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Fixing into natural stone

Posted by Tonyabout 6 years ago
Fixing into natural stone

Hi all, we have a project coming up where we need to install some safety barriers into natural stone, what is the best practise when installing into base material other than concrete? Are there specific products designed for such purposes?

*Posted on behalf of a Hilti customer.

anchor,natural,stone,basematerial

1 Reply
Posted by Domabout 6 years ago

Hi, 

Thanks for your interesting question.

With anchoring or fastening in rock, it is important to understand the issues surrounding this type of base material.

A few key points with rock are:

  • Unlike concrete, rock is a very diverse base material of which there are many different types with varying properties so determining the type of rock is the first step


  • Rock is a heterogeneous material and therefore it is crucial to identify that there can be varying properties even within the same rock types


  • Due to rock being heterogeneous, even dealing with a specific rock raises some concerns as the same rock may have different properties in its proximity, therefore, responding differently to fixings at varying points on the same rock


  • Rock also has a tendency to have invisible internal cracks that can become filled with water which freezes or intruded by a chemically affecting compound, this again needs to be considered as it will add to the unpredictability of the reduction in its capacity or mechanical properties



In saying the above, we also do acknowledge and identify that anchoring applications in rock should be addressed as it does remain a widely used base material for fixings.

For anchoring into rock, the product we would generally recommend to use is the HIT-RE 500 V3 and it should be installed using the requirements for concrete.

 

We would recommend trial installations and pull out tests on the same in-situ rock to verify the design results.

The final thing we would point out is that rocks are subject to cracks and changes in their mechanical properties, hence regular inspections of the points are also recommended.

I hope this covers your question and if you need design guidance please email the technical centre at AUTechnicalCentre@hilti.com

hetergeneous