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Maintaining a PV installation is mostly mechanical: cleaning the modules when soiling cuts output, and checking the mounting system for loose clamps, corrosion and secure fixings, while the electrical inspection is left to a qualified electrician. A well-built array in the right metals needs little attention, but the few checks that matter protect both the…

Metal is cut with saws, shears and guillotines, or with thermal tools such as plasma, oxy-fuel and laser, and it is bent on press brakes, folders and rolls, with the right tool chosen from the material, its thickness and the edge the job needs. Cutting and bending are the two operations that turn a supplied…

TIG welding, formally gas tungsten arc welding or GTAW, strikes an arc from a non-consumable tungsten electrode under an argon shield and adds filler by hand, giving the cleanest and most precise weld of the common processes, on aluminium with AC and on steel and stainless with DC. Because the heat and the filler are…

Industrial and security fencing is built from rigid galvanised steel systems, twin-wire mesh, palisade and narrow-aperture anti-climb mesh, chosen for strength, height and resistance to climbing and cutting rather than for looks. The panels are galvanised and powder-coated for a long perimeter life, and set on heavier posts and deeper foundations than a domestic fence….

Choosing a fence starts with the job it has to do, privacy, security, demarcation or architectural looks, and only then moves to the material and style: aluminium for light, rust-free, low-maintenance boundaries, and galvanised steel for rigid, high-security or industrial lines. Privacy comes from the panel style rather than the metal, exposure decides the corrosion…

Fence panels are installed by setting the posts first, plumb and in concrete below the local frost line, then fitting each panel or slat bay to the posts as you work along the line, checking level and spacing at every bay. The method is the same for a modular aluminium slat system and for galvanised…

Galvanised pipe is best cut with cold methods, a rotary pipe cutter, bandsaw or hacksaw, which leave a clean square end and little fume, after which the bare cut edge is re-protected with zinc-rich paint so the exposed steel does not rust. The two things that make galvanised pipe different from bare steel are that…

Steel products keep best when stored dry, off the ground and with air between them: galvanised steel packed tight and wet forms white rust, and bare steel rusts, so raising the stock on bearers, spacing items for air flow and letting water drain away prevents most storage damage. Good storage protects the value of the…

Galvanised profiles and pipe are the everyday structural members of outdoor and industrial construction: purlins and framing, fence systems and gates, agricultural and modular buildings, walkways and gratings, handrails and solar sub-frames, wherever steel must stay strong for decades without painting. Their appeal is simple: structural strength at a low cost, with corrosion protection built…

Galvanised steel can be welded, but the zinc coating must be handled with care: it gives off zinc oxide fume that causes metal fume fever, so the coating is removed from the weld zone, the work is ventilated, and the burnt area is re-coated with zinc-rich paint afterwards. Done properly, a galvanised part welds much…