Exclusive: Firm that worked on past Reflecting Pool renovation passed on Trump project after deeming it 'unfeasible'
Source: CNN
Several months before blue strips started floating to the surface of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a company involved in its last renovation more than 15 years ago was approached with an opportunity to do this remodel as well. But the company said no.
Specifically, it balked at two requirements - the Trump administration wanted it done by July 4, and the pool bottom had to be blue, according to two employees with the New Jersey-based Sika Corporation, which provided the concrete construction and sealing products for a 2010 renovation project to the Reflecting Pool.
According to the two employees, who spoke to CNN on the condition they not be identified, both demands made the job "unfeasible."
Ultimately, Rhino Linings, which is most popular for its truck bed linings but also says on its website it can be used for water facilities, was chosen to provide materials for the latest Reflecting Pool renovation
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/25/politics/reflecting-pool-firm-renovation-unfeasible
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Response to LetMyPeopleVote (Original post)
FalloutShelter This message was self-deleted by its author.
The Roux Comes First
(2,438 posts)LetMyPeopleVote
(183,935 posts)This is from the article cited in the OP
Ravi Kurani, President of Standard Water Corp, an industrial technology company, told CNN he would never recommend driving cars out onto a pool surface, especially when renovations are being done.
Its like youre putting flooring on your kitchen floor and then youre take a really heavy tractor on top of it its going to mess it up a little bit.
Tim Auerhahn, a pool infrastructure expert and the chairman of the Aquatic Council, a consulting firm , said over email there isnt enough information to definitively conclude that the vehicle traffic caused damage, but it is one of several factors that should be considered as part of a comprehensive failure analysis.
Auerhahn added that, Its important not to focus on a single theory too early.
BidenRocks
(3,645 posts)to drive through the pool.
I doubt ANY driver would even think of doing so.
Like driving a covid infected chump on a beauty cruise in T1.
I am really looking forward to the vandalism court cases. Jury trials all around!
paleotn
(23,063 posts)Materials used well outside their design parameters driven over a few times just to make sure they fail quickly.
Aussie105
(8,350 posts)Drain it, rip up the concrete, fill it in, grass it over?
LetMyPeopleVote
(183,935 posts)I can see trump doing this
erronis
(24,950 posts)jmowreader
(53,545 posts)erronis
(24,950 posts)I think DU needs a new front-page section called "Interesting" - your posts would fit right in.
Karasu
(2,314 posts)regime has.
flashman13
(2,635 posts)AverageOldGuy
(4,367 posts)Trump wanted the cheap, quick way. But hes a builder the best builder ever and it was antifa vandals with razor knives. Right??!
The people charged with vandalism have a high powered lawyer who is working pro bono. Judge Winebox Pirro is prosecutor. Lawyer will rip her a new asshole. I smell grand jury return NOT TRUE bill. If it goes to trial NOT GUILTY dismissed with prejudice GTF out of my courtroom with this billshit!!
LetMyPeopleVote
(183,935 posts)Here is more from the OP
The main issue, one of Sika employees said, was the lining over the expansion joints featured in the Reflecting Pool and constraints on what material could be used and submerged in water. The Reflecting Pool features 2.5 miles of joints, which were recently replaced as part of the renovations, according to Department of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum......
The two Rhino Linings products ultimately used in the Reflecting Pool were Rhino 406 Primer and Pipeliner 5000, according to an advertisement for the company. The primer is made up of epoxy, and the pipeliner is made of a mixture of resin and isocyanate polyurea.
The Pipeliner 5000 product is typically used for linings in water storage, wastewater facilities, and pipes containers not exposed to sunlight on a regular basis. Some polyureas are not stable under UV light .
As for the Rhino 406 Primer, one Sika employee said that epoxy, which is a popular coating for garage floors, is rigid, and would not be a good solution for flexing joints like the ones in the Reflecting Pool.
BradBo
(1,080 posts)obamanut2012
(29,670 posts)ToxMarz
(3,178 posts)And the contractor didn't know what he was dealing with or what the correct solution was so they used a well known popular product that was woefully inappropriate for the project
lonely bird
(3,117 posts)Is not one product.
They formulate different products depending on the application. The same is true for virtually every manufacturer of polyurea/polyurethane.
If they arent installed correctly or if the conditions change then the lining can fail.
Wounded Bear
(64,831 posts)As the old saying goes: The difficult we can do immediately, the impossible takes a little longer. Money can't overcome physics and chemistry.