Steve Vick News
WALES & WEST UTILITIES APPROVE FULLSEAL11 Mar 2009
FULLSEAL™ is an entirely new annular sealant for dead inserted gas services.
Since its introduction to the industry back in September 2008, Steve Vick International are proud to announce that Wales & West Utilities has fully approved FULLSEAL™ to be routinely used across their alliance.
FULLSEAL™ has been developed to seal the gap between a new inserted PE pipe and the old steel service. It is an inert, environmentally friendly alternative to using anaerobic sealants or polyurethane resin foams.
A natural product, FULLSEAL™ contains no harmful chemicals and requires neither mixing nor other preparation before use, making it safe and extremely easy to use.
The FULLSEAL™ field trials were carried out by The Western Gas Alliance on behalf of Wales & West Utilities over the period of 6 months. During this time FULLSEAL™ was used in over 100 household services when inserting both polyethylene pipe and Serviflex. As a result, Wales & West Utilities has fully approved FULLSEAL™ to be their preferred annular gap sealant for Dead Service Insertion.
FULLSEAL™ is supplied pre-loaded in a plastic cartridge and is injected using a standard Steve Vick International applicator gun. An injection nozzle is attached to the cartridge and the material is pumped into the pipe via the filling port on the service head adaptor within the building. Subsequent cartridges can be injected if required.
As injection of the sealant usually takes place within the gas consumer’s premises, it is a major benefit that FULLSEAL™ is odourless and can be wiped or cleaned off with water in the event of an accidental spillage. The product’s thixotropic consistency makes it easy to pump in; once injected, it thickens but does not cure. The product can be disposed of with normal waste.
The filled service can subsequently be removed should it be necessary to do so, due, for example to third part damage.
Paul Breakey, Operations Manager for The Western Gas Alliance said “Commercially, FULLSEALTM presents great cost effective benefits, but its key benefits lie with the ease of application, removing the need to mix the sealant prior to insertion saves time and makes the procedure effortless. With FULLSEALTM we no longer have to worry about accidental spillages on carpets etc as the product can be washed off, it is non toxic making it safer for the operatives to use.
Adopting FULLSEALTM was always going to be a win: win situation for our people and the business”
FULLSEAL™ is designed for use on steel services up to 2” diameter inserted with either PE or Serviflex™ and is available in kit form. The product meets the requirements of GIS/LC14 for Dead Service Insertion. A patent application has been filed.