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Rebar in Tijuana: Diameters, Laps and Cover
Steel is the one thing on site that, once the concrete is poured, cannot be corrected without demolition.
This guide is for anyone about to hire and wanting to understand what they are buying. If you are after the technical detail of the service, it is on the page for deformed rebar.
The diameter comes from the design, not from habit
In housing, columns and tie beams are usually resolved with small diameters and beams with larger ones, but that 'usually' is not a design criterion. The structural calculation defines diameter, quantity and spacing based on load and span. Buying by habit is the fast route to an undersized element.
The lap is not where you save
The lap guarantees continuity of reinforcement: it is what makes two bars work as one. Trimming it saves a few kilos of steel and compromises the capacity of the whole element. The length is specified by the project and it is respected.
Cover protects the steel
Between the bar and the outer face there must be the cover the project specifies for the exposure. If the cage sits against the formwork the steel corrodes even in good concrete: that is why spacers are used and why the cage is tied properly, so it does not shift during the pour.
Which steel is usable and which is not
Light, dry surface rust does not prevent the work and can even improve bond. What is not usable is bar with flaking rust that detaches or with obvious loss of section. Nor is bar that has been bent and straightened several times: the steel has already worked and lost properties.
Do you know what material you need?
Send us your list or your drawings. We reply with quantities, recommended products and a delivery date.