The durability of a welded gabion depends mainly on the surface treatment. Since welded gabions are manufactured by applying protective coatings after welding (or by welding specially pre-coated wire with care), the uniformity of the coating on the welds and the whole structure is of utmost importance.
Let's check out the best premium surface treatment solutions on the market today:
1. High Gain Hot-Dip Galvanising
The low carbon steel wire components, after being thoroughly cleaned, are completely immersed in a bath of molten zinc maintained at strictly controlled temperatures. The surface is covered with a uniform, dense and highly adhesive layer of pure zinc and zinc-iron alloy. This process provides excellent physical shielding and sacrificial anodic protection. Even when rough handling and loading and compaction of stone filling is used in the construction, the coating resists peeling so that it is very suitable for conventional drainage channels and general civil engineering projects.
2. Zinc - aluminium alloy mixed coating process (Galfan)
This is a game-changing technology in the area of metallic corrosion protection. The surface of the mesh is automatically formed by an extremely dense aluminium oxide film which self-heals when in contact with air and moisture by adding a certain amount of aluminium and rare earth elements to the zinc layer. The corrosion resistance is several times higher than that of traditional hot-dip galvanising This process offers excellent long term anti-corrosion protection in high salt spray zones along the coasts of the Middle East (UAE, Saudi Arabia) or high salinity soil zones such as Chile.
3. Heavy-Duty Protective Plastic Coating (Composite Polymer Coating Process)
The wire is embedded into a high performance polymer protective shell by an advanced composite extrusion or spraying technique based on the hot-dip galvanised or zinc-aluminum alloy metallic layers. This coating blocks the invasion of intense UV rays, acid rain and industrial wastewater completely. It provides unmatched weatherability in hot, humid and microbially active environments such as Singapore and Brazil. The colour of this coating can be customised to harmonise with the surrounding vegetation, soil or modern European architectural themes. Also,