Acid test
The benefits of only using 316 Marine Grade quality stainless steel to manufacture its range of door and window hardware has been highlighted by blu after sailing through internationally recognised corrosion tests, the company said.
The company saw its HAB2 Bar Pull Handle totally surpass the internationally recognised Salt Mist Test in accordance with: ISO 9227:2017, and 480-hour duration test as per Class 5 of BS EN 1670:2007 Section 5.2.
After 480 hours the handle left the test centre without any trace of corrosion despite being continually exposed over many hundreds of hours to a corrosive salt spray across a range of temperatures from +35°C to -2°C.
MD Loren Jenner said: “The ISO 9227/BS EN 1670:2007 salt spray test is one that many hardware manufacturers shy away from – but we were delighted that our blu HAB2 bar pull handle sailed through, without any sign of corrosion or rusting. In fact, they were so impressed, the words of the test technician were: ‘I have never seen anything quite like this before’.
“Demand for stainless steel hardware has grown massively over the last couple of years but the acid test is this. Is it manufactured from 316 Marine Grade stainless steel? If it isn’t it’s more likely to succumb to the corrosive UK environment which will increase the chances of costly call backs from unhappy customers.
“With over 80% of the UK exposed to high atmospheric corrosion, cheaper hardware such as that made from 304 stainless steel just won’t be able to stand up to the elements over any length of time like 316 Marine Grade will and, depending on the location, could soon start to become subject to pitting, corrosion and rusting. This soon ruins the look of the door or window and results in unhappy homeowners.”