Building Trade Groups Fight Over Hot-Dip Galvanized Studs

Construction trade groups are arguing whether some coatings for steel studs are meeting standards. The Certified Steel Stud Association issued a warning letter to industry groups – architects, building contractors and others – that steel studs coated with G40e or G40EQ are not up to the standards set by ASTM International and the American Iron and Steel Institute which require G40 studs that are hot-dip galvanized.

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At issue is the substituting of G40e and G40EQ, which often do not meet the 200 hours of salt-spray tests required for conformity to ASTM requirements, says CSSA chairman Chip Gardner. Those studs are coated with 99.7 percent zinc in the hot-dip coating process.

The CSSA sent a letter to the industries involved in building and housing construction warning that, “It is likely that many contractors do not understand the liability they undertake when G40e or G40EQ coated products are substituted for G40 without their knowledge.”

The CSSA says the G40e coatings are based on salt spray tests of 75 hours. Meanwhile, the Steel Framing Industry Association has adopted a 75-hour salt spray test as its “standard” for G40 equivalency, says the CSSA.