Design Worskhop: Put Industrial Mesh to Work Around the Home

Like many architects, I am always searching for new materials to use in my residential work. I’m particularly drawn to adapting simple, utilitarian, industrial materials for use in the home. Industrial metal mesh is an excellent example of this and one that deserves consideration for both interior and exterior use.

It ranges from raw and utilitarian, like welded-wire fabric, to the finely woven mesh used for industrial filtering. It’s light and readily available, and it has a versatile kit-of-parts aesthetic that’s been tested by years of commercial service. And if it can withstand the rigors of the commercial environment, you can be assured it’s designed to last.

Here are just a few of the ways this industrial material can be used in the home.

Floors

Of the many types of metal mesh available, the one that’s most suitable for flooring applications is bar grating. It’s often used for mezzanines, stairways and catwalks in heavy industrial applications, because its strength-to-weight ratio makes it a materially efficient choice. It’s easily sourced and straightforward to install, and it requires a relatively minimal support structure — all characteristics that make it appealing for use in the home too. Its ability to cover long, unsupported spans, plus its low weight and lacy openness, makes it an excellent choice for walkways and floors both indoors and out.


There are different base material options for grating. Steel (stainless, powder coated, galvanized) and aluminum are popular and durable choices, but brass, bronze and even copper are available too. The bridge seen here is made with aluminum bar grating. The term “bar grating” is drawn from the small bars that make up each panel. The bars are welded or mechanically locked together at a regular interval by crossbars, and the spacing of each determines the overall transparency.

Bar grating allows water and light through to the spaces below, making it an ideal complement to planted landscapes.


When using bar grating as the floor planks for deck spaces, pay attention to how comfortable it will be to walk on it in a variety of footwear. Tighter spacing, as seen here, makes sense from a safety, comfort and practical standpoint, especially on a deck designed for sitting. Many manufacturers offer ADA-compliant products specifically designed for this purpose.


Here’s a more refined aluminum grating, fitting for the interior architecture. It balances openness with the need for a tighter spacing for interior foot traffic, while still permitting light to penetrate deep into the floor plan. The more precise and refined the look, the more expensive it will be, though, and close-mesh aluminum grating sits at the higher end of the price spectrum.


Ceilings

The overhead plane provides different opportunities for using metal mesh. Thoughtful solar design is on everyone’s design agenda today, and solar shading devices like this one marry energy-conscious elements seamlessly with the architecture.

The perforated metal used here is an excellent choice for this application, because the shape, size and spacing of the openings can be customized and finely tuned based on a particular solar exposure. Because it’s made by punching holes from a thin sheet of metal, it’s lighter, which reduces the need for a heavy support structure.


The bar grating we discussed earlier can also be used in the ceiling plane to great effect. As with perforated mesh, bar spacing and height can be customized to offer shade for any latitude. Taller bar heights and closer spacing make for controlled shading with a sharp cutoff, while shorter and more open spacing provides more of a dappled effect.


This project’s 8-foot overhang ensures that the lower glazed area receives plenty of filtered light. On the upper level, it doubles as an exterior deck in select locations and a catwalk for building maintenance. For large cantilevers like this one, lightweight aluminum is a good choice.


If the visual weight of bar grating and perforated metals is too heavy, you might consider a wire mesh product such as this one. Wire mesh comes in a variety of configurations from crimped (for stability) to woven (loose like fabric) to welded (more rigid). The most cost effective of these for an overhead trellis are made using repurposed and commonly available welded wire fabric (WWF), typically used to reinforce concrete slabs. With the proper structure, it can support vegetation and subtly define a seating area.


Walls

Here a perforated, corrugated metal sheet has been fastened to both sides of a light-gauge studded wall. This product is often used for its acoustical properties as roof decking in industrial and commercial spaces. Layering perforated metal creates wonderful optical effects that change depending on the viewer’s perspective. The corrugations give the thin material rigidity and increase its spanning capabilities. The framed aperture here highlights a very specific view as one arrives to the garage and screens parked vehicles from the surrounding site.


Bar grating used as an entry door and facade element filters the light entering the space behind and provides privacy. Used in a wall application, a taller bar height will work to cut off views to and from adjacent properties and enhance privacy while maintaining a view out. Here it also breaks up the composition of the planar wall.


Part guard, part partition wall, layers of screened panels define the circulation zone in this project, filtering light and helping people safely navigate the stair.


Serving as both a partition wall and stair guard, these perforated metal panels have been painted, elevating them from their raw industrial roots. The square perforations pick up on the window patterning too. Stairs are great places to leverage metal mesh’s strength and openness.


Vegetated Walls

Sometimes referred to as hardware cloth, metal wire mesh used as a climbable substrate for vegetated walls doesn’t have to be particularly refined, because it will eventually be concealed. It takes time for vegetated walls to establish themselves, and the mesh provides shading in the interim.


Fencing

These perforated steel sheets make a large landscape screen element. The thickness of the steel, along with the hole spacing, can be designed to allow perpendicular views while screening angular views.


The mesh has a weight and solidity to it that changes with the viewer’s perspective.


Stair Guards

In home interiors the use of metal is often required to be more refined. Woven-wire fabrics like the guard infill for this contemporary farmhouse comfortably bridge the divide between industrial and residential worlds. This particular material is made by GKD; others favorite companies of mine are Banker Wire and Cambridge Architectural.

Each company offers a comprehensive product line of quality woven- and welded-wire meshes and fabrics, along with a complementary array of options. Almost everything is up for consideration and design: wire gauge, spacing, aspect ratio, attachment, base material and, of course, pattern. The woven-wire mesh used here has a simple utility to it; perhaps it’s a play on agricultural fencing.


Wire fabric and woven mesh, especially the finer, sieve-like ones, are often used in industrial filtering systems. They’re similar in feel to conventional textiles but much more durable, making them great for outdoor use. The fabric usually requires a support subframe for attachment to keep the fabric taught.


Scrims

The more open the fabric patterning, the more subtle the space-defining effects will be. I like how this fabric very minimally defines an entry and circulation space without the need for a partition wall. Very open wire fabric such as this requires special detailing to maintain tension and prevent sagging. The rod at the base accomplishes this in a visually minimal way.


Drapery

Hanging wire cloth like this modern twist on drapery can provide high levels of screening while preserving a visual lightness. Cascade Coil Drapery makes some fantastic, beautiful products perfect for this application.


Doors

Mesh can be used as infill on doors too. The mesh on these lockers is from TWP. It offers a more refined and rigid alternative to standard insect screening. The density of the weave affects how visible the contents behind the doors are when viewed from an angle. The openness also permits drying and airflow in this application. I could see this mesh also used in a laundry door, where airflow is equally important.


Be creative. Once you begin thinking about metal mesh and its potential, it’s hard not to think of an area that it couldn’t be used for in the home. Case in point: the inventive use of metal mesh as a rain chain here. It appears almost like a perpetual stream of cascading water.

More: Getting a Feel for Steel

URL: Design Worskhop: Put Industrial Mesh to Work Around the Home http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-24266.html