SFA

We have always done steel bars in our tops to help from breaking. I heard today that a lot of people are switching to the Fiberglass mesh instead. Just wondering if anyone prefers the fiberglass over the steel bars and how difficult is it to do. Thanks.

p.s. I know I know become a member... working no that. should be a member at some point this year.

I wouldn't think that just mesh would add any significant strength to the stone. It would help hold together in the even of a crack. I would estimate it is more work to put the mesh on the back of the piece than to cut a couple rod slots and glue it in. Also, you would need to be concerned about there being a high spot in the mesh that when you set it on the substrate/cabinets it could crack from there.

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zreynolds33 wrote:We have always done steel bars in our tops to help from breaking. I heard today that a lot of people are switching to the Fiberglass mesh instead. Just wondering if anyone prefers the fiberglass over the steel bars and how difficult is it to do. Thanks.

p.s. I know I know become a member... working no that. should be a member at some point this year.

Maybe there is confusion over what exactly you think people are switching too? We rarely use any steel rodding, when we do it is always Stainless. However we us fiberglass rodding all the time.

I have used fiberglass mesh maybe only a handful of times. Mesh will never give the same benefits as rodding.

One of our distributors here mentioned to my boss that they don't know anyone that uses steel bars any longer and are all doing the fiberglass mesh. I thought it was a little strange considering I know most of the people in the area and none use the fiberglass. Was just wondering if I was missing something. It doesn't seem worth it to do the fiberglass mesh.

On another note, I am curious about the fiberglass rodding instead of the steel. How cost effective is it and how well does it work.

Thanks for all the help guys.

We just switched to using the Weha stainless steel wrapped in fiberglass and carbon fiber. I do not believe fiberglass adds a lot of strength.

Zac:

I make a living repairing failed reinforcement rods. Improper rodding is a goldmine for guys like me. Ironically, rodding is old-school and with tools from Omni, is essentially obsolete.
There is a microscopic crack at this rodded sink about 19" long. It doesn't even show up on the picture yet. I found it when I was called to fix the cracked cooktop cutout. Mo' money, mo' money, mo' money.
Even the least little bit of rust on a rod will blow a sink rail. I pulled this one recently:

We have used the Weha Carbon Fiber/fiberglass rod with 2 part express epoxy for years now and really like it.
After seeing the tests done in the cage at Coverings, I like it even more.

I mean as much as you can like rodding.....

Rodding sucks, so does breaking pieces. The mesh is almost useless IMO. 1/8" x 1/2" stainless steel flat or Carbon fiber rodding adds lots of strength, fiberglass not as much. Many here do not rod at all but use sink rails to keep the stone in one piece. Regular steel is asking for trouble.

Hey guys where are you getting this Weha stuff from?

I see straight carbon fiber rod from GQ but can not seem to locate this carbon fiber/steel mixture