Stainless steel sheet metals is a material that is used in many different location for a variety of applications, from restaurant backsplashes to ferry railing. The durability of stainless steel sheet metal include factors beyond the grade of stainless steel that is used; the thickness of the sheet metal are also a major factor in the durability of that metal. It is important to understanding the gauge number system for stainless steel sheet metal, as this is an indirect measurement of the thickness of the stainless steel sheet metal.
Higher gauge numbers indicates that the stainless steel sheet metal is thinner than sheet metal with lower gauge number. Thus, it is important to confirm the thickness of the stainless steel sheet metal in inch or in millimeters to ensure that you order the metal with the apropriate thickness for the particular project. There are various grade of stainless steel.
How to Choose and Use Stainless Steel Sheet Metal
For instance, Grade 304 is a grade of stainless steel that people commonly use in indoor food equipment and panels. Grade 316, on the other hand, is a stainless steel that contain molybdenum, which provides certain benefits to the metal in environments that contain salt spray or cleaning chemical. Thus, even if the gauge number is the same between Grade 304 and Grade 316 stainless steel sheet metal, the service life of that sheet metal will be different if it is to be used in a coastal environment.
In general, you should chose the thickness of the stainless steel sheet metal according to the specifications and requirement of the given job; heavy metal bracket will require a lower gauge number than light enclosure, for instance. The thickness of stainless steel sheet metal can impact the way in which the metal is fabricated. For instance, laser cutting is an effective cutting method for thin stainless steel sheet metal, but plasma or waterjet cutter are more practical for cutting stainless steel sheet metal that is thick.
Additionally, stainless steel sheet metal can work harden quick when bent; a minimum inside radius should be used that is equal to the thickness of the stainless steel sheet metal itself to prevent the sheet metal from cracking. Furthermore, you should bend stainless steel sheet metal with sharp tooling and with the use of lubricant to prevent the sheet metal from cracking. Stainless steel sheet metal can be welded in a variety of ways.
TIG welding is one preferred method; using shielding gas on both side of the sheet metal prevents the loss of corrosion resistance of that metal. If shielding gas is not used, even if the metal that is being welded is Grade 316 stainless steel, the weld will not have corrosion resistance. After you weld the stainless steel metal, it may need to be passivated with citric or nitric acid.
Passivation restores the chromium oxide layer that naturaly forms on the metal surface; without using passivation, the metal may have rust spot where iron particle remain on the sheet metal. The surface finish of the sheet metal impact the appearance and the function of the metal. For instance, metal that has a mirror polish will exhibit all mark and imperfection on the metals surface, but metal with a brushed or 2B finish will hide some of the damage to the metal.
The fasteners that are used should also be chosen careful; carbon steel screw should not be used on stainless steel sheet metal, as this can lead to galvanic corrosion between those two metals. Additionally, the grade of the screw should match the grade of the stainless steel sheet metal. Finally, stainless steel grinding disc and carbide tooling should be used to fabricate the metal to avoid contaminating the metal or cause the sheet metal to work harden.
