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Coated wire rope vs bare for a job in Seattle last month

I had to pick between coated and bare wire rope for a traction elevator retrofit we did up in Seattle last month. The building was right on the water, so humidity was a real concern and the crew foreman swore by coated for corrosion resistance. I ended up going with bare because it's easier to inspect for broken strands and the sheave grooves were already worn in from the old bare rope. After three weeks of operation, I'm second guessing myself a bit because I already spotted some surface rust starting near the hitch points. Has anyone else dealt with this coastal corrosion thing and found a good middle ground?

2 comments

2 Comments

hart.taylor9d ago

...yeah, I heard about a similar situation from a buddy who does marine rigging down in San Diego. He said they started using a light coat of corrosion inhibitor on the bare rope near the terminals and it helped a lot without messing up the sheave wear patterns. The surface rust you're seeing is probably just cosmetic at this point if you caught it early, but I'd get a good look at those hitch points every month now. Some guys swear by that Teflon infused spray for coastal jobs, but I've seen it gum up the sheaves if you're not careful with how much you apply. Honestly, bare rope with good maintenance is probably the smarter call long term because you can't spot a busted strand under coated stuff until it's too late.

brooke_walker238d ago

@hart.taylor nailed it with that corrosion inhibitor tip, I've done the same thing on a waterfront job in Boston and it saved me from swapping rope early. The surface rust near hitches is almost always just cosmetic if you catch it quick, just hit it with a wire brush and some light oil every couple months and you'll be fine. Bare rope is definitely the way to go for traction stuff, that coating hides too much damage like you said.