Humidity Slows Completion Of Auxiliary Gym
The new Glenwood Community High School auxiliary gym is still a month from being completed.
After a 30-day setback in the early stages of construction last fall and another delay this summer in the installation of the gymnasium floor, the auxiliary gym now likely won’t be completed until mid-October, Glenwood Superintendent Devin Embray said last week.
The $3.8 million addition was originally scheduled to be completed before the 2015-16 school year, however that date was revised to Sept. 1 when construction was slowed last fall due to heavy rains. Soil compaction issues on the site also slowed the pouring of footings causing further delays.
The current delay is attributed to humidity levels in the building being too high to install the pre-finished maple floor in the gym without a risk of warping. Currently, humidity levels are at 5.1 percent and need to be below 4 percent before installation can be started.
“We are just waiting right now for the moisture content to drop,” Embray said of the delay.
The higher than expected moisture levels in the gym is being blamed on a dehumidifier in the gym HVAC system not functioning properly. That component has now been fixed and is working at capacity to draw out the moisture, according to Embray.
“We have that fixed now so, hopefully, we’re going to see that moisture content drop,” he said. “We’re really hoping by mid-October that floor will be done and ready to go. We’re confident we can hit that date.”
Embray said the hope is to have the gym addition’s locker room and weight room turned over later this month with the gym to follow a few weeks later.
“We’re thinking the gym and the bleachers will be the only part not completed in the next couple weeks,” Embray said.
Installation of the floor could begin as early as this week with a 10-day installation process. Once at acceptable humidity levels, the gym floor will need three to six weeks of curing time before it is usable. When the floor is completed, district maintenance staff will then install the bleachers in the gym.
Embray called the delay “unfortunate” but its important contractors not hurry the floor installation at the cost of quality workmanship, he added.
“The hiccups we’ve had, we’re not too upset,” Embray said. “It’s unfortunate we’ve not been able to get in the gym and some of our programs haven’t been able s rush it at this point. We’re so close to being finished we want that moisture content down so we don’t have to do some costly repairs there.”
HSR Associates, Inc. designed the $3.8 million project and Omaha-based contractors Meco-Henne has handled construction.
Embray has been happy with both the auxiliary gym’s seamless addition to the school building and the quality of work he’s seen.
“If anybody hasn’t had a chance to see it or look at it on the backside of the building, it’s a wonderful addition,” he said. “It’s one that will last as long as the (school) building itself because of the way it was put up. This ties in beautifully and serves the purposes of our programs. It’s a great addition.”