Bar Care and Handling

Care & Handling Bars

The following recommendations contain information about the epoxy coating characteristics, and guidelines for the proper handling of coated bars to avoid damage that might result from improper bending, cutting, and storage of bars, whether at the site or during molding.

Unloading of Bars

  • Use spreader beams at three locations at least to prevent flexing of bundles, thereby avoiding friction damage to the coating.
  • Never use chain or wire slings without suitable pudding; to prevent scratching, preferably use nylon or fiber slings.

Storage of Bars

  • Store bundles above the ground on padded supports, using timber pieces covered with Hessian.
  • In case of vertical storage, separate each bundle with timber to avoid abrasion of "steel to steel."
  • Handles stored in open space should be covered to protect them from exposure to direct sunlight, dust and salts.

Handling of Bars

  • Never lift the bars from the bundle, but lift vertically out to avoid damaging the coating on the deformations.
  • Provide proper supports for the bar as it is fed into the cutting or bending machine. An ideal method is the use of PVC pipe threaded onto a rebar frame mandrel (in stock with us).
  • Handle the bars carefully at all time and do not drop them. Mechanical damage by tools, heavy footwear, and wheelbarrels must also be avoided.

Bars Bending

  • Bending radius must conform to ACI-318 codes.
  • Use plastic mandrel on the bending machine.
  • Cover all bare metal contact areas with soft padding, preferably a piece of rubber or plastic.
  • Never run the bending machine at full power : bending must be done smoothly and at uniform rate.
  • If structural design calls for a radius smaller than ACI-318 requirements, check immediately for cracking and use touch-up kit to repair any damage. The kit must also be used immediately after bar cutting has been carried out.

Fixing Procedures

  • Use plastic-coated tie wire and spacer blocks.
  • After fixing, the rebar must be inspected and damaged areas repaired using the touch-up kit, before pouring concrete.

Touch-up & Repair

  • Use epoxy touch-up kit, which is fully compatible with the epoxy coating.
  • During the repair procedure, remove as little of the original coating as possible. Usually, it is sufficient to briskly wire brush the damaged coating in order to prepare the surface for application of the repair material.
  • Touch-up coating must be mixed exactly to the ratios shown in the enclosed instructions. The mixture pot-life must be strictly observed.