Corrosion Resistant Fasteners
Fasteners Meant to Stay
Whenever you're hanging something outdoors, such as house number signs, it's important to use corrosion resistant fasteners whenever possible. This way, you can help prevent damage to your house number signs from falling due to a rusted or weak nail.
Steel nails are an example of corrosion resistant fasteners, treated to resist outdoor weather and sea salt spray in high amounts. They must pass an ASTM certification process, in which their ability to withstand weather exposure is measured and graded.
Modern nails are a steel alloy, dipped or coated to improve adhesion and prevent corrosion in harsh environments. There are three different ways of strengthening a nail against the elements: galvanization, which involves simple treatments to resist corrosion or weather exposure; electrogalvanization, which provides the nail with a smooth finish and some corrosion resistance; mechanical galvanization, which deposits more zinc, increasing corrosion resistance; and hot-dip galvanization, which provides a rough zinc-heavy surface and high corrosion resistance. Hot-dipped nails are a dull grey color, and can actively stop corrosion due to their coating of zinc carbonate.
How Corrosion Happens
Rust forms as a result of the chemical reaction between the iron in the nail (or other type of fastener) with oxygen (air) and water. When salt is included in the mixture, such as sea salt (often found on homes near the ocean), rust tends to accumulate more quickly.
Rust is infectious. When it develops in nails, it spreads to other areas: the metal frames of house number plaques; undersides of aluminum siding or sheet metal; metal awnings, roofs, and railings. It might seem silly to focus on the type of nail you use to hang house number signs and other outdoor accessories, but these fasteners are important; they are the glue holding your home together.
Rust not only affects the appearance of house numbers, doorbells, and other outdoor accessories, but it's also a sign that the exterior of your home is suffering weather damage - perhaps more than it can handle.
Ways to Gauge your Home's Exposure
If you believe your home is suffering too much damage from the weather, here are some ways to check. If your home has a chimney, examine it and the surrounding roof for loose or missing shingles and bricks, mortar that appears pitted or discolored, and/or discoloration around the top of the chimney flue.
Surprisingly, home signs can offer some important clues as to the outdoors condition of your home. Having several house number signs (for example, one announcing the front door, one at the end of the drive for directing visitors, and one indicating the back door or deck) can be useful, as you can compare the different states and conditions of the house number signs. Your house number signs will be particularly helpful if they're in metal frames.
Examine your house number signs for pitting, discoloration, cracks, and splits. Compare house number signs on the front of your home with house number signs around the side or back of your house. If you have the inclination and the ability, photograph the house number signs individually, then compare them at your leisure. You're sure to spot marked differences between all of them, even if the design is identical in each.
If your house number signs are showing evidence of heavy wear and tear outdoors, you may want to consider protecting them in a similar manner to the one utilized by the nails used to hang them or their supporting brackets. A protective layer or two of marine varnish will seal them against the elements, making them last longer, shine brighter, and capable of surviving just about anything Mother Nature can throw at them.
Corrosion Resistant Fasteners
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