2 5th Avenue

Project History

This luxury co-op faced a very pressing and expensive issue in 2009. The building’s façade of glazed brick over cinder blocks lacked air and moisture barriers and was failing. Due to the building’s location in a designated landmark district, any remediation plan would have to be approved by the Landmark Preservation Commission. A very irregular block surface was exposed once the façade was removed. Pinholes and voids were guaranteed if the liquid air barrier membrane was applied directly to the block, compromising that system. Structural Skin, a fiber reinforced structural coating that shows a 100% reduction in water penetration and leakage per ASTM E514, was applied as a fairing coat at a depth of a quarter inch. This application not only provided a uniform surface for the air barrier, it offered secondary protection for the system by allowing moisture diffusion and acting as a moisture barrier, thereby also protecting the installed reinforcing steel supports from corrosion.