For BAM Construction’s renovation of City Varieties Music Hall for Leeds City Council, a number of extensive improvements were required, including the complete waterproofing of the building’s basement.
To transform the existing basement into a habitable area, specialist contractor VA Crookes (Contracts) Ltd specified the use of the BBA approved Sika 1 Pre-bagged Waterproofing System from global building product manufacturer Sika.
The City Varieties Music Hall dates back to 1865 and is one of the country’s few surviving examples of a traditional Victorian music hall. Virtually unchanged since the 19th Century, the ambitious redevelopment programme to return the Grade II Listed building to its former glory included a series of restorations and improvements, whilst retaining the character and aesthetic of its original design.
Appointed by main contractor BAM, VA Crookes – part of the Sika Waterproofing Registered Contractor Scheme – was contracted to complete the basement waterproofing. With long term performance and reliability in mind, the company specified Sika 1 Pre-bagged Waterproofing System.
With the building structure nearly 150 years old, the basement was showing signs of deterioration and water ingress. To prepare and clean the surfaces prior to application, VA Crookes mechanically prepared the basement walls before surface planing the floors.
In total, some 1,000m2 of Sika 1 Pre-Bagged Waterproofing System was then applied to all basement surfaces. As a market-leading system, it has a proven track record of more than 100 years and has been specified for some of the most prestigious and demanding environments, offering a reliable, long-term solution.
Sika 1 Pre-bagged Waterproofing System is hand-applied and incorporates a specially developed admixture which is mixed with blended pre-bagged mortars. When applied to the walls and floors, it reacts with water to turn into a jelly-like substance, blocking all gaps and capillaries, to provide an impenetrable and invisible seal. By bonding monolithically with the substrate, it becomes one with the structure.
Aiming to provide a habitable basement, waterproofing was applied to the highest standard possible. This ensured that the project achieved Grade Three in the recently updated BS 8102:2009 – Code of practice for protection of below ground structures against water from the ground. This grade is suitable for applications to all basements including where the water table classification is high and permanently above the underside of the base slab. Sika 1 Pre–bagged Waterproofing System has also been certified by the British Board of Agrément (BBA) to last the life of the building, providing exceptional standards of durability and reliability.
To provide complete peace of mind, the Sika 1 Pre-bagged Waterproofing System is supported with the Sika Waterproofing Registered Contractor Scheme, a scheme that has been created to minimise risk for specifiers, main contractors and clients. It ensures that all projects that require waterproofing benefit from the proven performance of Sika 1 Pre-bagged Waterproofing System, matched with exceptional technical service from Sika’s team and first class installation from one of the company’s Registered Contractors.
Now the Sika 1 Pre-bagged Waterproofing System is in place, the new-look music hall will provide an appealing, habitable basement to be utilised by generations of actors, singers, comedians and more.
The renovation, completed in summer 2011, has ensured visitors to the world-famous City Varieties Music Hall will once again experience the best entertainment facilities available from top to bottom.
