Why do we use 316 Stainless in our non return valve ratflaps and not 304 stainless?

You may think that stainless steel is stainless steel. This is not the case stainless steel can rust and become marked with finger prints, grease and become discoloured.

The thing that matters is the resilience and stainless steel can withstand much more time in harsh environments before showing signs of degradation.

All types of steel have the same iron and carbon makeup but it contains an important addition which is Chromium and makes it corrosion resistant.

Stainless steel actually has quite a few grades and each have there own alloy composition which give different characteristics.

The most common  stainless steel grades are 304 and 316 and the main difference between the two are the levels of molybdenum which is a alloy and enhances the corrosion resistance of the stainless steel.

This is really important for saline and chlorine exposed environments. This is the reason most ship stainless steels you see will be made from 316 stainless and not 304.

This is ultimately why we choose to use 316 in our ratflaps and 110mm non return valves.

For applications such as railings, structural and indoor kitchen bathroom etc 304 is a ideal solution and is also slightly cheaper.

If the application is structural costal or anywhere heavily salted such as roads etc then 316 would be a better solution.

By looking at your application you can make a judgement which grade of stainless steel would be a better fit, for us it is 316 all the way.

Please feel free to contact us for more information either via email [email protected] or phone us on 01793 630768