Concrete investigation / testing / repair support
CARE facilitates targeted field investigations, concrete sampling and testing coordination to establish the cause, extent and significance of deterioration, before repair budgets are committed.
Scope of testing
Testing is scoped around the decision the engineer needs to make, not applied as a standard package. CARE completes the field work, extracts and preserves samples to the nominated laboratory's requirements, and returns results in a form that supports repair design, staging and pricing.
GPR and cover-meter surveys locate reinforcement, post-tensioning tendons, conduits and embedded services before coring, drilling, cutting or installing anchors. Reinforcement spacing and cover data can also verify drawings and identify areas where insufficient cover increases durability and fire-resistance risks.
Diamond-drilled cores provide direct evidence of concrete thickness, compaction, internal cracking and in-situ compressive strength. Results are used to verify structural capacity, investigate low-strength concrete, plan alterations and determine whether existing concrete is suitable for retention.
Testing measures the depth to which atmospheric carbon dioxide has reduced the concrete's alkalinity. Comparing the carbonation front with reinforcement cover identifies steel at risk of depassivation and informs repair depth, coating selection and remaining-service-life assessments.
Powder samples collected at controlled depth increments quantify contaminants and show whether they have reached reinforcement level. Results help distinguish surface exposure from embedded contamination and guide breakout depth, conventional repairs, inhibitors, cathodic protection or replacement.
Surface resistivity indicates how readily corrosion current can flow through concrete. Used with half-cell mapping, it helps distinguish areas where corrosion is probable and capable of progressing; moisture, temperature, reinforcement arrangement and surface condition are considered in interpretation.
Hammer sounding, chain dragging and systematic visual inspection identify hollow, debonded or deteriorated concrete beyond visible cracking and spalling. Marked-up areas are converted into defect maps and measurable quantities for targeted opening-up, repair design and pricing.
In-situ and laboratory methods assess how readily water and dissolved contaminants enter or move through concrete. Testing can compare exposure zones, indicate near-surface quality and evaluate protective treatments, with results interpreted alongside cracking and moisture-source observations.
Sample types
Depending on the brief, samples may include drilled concrete cores, depth-specific powder samples, split cores, concrete fragments, reinforcement exposure and steel coupons, with scanning completed beforehand where required to reduce the risk of striking reinforcement, post-tensioning or embedded services.
| Sample Type | Suitable for typical testing | Compliance |
|---|---|---|
| Concrete cores | Compressive strength, mass per unit volume, density, static elasticity, apparent volume of permeable voids and general condition assessment | AS 1012.14, AS 1012.12.2, AS 1012.12.1, ASTM C642, BS EN 12504-1, BS EN 12390 |
| Depth-specific powder samples | Acid-soluble chloride, water-soluble chloride, sulphate profiling and chemical contaminant analysis | AS 1012.20.1, AS 1012.20.2, ASTM C1218/C1218M, ASTM C1152/C1152M |
| Split cores | Carbonation depth assessment | Project-specific, AS 1012 visual |
| Concrete fragments | Petrographic, aggregate identification, deleterious diagnosis and forensic / failure investigation | Project-specific, ASTM C295/C295M |
| Reinforcement exposure and steel coupon samples | Reinforcement diameter check, cover verification, corrosion assessment, steel sample integrity | Project-specific (AS 1554, AS 4671 + project-specific) |
Note: CARE extracts, documents and preserves samples in accordance with the engineer's brief and the nominated laboratory requirements. Laboratory testing, certification and interpretation remain the responsibility of the testing laboratory and project engineer.
Service area & compliance
Based at Banksmeadow in south-east Sydney, CARE mobilises crews for concrete and corrosion works across Greater Sydney.
Contact us
CARE is equipped to deliver both small and large concrete repair and rehabilitation packages across Greater Sydney.
Send the drawings, photos or scope notes you have. We will review the constraints and respond with the next practical step.