4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

Reinforcement Chair Design

The Structural World > Topics > Site Construction Design > Reinforcement Chair Design

31

Shares

31

l thestructuralworld
} August 1, 2018
v 11 Comments
m Site Construction Design  Chair Reinforcement, Rebar Chair,
Reinforcement Chair, Steel Chair

Start Download
Latest Microsoft™ 64/32 Bit Drivers

  winzipdriverupdater.com Download

During site construction, Reinforcement Chair or sometimes called as Rebar Spacer, Steel Chair or simply
Chair is commonly seen in raft or mat foundations. This is commonly shaped as Z or inverted U type
reinforcement to evenly separate the top and bottom mesh reinforcement or to provide enough space
between the meshes. In the installation of the main mesh reinforcement during construction, steel chairs play
a vital role to keep the spacing evenly and hold the mesh reinforcement in place before and after concreting.
That is why Steel chairs should be designed also accordingly and not taken for granted.

This article will show you how to design reinforcement chairs. And Reinforcement chair design can be further
understood by showing an illustrative example given in the image below. Let us design the reinforcement
chairs needed as per the typical raft details that are given below:

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 1/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

31

Shares

Summarizing the image above, the following are given:

Raft
31 thickness: 2000mm

Main Mesh Reinforcement:

Bottom: T32-200mm both ways
Top: T25-200mm both ways

Solution:

Load Calculations.
The first thing to consider is how much the weight of the rebar reinforcement in the raft which is tabulated as:

T25:        0.0378 kN/m length

T32:        0.0632 kN/m length

An additional 1.5kN/m2 Live Load to be considered to account for any construction loads.

Try This
Revolutionary Hearing
Aid!
Contact Us T…
Learn…

If you are wondering rebar weight with a unit of kN/m  is derived using the formula:

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 2/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

   where: D=diameter

Calculate for Weight of Rebar that the rebar chair will carry:
31
Reinforcement:               (0.0378 kN/m/0.20) x 2 layers = 0.378kN/m2
Top
Shares
 Bottom Reinforcement:        (0.0632 kN/m/0.20) x 2 layers = 0.632kN/m2

READ ALSO:   Method Statement for Post-Fixed Rebar

Assumed Diameter of Reinforcement Chair to use:

Let us use say T25 for chair reinforcement
31

Check Buckling Capacity of T25 Rebar using the Euler’s Formula:

Maximum Buckling Force is given by:

where:

Pcr: allowable buckling force

E: Modulus of Elasticity of Rebar can be taken as 200, 000 MPa or 200×106 kPa

I: Rebar’s area moment of inertia in m4 with the formula:

and I is equal to 1.917 x10-8 m4

K: effective length factor = 1.0

L: unsupported length= 2.0m

Substituting to the above equation:

Pcr   = 9.46kN 

Pcr = 0.75×9.46kN= 7.1kN

where:

 is the strength reduction factor as specified by table 21.2.1 given below by the ACI 318-14 code.

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 3/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

31

Shares

31

Solving for the Number of Reinforcement Chair required per square

meter:
Since the chair reinforcements support only the top layer, then we will consider the weight of top mesh
reinforcement as dead load.

No of Bars/m2 = Factored Load / Pcr

where:

Factored Load = 1.2Dead Load + 1.6 Live Load

= 1.2 x 0.378kN/m2 + 1.6 x 1.5kN/m2

=  2.85 kN/m2

No of Bars/m2 =  2.85 kN/m2/7.1kN= 0.40 bar/ m2 ;

Hence, the reinforcement chair required is 1 T25 reinforcement chair per square meter.

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 4/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

31

Shares

An Image view of Reinforcement Chair

Since the reinforcement chair supports only the top mesh reinforcement, the bottom mesh reinforcement
31
needs as well as support to maintain its concrete cover. Likewise, a spacer is required. There are so many
types of spacers that can be used during site construction, but the most commonly used at the site is the
concrete spacer. But how do we check if the dimension of the concrete spacer is enough so it can withstand
the load of the raft reinforcement it carries? That will be tackled in the next article-“Design of Concrete
Spacer” so stay tuned or subscribe to our newsletter for any updates and notification.

READ ALSO:   Civil Vs. Structural Engineers: What's The Difference?

What do you think of the above this article? Tell us your thoughts! Leave your message in the comment
section below. Feel free to share this article, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on our social media
pages.

 54,705 total views,  26 views today

Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2018-2019 The Structural World

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 5/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

Download the Guide

Optimize lift station performance with reliable, real-time data.
31

Shares

digi.com Download

Advertisements

← Previous post Next post →

31

11 Comments

Ashok December 24, 2018 at 6:17 pm

“The reinforcement chair required says 3 bars per square meter” seems to be incorrect. Since the buckling force is 7.1 kN for
each 25 mm dia chair bar, then no. of bars required per meter should be calculated total load i.e. (1.6×1.5+1.2×0.378). Please
clarify.

thestructuralworld (Post author) May 30, 2019 at 3:57 pm

Hi Ashok! Based on the above example, that means 1 no. of T25 reinforcement chairs should be used in
every 1.0m x1.0 m of the raft foundation as per the corrected calculations.

EL-MASTER June 1, 2019 at 3:29 am

HI
Surely there is an error in the last step ,because if we depend on the last step that’s means as we
increase the steel bar diameter of the chair we will need more chairs and that is not logical. Please
Recheck .

Regards

thestructuralworld (Post author) June 2, 2019 at 9:11 pm

Hi El-Master, thanks for pointing out. The result of the calculations has been
corrected and is now updated. Cheers!

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 6/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

EL-MASTER May 30, 2019 at 11:57 am

Just reverse the last formula. It must be (1.6*construction live load +1.2*top steel weight)KN/m2/(0.75*Pcr)KN

31
Ahmed Othman September 25, 2020 at 9:13 pm
Shares

One chair has two legs, so the chair capacity is 7.1×2=14.2 KN

It means that one chair can carry 14.2 / 2.85 = 5 m2

Noel November 11, 2020 at 8:08 pm

Any objection to this comment? Or it is deemed true. We should have the minimum and maximum results.

31
thestructuralworld (Post author) November 12, 2020 at 12:59 am

The loads from which the steel chair carries came from the top mesh which is a vertical load. This will
be resisted by one leg only, which is the horizontal bar or the upper part of the inverted U that is why
the calculation considers 1 leg only.

IB November 29, 2021 at 2:08 pm

I don’t get it.

If the top mesh is supported in the middle of “U part” of the chair it means that first leg takes 1/2
of the vertical force and second leg also takes 1/2. (Legs are vertical elements in this case)

It’s impossible to support top mesh in axis of buckled bar because of bending
diameter(according to EC bending diameter equals to 7 diameters of bar for #25,
7×25=175mm, and 175mm/2=87,5mm for 90degree angle).

Assuming, the nearest point to buckled axis where force can be applied is 87,5+25/2 = 90mm.
It means you have to include both legs of the chair.

Any objections?

You are wrong comparing horizontal bar (head) which is bent, and two vertical legs which are
compressed with buckling.

You can check capacity of head chair but not using above desing.

Jianne October 14, 2021 at 9:50 am

Where did you get 1.5kpa construction live load? Is there a code specifying this?

thestructuralworld (Post author) October 15, 2021 at 2:08 pm

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 7/8
4/28/22, 11:08 AM Reinforcement Chair Design | The Structural World

Obviously, construction live load should be considered as during the installation of raft reinforcement, there are
movements/activities going on above it. You can refer to ASCE-7 for the different live loads.

All original content on these pages is fingerprinted and certified by Digiprove

31

Shares

31

https://www.thestructuralworld.com/2018/08/01/reinforcement-chair-design/ 8/8