Case study · Education · Sports hall refurbishment

Emanuel School: A Complete Sports Hall Floor Refurbishment

From a full rip out to the final sports surface. A coordinated package covering replacement damp proofing, Recticel PIR insulation, underfloor heating, screed and floor preparation.

Installed Gerflor sports flooring at Emanuel School. Sports line marking is being arranged separately by the school with its sports director.
Installed Gerflor sports flooring at Emanuel School. Sports line marking is being arranged separately by the school with its sports director.
ProjectEmanuel School
ScopeFull floor refurbishment
HeatingRoth UK UFH
Final surfaceGerflor sports flooring

Setting: School sports hallSports flooring: Supplied and installed by Westcotes Flooring

The challenge

This refurbishment was not simply a replacement surface. The existing floor was fully ripped out, with the replacement build-up delivered as part of one coordinated package.

The work beneath the sports surface mattered as much as the finish: replacement damp proofing, silver-faced Recticel PIR insulation, a separate upper polythene sheet, underfloor heating and screed all formed part of the refurbishment.

Our coordinated approach

Following the full rip out, the floor was rebuilt with replacement DPM, silver-faced Recticel PIR insulation and a separate 500g black polythene sheet on top. Roth UK underfloor heating was installed above this build-up, followed by fibrescreed incorporating the KNOPP CONTOPP Ultimate 4 additive.

After heat commissioning, the screed was sanded and cracks were repaired. The next stages were the red Flowcrete Hydraseal surface DPM, Tremco CS100 epoxy primer and Isocrete 1500 levelling compound, ahead of the final Gerflor sports flooring.

The lower replacement DPM, the separate upper 500g polythene over the insulation and the later red surface DPM each had a distinct place in the build-up.

CONTOPP Ultimate 4 enabled a quicker heat commissioning cycle on this project, allowing the surface DPM and finishing stages to progress sooner.

The replacement build-up

  • Full rip out of the existing floor
  • Lower replacement DPM
  • Silver-faced Recticel PIR insulation
  • Separate 500g black polythene on top of the insulation
  • Roth UK underfloor heating
  • Fibrescreed incorporating the KNOPP CONTOPP Ultimate 4 additive

Preparation and finish

  • Heat commissioning, followed by sanding and crack repairs
  • Red Flowcrete Hydraseal surface DPM
  • Tremco CS100 epoxy primer
  • Isocrete 1500 levelling compound
  • Gerflor sports surface, supplied and installed by Westcotes Flooring

The result

The whole floorFrom full rip out to the installed sports surface

The floor was completed with a sports-grade Gerflor surface, supplied and installed by Westcotes Flooring. Our thanks to Carl Harper and the team.

Sports line marking is being arranged directly by the school with its sports director. This is separate from the CSC and Westcotes flooring package.

Emanuel School is one of over 3,000 projects we have installed since 2010.

The refurbishment in progress

These photographs show genuine stages of the same sports hall refurbishment, from strip out and preparation to the installed sports surface. They are different viewpoints, not a matched-camera before-and-after comparison.

Removal of the existing sports hall floor at Emanuel School.
Removal of the existing sports hall floor at Emanuel School.
Replacement DPM laid before the insulation stage of the floor build-up.
Replacement DPM laid before the insulation stage of the floor build-up.
Silver-faced Recticel PIR insulation laid across the sports hall.
Silver-faced Recticel PIR insulation laid across the sports hall.
500g black polythene over the Recticel PIR insulation, with UFH pipework installed above.
500g black polythene over the Recticel PIR insulation, with UFH pipework installed above.
Underfloor heating pipework laid out across the Emanuel School sports hall before screeding.
Underfloor heating pipework laid out across the Emanuel School sports hall before screeding.
Underfloor heating pipework returning to the manifold at Emanuel School.
Underfloor heating pipework returning to the manifold at Emanuel School.
Screed being placed over the underfloor heating at Emanuel School.
Screed being placed over the underfloor heating at Emanuel School.
Sanding the screed after heat commissioning, before the surface preparation layers.
Sanding the screed after heat commissioning, before the surface preparation layers.
Screed after heat commissioning, with crack repairs carried out before the surface DPM.
Screed after heat commissioning, with crack repairs carried out before the surface DPM.
Red surface DPM across the prepared screed, separate from the sheet membrane below the build-up.
Red surface DPM across the prepared screed, separate from the sheet membrane below the build-up.
Isocrete 1500 levelling-compound stage across the Emanuel School sports hall, following the red surface DPM and CS100 primer.
Isocrete 1500 levelling-compound stage across the Emanuel School sports hall, following the red surface DPM and CS100 primer.
Further view of the installed Gerflor sports surface, before school-arranged sports line marking.
Further view of the installed Gerflor sports surface, before school-arranged sports line marking.