Beverly Hills High School replaced its 1939 retractable gym floor, which sits above a pool, with a Robbins Bio-Channel Star floor built to resist moisture.
Results
The challenge
The 6,000-square-foot floor was built in 1939 and sits about five feet above a 23-meter pool. It retracts into the walls under concrete bleachers. Years of humidity had damaged it, and a new floor would fail the same way if moisture reached the structure.
The solution
Pacific Floor Co. installed Bio-Channel Star and took steps to stop moisture moving under the floor and between the sleepers. The crew closed off the sides to protect the subfloor, used a 1.5-inch XL-PLUS profile for stability, and tracked humidity in the gym through the install. They also confirmed the exhaust fans beneath the bleachers worked, since the floor can be stored there for long periods.
The outcome
The school and the city sports users who share the gym now have a moisture-resistant floor with vibration damping and even energy absorption for basketball and volleyball.
About the Bio-Channel Star floor
Bio-Channel Star combines anchored and resilient construction with a Zero/G shockpad and a continuous subfloor. Robbins says the current version meets performance standards worldwide, including MFMA third-party PUR certification, and that its continuous pad and interwoven subfloor damp vibration and carry heavy loads.
Key takeaways
- On a floor above a pool, moisture control shaped the installation as much as the floor system did.
- Humidity was tracked during the install, not only checked at the end.
- The floor has to be stored under bleachers, so ventilation there was checked too.
Project details
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