Magnesite A Costly Issue Plaguing NSW

“In those days, apartments were built quickly, and builders didn’t take time to make the floors perfectly flat with the concrete.

“The Magnesite Floor used to make the floors nice and flat was filled with sawdust and cork held together by glue. Now the glue was the problem because it was made of magnesium oxychloride in the Magnesite Floor.”

The Magnesite Floor absorbs water and dissolves the chloride in the topping. When the chloride leeches to the steel bars reinforcing the floor, it corrodes them.  Mr Marosszeky said the corrosion causes the concrete to expand by as much as eight times the volume of the original steel.

These expansive forces rupture the concrete, lifting the concrete just as a tree root lifts a footpath as the roots expand, Which is why it’s best to remove your Magnesite Floor ASAP. Magnesite Floors that are damaged could show up as hollow sounds on tiles, cracking of tiles, and bulging of the carpet over the rusting steel bars.

Because of the slow corrosion, the symptoms aren’t visible until the damage is already widespread.

Usually, when it’s discovered, the affected area that you can see is nowhere near the extent because it’s a massive hidden problem in the concrete.

So you’ll be looking at least two to three times the amount that is visible on the surface that will require repair. So when you see lumps on the floor, or corrosion rust stains on the concrete, the problem is already there.

Because it is a structural issue, ignoring it is not an option.

“If you leave it for too long, the bars simply get eaten away, and then structural strengthening has to be undertaken, adding very significantly to the remedial cost,” Mr Marosszeky said. “If you let it go, it can cost more than $1000 per square meter to remediate the problem, so stay alert and get help as soon as you detect any issues.” The cost rapidly increases the longer the Magnesite is installed.

“In the worst cases, the building will collapse. You have to fix it because it’s a structural problem.”‘