Professional Containment Coatings & Tank Lining Systems

Secondary Containment: The Last Line of Defense Against Chemical Releases

Secondary containment systems exist because primary containment — tanks, pipes, drums, and vessels — can and does fail. Spills, overfills, equipment failures, seismic events, and operational errors release millions of gallons of hazardous chemicals into secondary containment systems every year. When those secondary containment linings perform correctly, the chemical is captured, cleaned up, and the incident is a recordable event. When the lining fails, the chemical reaches soil, groundwater, or storm drains — triggering environmental enforcement, significant remediation costs, and potentially catastrophic regulatory consequences.

The EPA’s Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule and many state environmental regulations mandate secondary containment for above-ground chemical and petroleum storage. These regulations require that containment systems be impermeable and capable of holding the volume of the largest tank they protect. Meeting this standard requires more than pouring a concrete berm — it requires a protective lining system that will maintain chemical impermeability for the service life of the storage system.

Epoxy Flooring Pro installs secondary containment linings, tank interior and exterior coatings, and waterproofing systems for chemical storage, petroleum products, waste management, and industrial process applications. Every containment project we complete includes written documentation suitable for inclusion in your SPCC plan or environmental compliance files.

Understanding Coating Chemistry for Containment Applications

The selection of coating chemistry for containment applications is not a matter of preference — it is a technical decision driven by the specific chemical resistance requirements of the application. Using the wrong coating chemistry guarantees eventual failure.

Standard Bisphenol-A Epoxy

The foundation of industrial coating technology, BPA epoxy provides good resistance to dilute acids, alkalis, water, and many salts. It is appropriate for containment of aqueous solutions, dilute chemical spills, and petroleum products at low temperatures. Standard epoxy coating is NOT adequate for concentrated aromatic solvents, concentrated acids, oxidizing chemicals, or applications requiring elevated service temperatures.

Novolac Epoxy

Novolac epoxy — also called epoxy novolac or phenol-formaldehyde novolac — is a specialty epoxy chemistry with a higher cross-link density than standard BPA epoxy. The additional cross-linking provides:

• Resistance to aromatic solvents including toluene, xylene, MEK, and acetone
• Resistance to concentrated sulfuric acid (up to 70%), hydrochloric acid, and many organic acids
• Improved resistance to elevated temperatures (continuous service to 300°F+)
• Higher solvent resistance for chemical process environments

For chemical storage facilities, solvent storage areas, and battery rooms, novolac epoxy is the minimum appropriate coating chemistry.

Vinyl Ester Linings

Vinyl ester systems represent the highest chemical resistance tier in commonly applied containment coatings. Based on vinyl ester resin chemistry rather than epoxy chemistry, these systems provide resistance to:

• Fuming acids including fuming sulfuric acid and fuming nitric acid
• Strong oxidizing chemicals including concentrated hydrogen peroxide
• Bleach and sodium hypochlorite at concentrated levels
• Mixed chemical exposure with unknown or variable compositions
• Elevated temperature chemical immersion service

Vinyl ester systems require more complex application procedures and more stringent surface preparation than epoxy systems, but they are the only appropriate specification for the most demanding containment environments.

Containment Failure Points: Where Linings Break Down

Understanding where containment linings fail is essential for designing systems that do not repeat those failures. In our experience inspecting failed containment linings, failures cluster at predictable locations:

Construction Joints and Cracks

Concrete is not a monolithic material — it shrinks, moves, and develops cracks throughout its service life. Construction joints between the berm floor and walls, control joints in large containment slabs, and structural cracks all represent discontinuities in the substrate that create high stress concentrations in the coating system above. When the concrete moves, the coating is forced to stretch or delaminate at these points.

Our approach: All joints and cracks receive specific repair treatment, followed by fiberglass woven mat embedded in the first coat of the containment lining. The fiberglass mat provides crack bridging capacity — it can accommodate small movements without the lining above developing a pinhole. Mat reinforcement is applied at all joint locations as a standard practice, not an optional add-on.

Floor-to-Wall Transitions

The cove or fillet at the junction of the containment floor and the berm wall is a high-stress detail that is frequently applied incorrectly. If the coating bridges the corner without a formed cove, it spans a stress concentration point and typically cracks at the corner profile under thermal cycling. We form proper radius coves in all floor-to-wall transitions and embed fiberglass mat in the cove to ensure structural integrity of the detail.

Penetrations

Pipes, conduits, and structural elements penetrating through a containment structure are every containment engineer’s greatest concern. Each penetration is a potential bypass path for chemical to circumvent the coating system entirely. We install appropriate penetration collars, boot flashings, or mechanical seals depending on the specific penetration type and chemical exposure. All penetrations are spark-tested with particular attention because they are the highest-risk holiday locations.

Waterproofing for Below-Grade Structures

Not all containment challenges involve chemical resistance. Underground vaults, sumps, pump pits, and utility structures are regularly subjected to hydrostatic groundwater pressure that drives moisture through concrete joints and cracks. We apply waterproofing systems that address this different challenge:

Negative-Side Crystalline Waterproofing: For structures with active groundwater infiltration, crystalline waterproofing materials applied to the interior (negative side) react with water and cement to form insoluble crystals within the concrete pores, progressively sealing the substrate from within.

Positive-Side Membrane Systems: For new construction or dry substrate conditions, positive-side membrane systems applied to the exterior face of below-grade structures prevent moisture from entering the concrete in the first place.

Interior Coating Waterproofing: High-build epoxy or polyurethane systems applied to the interior of below-grade structures provide a physical barrier to moisture transmission while also offering the chemical resistance benefits appropriate for structures containing process fluids.

SPCC Compliance: Documentation That Satisfies Regulators

EPA SPCC regulations require that secondary containment systems be capable of containing the largest single vessel they protect plus freeboard for precipitation, and that they be free of cracks or gaps that would allow discharge. For regulated facilities, our containment lining projects include documentation specifically structured to support SPCC plan compliance:

• Written specification with chemical resistance rationale for selected coating chemistry
• Surface preparation records per SSPC standards with profile measurements
• Application records: product lot numbers, batch quantities, mixing ratios, application temperatures and humidity
• Film thickness measurements at specified intervals
• Holiday test report per NACE SP0188 with all holiday locations, repair records, and retest confirmation
• Photographs documenting all stages of surface preparation and application

This documentation package is provided at project completion and is structured for direct inclusion in your SPCC plan amendment records.

Tank Interior Coating: Immersion Service Requirements

Tank interior coating for chemical storage, potable water, wastewater, and fuel service is among the most demanding coating application work — and among the most consequential if done incorrectly. Interior coatings experience full chemical immersion 24 hours per day and any failure of the coating system exposes the tank shell to direct chemical damage.

Surface preparation for immersion service requires abrasive blasting of steel surfaces to SSPC-SP 10 or SP 5 — near-white or white metal — because any mill scale, rust, or contamination remaining under an immersion-service coating will cause premature failure. For concrete tanks, surface preparation must achieve ICRI CSP 5–6 minimum to ensure adequate mechanical anchor profile for the thick coating systems required.

We apply immersion-service coatings in multiple coats with full cure and holiday testing between each coat, ensuring that the final system has complete coverage, correct total film thickness, and no pinholes that would allow the contained chemical to reach the substrate.

Contact our containment coating specialists to discuss your specific chemical exposure profile and receive a technically appropriate lining specification for your containment or tank project.