The Rebar Cost Estimate calculator computes the total cost (TC) of rebar based on the length being purchased(TL), length of the individual pieces being bought (uL) and unit price (uC) of one piece of rebar.
INSTRUCTIONS: Choose units and enter the following:
Cost of Rebar (TC): The calculator returns the following:
Values with units can be automatically converted to compatible units (e.g. dollars to pesos) via the pull-down menu.
The following are price estimates of rebar products based on the current market price of steel and a reasonable markup from raw steel to retail rebar product.
You have computed that you need 840 feet of 1/2" (size #4) grade 60 rebar using the Rebar Calc at vCalc. You've shopped around and found that you can buy rebar for $13.1 USD per 20 foot piece at a rebar factory store. You can now use this calculator to compute total cost of rebar.
You enter:
Cost of Rebar (TC) is returned at current market price for that length in U.S. dollars.
Rebar is short for reinforcing bar. Rebar is a roughly circular steel bar with ribs used to provide added tensile strength to concrete structures. Rebar is put in place before concrete is poured. When the concrete has hardened, the concrete around the rebar ribs keep the rebar in place. Rebar and concrete expand similarly with temperature variations. This all has the net result of substantially added tensile strength when rebar is part of the concrete form. Carbon steel is the most commonly used material for rebar, which may also be coated with zinc or epoxy resin.
Rebar is laid out in grids, crisscrossed patterns of rebar, tied at the intersections where runs of rebar touch. The grids have spacing between the rebar rows, and they are placed within the concrete form by a specified inset from the edge of the concrete. Multiple parallel grids, at uniform space intervals, are referred to as rebar mats.
In the United States, rebar sizes are in increments of 1/8th inches in diameter. Therefore, size 4 is 4/8th of an inch, which is 1/2", and size 8 is a full inch in diameter. Based on this and the density of steel used in rebar, the Rebar Size Table contains reasonably accurate specifications of rebar linear weight and lateral (face) area based on rebar size.
The most common lengths of pre-cut rebar in the United States are 20`, 40' and 60'. These are known as rebar sticks. When the dimensions of a slab, wall or other form exceed the length of a single stick of rebar, it is required to overlap and tie rebar pieces to create the added length. This process is called lapping, and the length of the overlapping rebar is the rebar lapping length. The length of the lap is specified by a "Lapping Factor (LF)" which is often 40 or 60 times the diameter of the rebar. Engineering specifications of a lapping factor should always be applied.
A class of rebar tools, both powered and manual, have been developed to aid construction workers in working with rebar. These include the following: