Shopping for the Right Steel Beams

Steel is one of the most common materials used for creating structural support in buildings today, helping to create everything from small single-story offices and residential homes to the tallest skyscrapers in the world. If you are in need of steel beams for your next construction project, here are the basics that you should know about steel beams and what to look for when shopping at Wasatch Steel.

Types of Steel Beams
The most common types of steel beams that you can purchase today include I-beams and H-beams.

• I-beams are named for their shape as a capital “I”, which short flanges and a longer cross-section through the middle. These are one of the most common beams used in construction today, helping to build tall skyscrapers, offering support for highways and freeways, and creating the backbone for heavy machinery like industrial cranes. 
• H-beams, like I-beams, resemble the capital letter “H”, with longer flanges and a shorter cross-section. This type of steel beam from Wasatch Steel is often used when you need to minimize the side-to-side bending that occurs. 

Getting the Right Grade
Steel comes in many different grades, which is a measure of how steel is manufactured with metal alloys. The different metals mixed with steel create many different properties, and the steel grade that you need will depend on what you are using the steel beams for, the specific structural needs of your building, and any building codes or requirements that are in place.

Building Adequate Support Structures
Steel beams help you create the “backbone” for your construction project, whether it’s a tall building that will house thousands of offices or a freeway that will support the weight of thousands of cars every day. The strength and durability of steel make it an ideal material for a wide array of different projects, but it’s important to calculate the strength requirements in order to get the right steel for each different kind of job, whether it’s heavy duty, light duty, or even prefabricated steel. You have to identify what kind of compressive, tensile, and shear stresses a beam will encounter when a load is applied in order to find the right beam and the right specifications to withstand bending and breaking.

Get Help on Your Analysis
If you’re not sure what kind of steel beams will work best for your next project, there are a wide variety of tools that you can use for analysis. There are structural analysis software tools available that allow you to plug in the information for your design and layout and discover which steel beams are right for the project. You can also work with a building engineer before you get started to ensure you have the right beams to support your construction project.

When you need to find the right I-beams or H-beams for any construction project, whether it’s a do-it-yourself weekend adventure or you are working on it as part of your day job, you can find the biggest supply and lots of great people ready to help you at the steel supermarket at Wasatch Steel.

Shopping and Using Steel I-beams

Steel beams are a very important part of building when you are planning to use steel as the base of a structure. There are a lot of different options that you have when you are ready to buy steel beams at Wasatch Steel, and knowing how to shop for them and use them properly in your next construction project can keep your project moving.

Shopping for an I-beam

An I-beam can go by many different names:

• I-beam because it looks like a capital “I” from one angle
• H-beam because it also looks like a capital “H” when it is on its side
• W-beam, which stands for “wide flange”
• Universal Beam because of its universal application for construction
• Rolled Steel Joint
• Double-T, again because it resembles two capital “T” letters put together 

The breakdown of the I-beam includes the two horizontal elements, which form the top and bottom of the “I”, and are referred to commonly as flanges. The vertical part that spans between the two flanges is called the web. When you are shopping to purchase an I-beam, you are looking at three different dimensions: the width of the flanges, plus the depth (length) and thickness of the web. Steel I-beams at Wasatch Steel can be made from rolling (hot rolling, cold rolling, or extrusion), or they can be made from welding the flanges and the web. It’s important to know which you are getting when you are ready to purchase, so you get the one that is better suited for your application.

Using Steel I-Beams
The benefit of a steel beam is that the design can protect against both shear forces and bending. The web of the beam is what can protect against the shear forces, while the flanges are efficient at protecting against bending.

Because of the way they are built, steel I-beams are especially effective at spanning distances, for example when you are constructing a large building, creating a road, walkway, or other transportation application, or building platforms that need to be structurally sound. They are often used a reinforcement for concrete, and when used together these two materials make a very strong combination.

To find the right size of I-beams, you need to know several different things about the project, such as how you plan to use it, what size you need, and what kind of reinforcement is appropriate. There are tables that can provide you with information about available sizes to help you get the right beams, but there is more than just the size. You also need to know:

• Deflection (minimizing deformation)
• Vibration (preventing vibrations in sensitive construction projects)
• Yield stress and lateral torsional buckling (preventing bending failure from either of these issues)
• Local yield (for concentrated loads)
• Shear failure

To find the I-beams that you need, visit Wasatch Steel and check out the selection at the steel supermarket. If you don’t see what you need, you can even get custom sizes for your specific project.