Pitch Fibre Reforming

PITCH FIBRE REFORMING LONDON

 

Earthenware or vitrified clay pipework was the most commonly used drainage pipe material used for many years but a new material was brought into circulation in the late 1950’s called pitch fibre.

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This was hailed as a revolutionary material and was popular through to the early 1970’s for its ease of installation and relative cost effectiveness compared to the traditional materials.

Unfortunately the material was discovered to be inherently defective and quickly taken out of circulation but not before thousands of miles of pipework had been installed. It was found that depending upon the level of loading and time period the material began to deform, effectively squashing down creating an uneven and undulating internal surface.

Also due to the fibrous layers used in the manufacture of the material the deformation caused delamination whereby the actual fabric of the pipework disintegrates. Advanced levels of deformation can cause the pipework to virtually squash flat which prevents all use of the facilities.

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In the most severe cases, the only remedy is full excavation and replacement which is both very expensive and very disruptive. However, even if the pipework has severely deformed
reducing the bore to less than 50% of its original size, specialist reforming equipment can be used to return the pipe to the circular shape, commonly known as re-rounding.

 

This is achieved by high tension winches and reformers which physically force the pitch fibre pipework back into shape, followed by structural soft felt lining to retain the shape and prevent it from deforming again. High-temperature water is used in conjunction with a ‘hot-box’ system in the curing or hardening process which allows maximum strength of the liner to be achieved within hours instead of many weeks which is normally required with standard structural soft felt lining.

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Get in touch with us about Pitch Fibre Reforming and other drainage services in London.

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Some of the main services we provide are:

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CCTV Drain Survey in London

Drain Repairs in London

Drain Lining in London

 

Check out our Services page for a comprehensive list.