.

Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape was used to seal the pinhole leak in the pipe. Wrap & Seal is made from self-amalgamating silicone. It stretches by 300 percent and fuses to form a solid rubber band over holes and cracks in pipework.

Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape being used to repair a leaking elbow joint at a pumping house in Malaysia
Wrap & Seal Pipe Burst Tape was stretched by its maximum 300 percent
Wrap & Seal successfully sealed the pinhole leak

Once the Tape had successfully sealed the hole in the pipe, it was overwrapped with a SylWrap HD Pipe Repair Bandage. SylWrap HD is a composite wrap with a water activated resin which sets rock hard in minutes.

The Bandage was wrapped around the elbow and smoothed down whilst water from a bucket was poured over it at sporadic intervals. Once cured, SylWrap HD provided an impact resistant shell around the elbow, preventing it from any future leaks or bursts.

Within 30 minutes of the start of the application, the leaking elbow had undergone successful repair by the maintenance team with no interruption to operations at the pumping house.

SylWrap HD being applied to a leaking steel elbow joint in Malaysia
SylWrap HD Bandage was used to reinforce the repair
Repair of a leaking elbow pipe elbow joint made with a SylWrap Universal Pipe Repair Kit
The repair was completed in less than 30 minutes

Both Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD are WRAS approved, meaning that they are certified as safe to use on pipes and fittings carrying drinking water according to British Standards.

Numerous other successful pipe repair applications have since been made in Malaysia using Wrap & Seal and SylWrap HD supplied in a SylWrap Pipe Repair Contractor Case.

This has led the Case to be approved by the national supplier in Malaysia for carrying out leak repairs across Kuala Lumpur’s vast pipe network.

Each Contractor Case contains enough products to make up to six live leak repairs on pipes of all diameters and types without the need for any training.

The Case can be easily stored on-the-van, providing a lightweight and more versatile alternative to carrying around heavy, bulky pipe repair clamps.

When leaks and bursts on the water network are identified, a contractor simply has to reach for the Case on their van to repair the problem in under 30 minutes.

If you have an application you would like to enquire about, then please get in touch

Call: +44 (0)1444 831 459
Email: sales@sylmasta.com

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