Mixing the ever-changing Oklahoma weather - wind, heat, humidity, harsh cold, ice and snow - with chlorine and water from a swimming pool complex would be tough enough on paint products. But, when you combine those elements with the thousands of kids and adults who use the Earlywine Family Aquatic Center in Oklahoma City, Okla., each year, the challenge becomes even tougher.

The Earlywine Family Aquatic Center integrates a beach-like pool entry with high-energy water toys, swimming lanes and twelve gently bubbling geysers. Some of the larger features include two towering plunge slides, tumble buckets that randomly spatter water on swimmers from more than 15 feet in the air, a large mushroom water curtain, a giant floating green turtle and two interactive spray fountains.

In 2000, the city’s Parks and Recreation Department set out to paint the center to cover the block building, including the shower area, and to paint an entryway fence to present a welcoming front to the facility. Their goals were to eliminate the potential need to repaint the block building in the future due to penetrating water and they wanted to keep the entryway looking fresh over time – both situations exacerbated by the weather and excessive use of the center.

Series 660 Prime-A-Pell 200 and Series 607 Conformal Stain were applied to the building’s exterior, including the shower area. Concrete, stone and masonry treated with Prime-A-Pell 200, a solvent-borne modified siloxane water repellent, resist water intrusion, stain damage, freeze/thaw spalling, efflorescence and rust damage. An acrylic coating, Conformal Stain repels water from dense surfaces and does not alter the natural texture of the surface.

Tnemec coatings were also applied to the entryway’s fence and architectural columns. Series 66 Hi-Build Epoxoline, a polyamide epoxy, was applied as the primer, followed by an intermediate coat of Series 1075 Endura-Shield II, an acrylic polyurethane highly resistant to abrasion, wet conditions, corrosive fumes and exterior weathering. A topcoat of Series 76 Endura-Clear, an acrylic polyurethane clear coat, was applied to extend the long-term weathering qualities of Endura-Shield.

In addition, the bathroom floors also received Tnemec coatings. Two coats of Series 205 Terra-Tread FC, a versatile polyamide epoxy, were applied to the concrete floors to provide protection against abrasion and mild chemicals.

According to Tnemec coating consultant Don Stanek, everyone is pleased with the results years later in 2007. “There is no mold in the showers and after thousands of kids’ hands have been on the fence, there are no paint chips.”