10 Helpful Tips about Concrete Steel Fibers

Concrete steel fibers and rebar share several characteristics. Let me share some typical tips that your steel fiber suppliers may never tell you.

1. Is steel fiber price higher than wire mesh?

Let’s do some math.

Suppose we will place a 5” thick concrete slab and we need to place 10,000 square meters per day. We will compute and compare the cost of the wire mesh and that of the steel fiber during this time.

Let’s have a look at the computation below for the wire mesh and concrete steel fiber.

2. The cost of wire mesh

The cost of wire mesh material loss when transporting is 0.28/sf. The handling cost is 0.03/SF, the wire mesh placement cost 0.2/sf, the cost of labor 0.02/sf, and the cost of the concrete pump is 0.075/sf. What we are going to do is to add all the costs per sf.

The total cost of a wire mesh is 0.605/sf.

Fiber mesh is a low-cost and labor-saving concrete reinforcing solution. Fiber mesh, unlike rebar, which must be precisely positioned before concrete can be poured, pours with the concrete, saving both time and money.

3. Steel fiber reinforced concrete (FRC) cost

The fiber cost is 0.38/sf, while handling cost is 0/sf, the fiber placement 0 /sf, the cost of labor 0 /sf, and concrete pump cost 0/sf.

With the same computation using addition, we are going to get the total cost of steel fiber.

The total cost of 0.38/sf.

Referring to the computation above, the answer to the number one question would be “No”. The concrete steel fiber price has a cheaper cost compared to wire mesh.

The steel fiber total cost is 0.38/sf compared to wire mesh which is 0.605/sf.

Therefore, it is economical to use steel fiber. Also, nowadays in constructing a building; most contractor prefers concrete steel fiber since it is very convenient at a lower price.

4. Types of concrete steel fiber

It can be shown that when the proportion of fibers is raised, the compressive strength of concrete increases at a fixed mixed aspect ratio of fibers.

There are many types of concrete steel fiber.

That would include:

Cold Drawn Steel Wire

Cut sheet

Shaved cold drawn wire

Milled from blocks

These concrete fibers can help the reduce cracks on the concrete.

5. Steel reinforced concrete vs rebar? Who wins?

Rebar is reinforcement.

Steel fibers and rebar share several characteristics. Steel is used in both. Both may be found in floor slabs and are used to strengthen concrete. It’s easy to conceive of the two goods as essentially similar, with the size difference being the only difference.

Perhaps a steel fiber is nothing more than a very small reinforcing rod. This kind of thinking is encouraged by some of our rivals. One steel fiber manufacturer even labels their product “Micro-Rebar,” claiming that it “replaces rebar.”

Steel fibers and rebar function in distinct ways and achieve different objectives. They are both needed at times, and only in a few specific conditions can one successfully replace the other.

Simply put, steel fibers prevent cracks while rebar restricts crack breadth.

6. Is steel fiber best as concrete reinforcement?

Steel fibers have been found to enhance the ultimate moment and ultimate deflection of conventionally reinforced beams; the greater the tensile stress caused by the fibers, the greater the ultimate moment.

Many concrete steel fiber manufactures proucing excellent fibers might help you to tackle the issues: Euclid, Nycon and of course, Fiberego.

7. When is it worth using concrete steel fibers?

Steel fibers can be used in any concrete.

Is it worth using it?

Yes, it is worth it to use steel fiber on concrete since it helps the concrete to last longer and it can lessen the cracks on it.

8. Pros and Cons

As you can see, using steel fibers on concrete has also Pros and Cons.

Want to know what are they?

Advantages of steel fiber

Steel has a comparable thermal co-efficient to concrete and, because most steel has ductile qualities, it lends itself well to energy absorption. Steel fibers come in a variety of sizes and diameters.

As water evaporates from the concrete mix, the concrete contracts and grabs the steel, forming a fiber connection.

Disadvantages of steel fiber reinforced concrete

Fiber-reinforced concrete has the drawback of affecting workability, particularly in the case of steel fiber-reinforced concrete. It’s important to have an even dispersion of fibers throughout your concrete. There’s also the possibility of fibers balling up during the mixing process.

9. Lightweight concrete reinforced with steel fiber

The usage of waste materials in concrete has risen dramatically in recent years, and it is currently utilized to improve the structural characteristics of the concrete while also recycling waste.

When compared to ordinary concrete, lightweight concrete has various advantages, including a higher strength-to-weight ratio, a lower coefficient of thermal expansion, and superior sound insulation due to air holes inside aerated concrete.

10. How do you add steel fibers to concrete? (Concrete steel fibers additive)

When subjected to loading, compressive and tension stresses start to build. Over time, small cracks will appear in places where the stress reaches a critical point.

Steel fibers interact within the concrete matrix, absorbing tensile stresses at any point and in any direction.

As a result, steel fiber picks up small cracks much faster the traditional reinforcement.

When cracks occur, the hooked ends of the fibers remain solidly anchored on each side of the crack, acting as a stress transfer media.

Different loads require different concrete steel fibers. Each fiber has a different hook, strength, and ductility.

Steel fibers are added to the concrete components in the mixer and the green concrete is poured into molds to make steel fiber reinforced concrete products.

After that, the product is crushed and cured using traditional procedures. One of the issues faced while combining and compacting steel fiber reinforced concrete is segregation or balling.