Galvanized Steel vs. Stainless Steel with epoxy anchors - Eng-Tips

I'm using galvanized A36 structural steel members in outdoor conditions. The weather is moderate with some rain but not extreme cold/hot and it isn't near the ocean. I need to anchor the columns and baseplates to existing concrete.

I'm using Hilti HIT-RE 500-SD epoxy anchor bolts. If I use the ASTM A193 Grade B and galvanize the steel will I still get the epoxy to steel adhesion? If I use the ASTM F 593 Stainless Steel will I have problems with the dissimilar metals (A36 galvanized baseplates and stainless steel bolts)?

This is a high seismic hazard region - I don't know if that is relevant in this situation. thanks for your response dik and jtx.

As an update to my original post:
I called Hilti - they said that there could be problems with using stainless steel bolts and galvanized A36. The also said there is NO problem with galvanizing bolts - the epoxy will have the same adhesion to the bolts with our without galvanizing.

Hokie...

From a legal point, if there are any problems and it comes to light that it was recommended that you do one thing, and you decide to do another... it may be difficult to explain to the judge...

I'll see if I can locate some photos of galvanic corrosion of stainless anchor rods used with HDG steel... I've got them somewhere.

Dik I called Hilti and I also e-mailed them with the same question. It took a few more hours to hear back with the text but I did end up getting answers from two different people at Hilti.

They both gave the same general response but the response did point out that they did NOT have an expert in their office to advise on the galvanic corrosion.

I agree with the post regarding my legal obligation. If Hilti tells me to use galvanized bolts instead of stainless steel I will do that. After all, I am using their product. Besides - the carbon steel galvanized bolts have a higher strength.

I plan on providing specs that ask for oversize tapping on the nuts to make room for the galvanizing. I know it is a very small increase in bolt size but I've read on this forum that some engineers have witnessed situations where the nuts shred the threads because they no longer fit right.

A required part of this site couldn’t load. This may be due to a browser extension, network issues, or browser settings. Please check your connection, disable any ad blockers, or try using a different browser.