PROBLEM
The Alabama Theatre is a local landmark built in 1927 as a showcase for Paramount Films. It served as a movie palace for 55 years. It was also used to host the yearly Miss Alabama agent and the weekly meetings of the local Mickey Mouse Club. In 1987, the owners declared bankruptcy. The non-profit corporation Birmingham Landmarks, Inc., purchased the theatre. The Alabama Theatre underwent a restoration in 1998 and has lately been hosting more than 150 events annually, attended by 150,000 Birmingham area citizens. The theatre was temporarily shut down in March 2020 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic with hopes of reopening in fall 2020.
APPLICATION
Normally, the theatre adds desiccant to the boilers every spring when shutting them down for the season. In 2020, the theatre owners chose to use the Cortec® Boiler Lizard® for a seasonal dry layup instead. Unlike desiccant, the Boiler Lizard® provides active corrosion protection and does not require removal when the boiler is refilled.
The two electric boilers were drained. The Boiler Lizard® was removed from its outer packaging and cut in two—one half for each boiler based on boiler size. The inner water-soluble bag was slit open, and each Boiler Lizard® segment was placed inside the original packaging tube to serve as a chute to direct the Boiler Lizard® as near to the center of the boiler as possible. After Boiler Lizard® placement, the openings to the boilers were closed.
CONCLUSION
The Cortec® Boiler Lizard® will provide 12+ months of corrosion protection. During this time, Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitors will vaporize out of the Boiler Lizard® and adsorb as a protective molecular layer on all accessible metal surfaces in the interior cavities of the boiler. When the theatre owners are ready to bring the boiler back online, they can simply refill the boiler as normal. The Boiler Lizard® will dissolve in the makeup water—no removal necessary—providing an extremely convenient method of layup. The theatre plans to use its second remaining
PRODUCT
Boiler Lizard®
