> Are there any tricks of the trade when it comes to making sturdy rebar
> cages? I have used tie wires, along with the tie wire tool, but
> mine tend to
> flop around when complete. Could I be tying the wires
> incorrectly? I realize
> it doesn't make a whole lot of difference once the concrete is poured, but
> I'd like to understand how to give these a more professional look
> and feel.
> Larry Burke WI5A
One trick is to add gratuitous pieces of light gauge
rebar as diagonal crossbraces. A good way to do this is
to form them into a lazy Z, so that the ends are parallel
to the "real" rebar. Then you can wrap a lot of wire
around the bundle to marry it together. These diagonal
braces greatly stiffen the unsupported cage, although
they do little for the eventual concrete strength.
OTOH, they don't hurt.
Another thing that helps is to use fewer individual pieces by making
each piece with more bends in it. You have to be a fairly
artistic bender to get this to work.
Where horizontal and vertical pieces come together, don't tie a
plain junction. Instead bend one piece over so it parallels the
other and then wrap the parallel bundle.
Rick N6RK
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