Rebar or not to Rebar?

nogganoodle · Post by **nogganoodle** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 10:11 am

I've been looking everywhere and can't seem to find any info on rebar. I'm sure its there so i'm probably being blind but, how long should the stakes be and should they be any special type? There are a few for sale on ebay but I don't want to fork out a load of cash and find that they are going to be completely ineffective. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 10:23 am

I hate the company (harrassing transmen indeed!) but Home De(s)pot (the usa's largest hardware store) will have it. So will any hardware store, typically. Maybe not on Interstate 80 between San Francisco and Reno in the last week of August. Basically it's a reinforcement for concrete walls and the like. If you don't have rebar you will need heavy duty tent stakes--those little aluminum thingies that come with the typical tent are a joke when compared to playa winds.
You will want a sledge hammer to drive it into the playa. This is where you might want to flutter your eyelashes and ask a male campmate to drive it for you, depending on your strength. Also cover it with tennis balls, rebar covers or dead stuffed animals--tripping over rebar and scraping yourself is a common way to go to the medical stations.

rebar stakes

Rebar before a concrete pour

rebar failure

headquarters · Post by **headquarters** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 10:28 am

i have always used 2' long regular rebar from home depot. it would be unnecesary to but it from ebay. it's always worked awesome

skygod · Post by **skygod** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 10:40 am

I pound in 3ft rebar, straight into the ground so one foot is sticking straight up. Then I wrap duct tape around the rebar and the leg of the carport. It's strong and there are no pointy rebar tips for people to walk into. I wrap a little saran wrap around it before i duct tape it to make the tape easier to remove later. And I use a vise grip to get em out. I think this was chai guy( or some other helpful person's) idea and it works great.

sputnik · Post by **sputnik** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 12:27 pm

I use 18" rebar. I candy cane it and pound it in until the short end is in the dirt. Removing it is relatively easy with a crowbar.

ibdave · Post by **ibdave** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 1:40 pm

A 3 lbs hammer with a 12-18 inch handle will work just fine.. I you forget it, ask around your new home for one.. I bring 3-4 and loan them out..

Post by **AntiM** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 1:48 pm

Our rebar is just over two feet long; our neighbor took them to work and cut and welded them into "t" shapes for us. We tried candy cane bends, but the rebar just kept bending under larry's gorilla pounding. Our crowbar is actually a wrecking bar that's about four feet long. Ah, men and big tools, what can I say?

I call them "Buffy stakes" as they look more like a slayer prop than shade structure tie-downs.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 1:52 pm

I'm thinking that since she's flying into vegas from england that nogga would rather borrow a sledge from a campmate than buy one (I won't swear I'll remember to bring mine--that was Scott's department). I'm also guessing that she wont have time to weld or bend it.

Post by **AntiM** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 2:01 pm

Quite right, likely not, but how can one pass up a rebar conversation?

phil · Post by **phil** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 2:06 pm

nogganoodle wrote:I've been looking everywhere and can't seem to find any info on rebar. I'm sure its there so i'm probably being blind but, how long should the stakes be and should they be any special type?

Louise and I have a couple or three different lengths and diameters, and all work equally well. Having rebar stick up from the ground is a problem. Rebar injuries, as I recall, are the most common at Burning Man. Hammered rebar spreads at the top, creating sharp edges that do bad cuts, and even protected rebar causes dislocated toes and worse when people walk into them. Louise and I put PVC pipes that are 6 to 10 feet long over our rebar that is out in the open, and we put solar garden lights over the rebar that holds down our tent. If you are coming from England, this won't be easy for you.

But to get to your question, you can get rebar locally in Reno. See Louise's pages at
http://civilizedexplorer.pbwiki.com/ind ... =CivExReno
for information on shopping in and around town. You can buy rebar at Home Depot, Builder's Supply, and other stores Louise has listed.

I recommend that you buy ViseGrips at one of the stores, but not a hammer. You can borrow a hammer on the playa. You may need ViseGrips to remove rebar on your own, and you don't want to be dependent on others for removal. Take the ViseGrips home with you, you'll finde needs for them, then bring them back next year.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 2:09 pm

AntiM wrote:Quite right, likely not, but how can one pass up a rebar conversation?

True and we must model good info for those who read but never post.

*fishy waves at the audience*

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 4:16 pm

If flying in, I'd just stop by Reno and get some 2' lengths of 1/2" or thicker rebar at Home Depot. They usually have pre-cut ones on the shelf, if they're out because you came after a dozen other burners they have a machine that will cut it on the spot. The borrowed hammer and borrowed vise grips is a good idea. There's hammers everywhere and people are happy early in the week, at the end people are packing up and grumpy. Be sure to have something to cover the rebar ends that stick out - old tennis balls work, as do water bottles duck taped to the rebar.

It's not applicable to this poster, but last year one of my camp mates brought a slide hammer for pulling rebar. It was faster than any other method I've tried over the years for pulling candy-caned rebar. Wouldn't work with straight rebar without some sort of adapter.

EspressoDude · Post by **EspressoDude** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 4:25 pm

AntiM wrote:Quite right, likely not, but how can one pass up a rebar conversation?

ReBar....is that like walking out the front door of a bar, then turning around and RE entering the BAR?

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Wed Jun 07, 2006 4:43 pm

No "bar" is a transitive verb. So if you were to walk out of a bar and I were to walk you back in they I'd be rebarring you.

swampdog · Post by **swampdog** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 11:58 am

I found a very simple tool that helps driving straight rebar. Get a length of threaded galvanized plumbing pipe (or maybe it was electrical conduit) about the length of the piece you want to have above ground. Get a tee connector that fits onto the threads of your pipe. To drive rebar, just slide the pipe onto the rebar and you've got something easier to hold than skinny little rough rebar, and a bigger target to hit (the tee) than a rebar top. Saved me some bruised fingers last year.

I haven't figured out a way to drive candy cane or other shapes, but my shade structure needs straight, so I'll leave that one for you to figure out

Rockdad · Post by **Rockdad** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 12:06 pm

Long rods and big nuts!

I welded big nuts on the end of my rebar it makes pounding in easy and I drive most them all the way in. The others I slide a short piece of scrap PVC pipe over them for safety. Painted evrything white and orange for safety and identification.

For misc fill in stakes I use the long aluminum nails sold by Coleman for tents they have nice clips on them and in between the big boys they work great.

flipper · Post by **flipper** » Sat Jun 10, 2006 1:22 am

Can they bar you from a bar for bringing rebar? If they do should you hire a Bar Association member? Or just get Roseanne Barr to yell at them...

(We now return you to your regular programming...)

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 1:15 pm

Keep this up and we'll have to bar you from this conversation.

timber mischief · Post by **timber mischief** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 10:48 am

To make the perfect tight topped candy cane rebars you will need:
Two sections of stout plumber pipe and a tire iron for removal.
lay one piece of p pipe on the ground in front of you. Insert a 2ft long piece of rebar into it leaving 3" exposed. Take the other P Pipe and carefully slip it over the exposed end. stand on pipe one. and fold pipe two over on top of it. the 3" end is now a tight candy cane. To drive candy canes, get a thick pair of gloves and grip the rebar so it doesnt vibrate. go slow and you can drive that baby flush with the playa.

Iago · Post by **Iago** » Fri Jun 16, 2006 10:06 pm

Anybody can use rebar... I pick up spent nuclear fuel rods at that roadside stand just west of Yucca Mountain about 40 miles north of Las Vegas. These babies are so heavy you don't even have to pound them into the ground.... and guaranteed to glow for a very, very, very long time.. Burner's get a 20% discount.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sun Jun 18, 2006 11:59 pm

Military surplus 12" tent stakes, buck and a half to two bucks at your local military surplus tent stake shoppe.

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Mon Jun 19, 2006 2:41 pm

If you are in the Bay Area, there's a place called South Bay Canopy that sells lengths of rebar already cut with rings welded to them for guys. The rings are welded to the side to keep the top free for pounding them in. I used them last year. Hammer them in, use the ring for the guy, cut a 6-inch length of swimming pool noodle, slit it up the side and use it as a protective cover for the rebar stake so nobody cuts themself if they walk into it.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Tue Jun 20, 2006 9:00 am

Oh dear god, you meant guy lines not dudes!

Rebar or not to Rebar?

Rebar or not to Rebar?

Re: Rebar or not to Rebar?

Driving rebar

Bar