Aiano Steel

Steel weld mesh and round bar

AIANO wire mesh guards for health & safety are made from mild steel weld mesh on a round bar frame. We use high quality steel mesh and bar that is produced and manufactured in the UK and Europe. We can provide different alternatives of coating for guards.

Stainless Steel

Aianos has been making church window guards to protect precious church windows continuously for more than 150 years.

The materials have changed over that time. The vast majority of church window guards are now made from stainless steel. Aiano uses top quality stainless steel wire and bar sourced from the European Union.

Upon request, we  make guards from mild steel wire that is then hot dip galvanised.

Aiano Coatings

There are number of considerations in considering the correct coating for your wire guard. Durability, aesthetics and cost are all important considerations. But the first question is whether the guard is going to be installed indoors or outdoors.

For outdoor situations, hot dip galvanising provides the optimum protection against corrosion as a coating for guards. For a more aesthetically pleasing finish, polyester coating and zinc-plating are also possible for outdoors, but will not provide as effect a protection against corrosion as hot-dip galvanising.

Epoxy-Polyester coating

Maximum protection for indoor guards.  AIANO tubular heater guards, radiator guards and indoor light guards are coated with an epoxy-polyester coating, usually in white or cream, although we provide other colours on request. For example churches sometime ask for brown or black guards. We have even been asked for “Post Office red”.

Hybrid epoxy polyester powder coating is recommended for use in interior situations where toughness, chemical resistance, and good mechanical resistance properties are essential. Epoxy polyester powder coating also provides good colour preservation, heat stability and an attractive appearance.

Powder coating eliminates  the liquid suspension and gives it a greater depth of coating which is usually  at a relatively high temperature of  180°C to 200°C for approximately 10 minutes to give a smooth, texture-free, hard and even coating.

Hot-dip Galvanising

Maximum protection against corrosion. The AIANO floodlight and bulkhead guards are hot-dip galvanized  which provides superior protection against corrosion.

The guard is immersed in molten zinc at a temperature of around 450°C until the temperature of the steel is the same as the zinc. During this process the molten zinc reacts with the surface of the steel to form a series of zinc/ iron alloys. Depending on the environment, these alloy layers protect steel from corrosion for 30-40 years  and longer.

Zinc-plating

Hot dip galvanizing is different from electro-galvanizing, also known as zinc-plating. Zinc-plated guards have a smoother finish than galvanized guards  but do not offer the same protection against corrosion.

The coating of electro-galvanisation comprises round zinc particles held together loosely. The bond between zinc and  steel is much weaker than the bond formed in hot-dip galvanisation.  The average thickness of the hot dip galvanised coating  is about  ten times as thick as  thick as the electro-galvanised or zinc-plated  finish. Aianos offers zinc plating as an option in place of hot-dip galvanizing.

Polyester and metallic polyester coating for guards

We also offer metallic polyester coating for guards used outdoors in place of hot-dip galvanising.  This is a more expensive process than galvanising, but offers a smoother, more cosmetically pleasing finish.

Church window guards are usually coated in polyester black which substantially reduces the visibility of the guards. Although Aiano hand-woven wire mesh window guards are beautiful objects in themselves, we never forget that their purpose is to protect precious church windows and not to try to compete with the stained glass and stonework for attention.

Further advice and information

This article offers some general guidelines on the steel and coatings for guards used by Aianos to makes its wire mesh guards for health & safety and its hand crafted church window guards.

Please see the individual product pages for more details of the specification for individual products and product categories or contact us directly for further advice, call us at 020 7987 1184, email us at sales@aianos.co.uk, or contact us via our website.

For more information about our wire mesh guard products follow the links from our product page.