Fitting helical bars into existing walls reinforces cracked brickwork, sagging lintels, and soldier courses. They increase the flexural, tension, and shear strength of brickwork. The reinforcement develops arches within walls. The arch spans over subsidence patches. The reinforced walls are less prone to cracks or failures.

What is in a Helical Bar Kit?

Twisted stainless steel reinforcing rods are at the heart of the kits. Our bars come in various diameters and lengths. Stitching kits have one-metre-long rods in a 6, 7, and 8-mm diameter helix. Our long helical bar kits contain standard 6 mm spiral bars.

The reinforcing helix gives greater bond strength and ductility than standard bars. The stainless steel spiral rods are durable and widely used in older buildings, particularly for crack control.

Each kit includes a special mortar. The mortar bonds steel within slots cut in masonry. Metal reinforcement works best with polymeric cement-based compounds. The shrink-compensated flexible mortars accommodate cyclic movements.
We do not recommend using polyester or epoxy resins to bond bars in walls. Resins are less effective and more prone to brittle failure.

The kits include a paddle to mix the grout and a gun to pump it into the wall.

Using a Helical Bar Kit.

Insert the bars into slots cut in the masonry. The opening must be at least 3 mm, or one and a half times higher than the bars’ diameter. When reinforcing face brickwork, fit the bars into the bed joints. Repoint the joint to disguise the installation.

Walls with a rendered finish require more patching to conceal the repair. In this case, fixing the bars into the mortar beds is unnecessary. Cutting slots directly into the masonry units can have triple benefits.

• The bars connect the masonry units directly.
• Larger diameter bars can be used.
• Diagonal reinforcement can be used where shear strength is an issue.

Twistfix sells helical bar kits at low trade prices. The kits provide a quick and easy means of reinforcing existing buildings. Call us for expert advice on using spiral rods to strengthen walls.