Volleyball practices for Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake School District teams are being taken on the road after a coats of gym floor finish applied at the middle and high schools have refused to dry after more than a week.
The custodial staff applied a coat of Comply Gym Floor Finish, made by Essential Industries, on Monday, Aug. 11, as part of routine summer maintenance. It looked glossy at first and fine, but after two days, it was obvious something was wrong, said Custodial Supervisor Dave Martin.
The finish usually cures in four or five days.
`Gym finish usually cures from the bottom up,` said Martin, `but this stuff is cracking on top while the part next to the wood is still gooey and even moving or pooling in spots. I’ve been refinishing gym floors for 29 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this.`
It’s the same finish the district always uses, so it is considering the possibility that a bad batch of finish was used. School spokesperson Christy Multer said representatives from Essential will be coming to inspect the floors and have contacted other schools who purchased the same batch.
`The investigation is moving forward,` said Multer. `We’re anxious to get this situation resolved as soon as possible with school opening Sept. 4.`
The district is also eager to stop busing its five boys and girls volleyball teams to neighboring Niskayuna and Ballston Spa high schools, where BH-BL Athletic Director Bob McGuire has arranged for roughly two hours of practice time per day.
Check back to www.spotlightnews.com or read the Aug. 28 edition of the Burnt Hills Spotlight for more on this story.
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