Advanced Substrate Preparation
High-Pressure Water Jetting and Hydrodemolition
UCL Ltd uses advanced Falch high-pressure water jetting equipment to remove coatings, contamination and defective concrete, creating a controlled substrate for repair, waterproofing or protective coating. Pressure, flow, tooling and access method are configured around the asset, the required removal depth and site constraints — a preparation method designed around the required repair outcome, rather than pressure alone.
What's included
- Removal of coatings, linings and laitance
- Roughening and profiling of concrete
- Selective removal of defective concrete
- Exposing and cleaning reinforcement
- Preparation of walls, floors and soffits
Typical applications
Water and wastewater structures, reservoirs and drinking-water tanks, industrial tanks and containment areas, bridges, decks and car parks, and concrete repair and coating programmes.
Why asset owners choose this approach
- Mechanised treatment of large areas
- Reduced airborne dust compared with dry methods
- No large volume of abrasive media to introduce
- Can support tighter outage and possession periods
- Controlled preparation to a defined outcome, with options for walls, floors, ceilings and details
- Preparation aligned with the repair or coating system
- One specialist contractor for preparation and protection
Our process
We assess the substrate and downstream specification, establishing a representative trial area where required, and plan water supply, containment, filtration, debris recovery, access and exclusion controls. The prepared surface is then inspected before concrete repair, waterproofing, lining or coating begins.
Reference project figures
- Water chamber ceiling — 160m² coating removal and concrete roughening, completed in 40 machine hours with approximately 1 tonne of spoil versus 60 tonnes of blasting sand previously
- Drinking-water tank — 2,000m² of wall and ceiling decoating at 30m²/hour to ceilings and 40m²/hour to walls, with one operator and one support operative
- Bridge concrete — approximately 800m² removed to a depth of 50–70mm, with approximately 3m³ removed in eight hours while exposing and cleaning reinforcement
- Large concrete deck — 30,000m² roughening and deeper removal across 15,000m², at 140m²/hour roughening and 2.0–2.6m³/hour concrete removal
Reference-project figures are not guaranteed production rates. Final methodology, performance and environmental controls are subject to a site-specific assessment.
UCL is an Achilles-accredited specialist contractor with extensive experience across water-company assets, concrete repair and protective coatings.