Month: July 2015

Fasteners are used in various hardware jobs. Almost every kind of fixing job requires screws, bolts and anchors. These are now extensively used, ranging from fastening two wooden panels to fixing heavy duty specialized stainless steel bolts into extreme surfaces such as in the building of oil rigs. The left hand threaded bolts are one of the most common types of screws used in the hardware industry.

These bolts are usually made up of plain steel and are fully threaded. These bolts feature a left-hand thread, unlike regular fasteners which are turned right while tightening. These all-thread types are used along-with nuts and are used for most common fastening procedure, ranging from anchor to a through bolt.

These are quite useful, as they are also used as ultra-long bolts. They also act as superb replacements in situations when a correct length of bolt cannot be established, as these fasteners can be easily cut into desirable lengths.

These stud bolts are available in three common designs in the market, which include the double end, tap end and the continuous head.

The double end is most likely the continuous threads and uses two nuts for fixation. Each end is threaded by a smooth shank and both ends feature flat ends. The tap end features a smooth shank, which separates the thread and one end of the thread is longer than the other end.

While one end is employed with a nut, the other end is screwed into a tapped hole. The continuous thread features a continuous end throughout the body with flat ends.

Unlike screws, which are tightened with the help of a screw driver, you will require a wrench to fasten a left hand threaded bolt to any surface. If you are looking to do any hardware job all by yourself then make sure to have required tools to fasten such bolts.

The Internet can be your best guide to understand the types and functionality of such hardware supplies.

Here are some of the most sought-after questions on bolts answered. Have a read!

1. What size of i-beam and anchor bolts used for basement wall?

The I beam dimension depends upon the height of the backfill, the wall thickness, wall construction, the soil type, quantity of bowing and few other abstractions. Most i-beams feature a 6″ beam as per standard rule. Spacing also varies as dimensions and so is the anchoring, if you have a sub-floor/thin floor interior drain tile installed. Connection at the top changes provided the wall is load bearing. You can take the help of a structural engineer, who can lay out a comprehensive repair plan for you, as this wall stabilization should be fixed by someone who can see all the issues with the site.

For home construction, a certain code requirement is followed that states – exterior walls are fastened to the foundation walls to sustain lateral movement, which is usually seen in an earthquake

The horizontal 2×4 at the base of the exterior wall rests on the foundation wall through a sill plate. This plate is bolted to the foundation wall by using anchor bolts, so as to keep the walls static. The spacing of anchor bolts in the sill plate should be above 6 feet at the center and within 12 inches of any sill plate joints.

You can check with your building department if you’re not able to place anchor bolts within appropriate spacing. They can suggest you in taking proper action or local requirements before proceeding further. There are distinct building code requirements available w.r.t bolt diameter, length and spacing for new construction versus retrofit construction. The length of the anchor bolt also depends upon the strength of the concrete foundation wall, the thickness of the sill plate and required holding values. However it usually ranges between 3.5” and 6.25” of embedment into the concrete. It is always recommended to check-out for your local building codes, building official or with an architect to consider the size of anchor needed.

Did you know? 

Anchor bolts in concrete construction can be either cast in place or post-installed.

2. What is the torque for pan bolts on gm 4l80-e?

The torque of pan bolts required for gm 4l80-e is 24 NM and 18 ft. lbs.

The bolt size of a 4l80e transmission pan is 13 mm

3. What pressure can grade 8 bolts take?

Grade 8 bolts, which are also known as hex head cap screws are one of the most durable hardware supplies and are mostly used in aerospace, military and marine related applications, where sturdy load bearing pressure and high stress are hugely required. These fasteners are well-proportioned and are designed to bear high tolerance, thereby ensuring proper loading when enabled into a pre-drilled hole. These rivets feature the highest strength of standard cap screw series and are usually made up of alloy steel.

The tensile strength of a grade 8 bolt is 150,000 pounds per square inch. It is the maximum strength that a part can carry without breaking.

4. How to remove stuck lower strut bolts?

This might prove to be a lengthy step if you’re not well-equipped with necessary supplies. Everything you need for this job can be found at the Mutual Screw and Supply web store. You can even call them to inquire about what you would need for this job. And it’s always wise to fetch the extra parts, which may need to be replaced before you begin this task. The last thing you would like to do is visit a physical store in your neighborhood. So, it’s better to go online to fetch for your bearings.

5. Why bolts get loose?

 

Click here to get a detailed answer along-with a video that shows this in action.

6. How do you replace the concrete that holds the closet bolts?

Replacing the concrete from the closet bolts can prove to be expensive, if you’re taking the help of a professional plumber and you can always cut down on this expense by volunteering for this job. The concrete (toilet flange) is the connection to the drain pipe under the commode, which enables proper flow of water from the toilet to the sewage system. If it is damaged then water can leak underneath thereby causing wet floor, foul smell and floor damage.

Methods

 

1. Cut down the water supply by using cut-off valve
2. Open up the toilet reservoir and allow complete draining of the water and use a cup to remove the left-over water
3. Place a towel around the sink, at the point where water supply line is connected to the toilet
4. Now remove the water supply line and also the floor bolts with a suitable wrench
5. Remove the bolts carefully from each side and lift the toilet evenly
6. Now the bolts from the old flange should be removed and the area should be cleaned, so that no wax or build-up material is left
7. The old caulk should be removed now. You can use your hand and if not then go for a razor knife
8. Now replace the commode and bolt it down and put back the caulk at the base. Now reconnect the water supply line and do a test flush to ensure the sealing is good

7. How to get rusted carriage bolts ou

Joints like racks and mudguards can remain maintenance-free even after running for ten thousand plus miles, yet there are certain bikes, which require frequent tightening of bolts. So, in this edition, we are going to discuss why do some rivets stay tight while other bolts get loosen so fast?

Well, if you think bit deeper then we can realize the concept behind this is quite simple. Frequent vibrations of the bike’s parts enable the nuts and bolts to loosen. (At the end of this post, we’ve attached a video which shows this in action).

The more the parts vibrate, the faster the bolts get detached. A major advantage of using a bolted joint other than riveted/welded joints is that it can be easily dismantled. However, this advantage can even cause trouble at times. Such accidental loosening, which is also known as vibrational loosening has been widely mistaken by the engineers. It is always important for the manufacturers to be alert about this mechanism.

Apart from the known factor that bolt detaching is caused due to vibration, we should also consider that the actual reason is side sliding of the fastener head relative to the joint, thereby resulting in relative motion in the threads. If this phenomenon does not occur then no matter how often the joint is subjected to severe vibration, loosening can be avoided.

Sometimes, burnout also results in self-detaching, thereby reducing the clamp force implied on the joint. Eventually, joint slips occur, which further leads the rivets to bending loads. The nuts will then rotate loose, as soon as the relative motion starts occurring between the male and the female threads. This motion then sooner or later breaks off the friction grip and instead, creates an off-torque. This off-torque makes the fastener get slowly detached.

The key to preventing self-loosening of bolts is by ensuring that

1. There is sufficient clamp force available on the joint interface, so as to reduce relative motion between the bolt head and the joint.
2. The joint should be designed as such to enable proper embedding and stress relaxation.
3. You’ve proper thread locking devices, such as flanged fasteners or torque prevailing fasteners.
4. The loosening of bolts is just one plain aspect of the bolted joint design, which the manufacturer should consider during the design process. And even if threads are firmly hold together by adhesive, this kind of situation cannot be avoided, if the bolt preload is inefficient in preventing the joint movement.

Here’s how to avoid this:

1. Do not use the same bolt to fasten several things.
2. The more ‘layers’ you have, the more motion occurs, thus the bolt gets detached quickly. This is common in the case of the front racks, which are attached to the cantilever brakes.
3. Always remember than even simple washers can increase the risk of fasteners getting disconnected. Don’t go for spacers either, as they are worse.
4. All the joints should be designed as such that rivets won’t be able to rotate. For instance, if the rack below is attached to the fork crown along-with straight tubes, which are alienated to the vibrations of the rack then in such a case, due to the curving of the tubes, each vibration would lead the bolt to loose gradually.

Applying state-of-the-art analytical method to stop vibrational loosening of threaded fasteners can be difficult. However, these days technology has much developed and programmers have come up with designs, which help engineers fix such issues.