Secondary Containment Liners

A secondary containment liner is an impermeable geomembrane barrier installed in the berms, dikes, and floor of a containment area around tanks and chemical storage. It captures leaks, drips, and spills before they reach soil or groundwater, providing the backup containment that the primary tank cannot. EFI installs chemically resistant HDPE and specialty geomembrane containment liners for fuel, chemical, and industrial facilities.

Under the EPA Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure rule (40 CFR 112), facilities storing oil or hazardous liquids must provide secondary containment sized to hold the largest container plus freeboard for precipitation, using a sufficiently impervious barrier. A welded geomembrane liner provides that impervious barrier and is documented with quality-assurance testing. EFI installs to the containment volume and permeability your engineer specifies.

Secondary containment liners are typically 40 to 80 mil. HDPE suits most inorganic acids, bases, and salts and resists fuels and oils well. For aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene, toluene, and xylene, or for chlorinated solvents, a specialty geomembrane is selected instead. EFI matches the liner to your stored chemicals, concentrations, and temperatures using manufacturer compatibility data.

HDPE has excellent resistance to inorganic acids, bases, and most salts, and good resistance to fuels and oils, but limited resistance to aromatic and chlorinated solvents. Before specifying material, EFI reviews your chemical inventory, concentrations, and operating temperatures against chemical-resistance charts so the membrane is matched to the actual service.

Yes. EFI phases installation around active operations and ties the liner into existing structures, tanks, columns, and penetrations with welded boots and sealed details. Every installation is delivered with full QA documentation for the authority having jurisdiction.

Installed containment liners typically run $0.50 to $3.00 per square foot depending on thickness, the chemical-resistance level required, site complexity, the number of penetrations, and quality-assurance requirements. EFI provides a detailed proposal after a free site assessment.