Beach huts...barbecues...chairs...gas hobs...wind breaks...padlocks...wood treatments...paint - if you sell it, you can advertise it here.

Please get in touch for details of rates and production requirements.

We are planning a range of beach-cred clothing and accessories - Watch This Space. If you are a manufacturer, it's not too late to e-mail us with proposals.

We will also periodically review beach hut - oriented products to entertain you. If you have suggestions or nominations, get on the e-mail!

A man who makes tiny little beach huts!

About a year ago (to our shame!) a gentleman wrote in enclosing this photograph of the wooden beach huts which he makes.

They were inspired by a visit to Southwold.

These delightful scale models come complete with folded (non functional) deck chairs, bench, coat hooks and towel rail, and measure about "6x6x6"- inches, I imagine. They take a while to make, and he produces them in batches of four (so you may have to wait).

They retail for £22.95, inc p&p.

If you want to order one, contact:
Mr Paul Lander,
The Chelsea Hotel
4 Marine Terrace
Folkestone
Kent
CT20 1PZ

And please mention beach.huts.co.uk!

Oh, I don't like to be beside the seaside!

The scientific angle on Corrosion of Hardware in beach huts

The three elements that promote corrosion are warmth, moisture and salt. This means that (for corrosion purposes) your beach huts are in the worst possible place.

The Science of Corrosion
Firstly a little science. How does corrosion occur? Corrosion is an electro-chemical reaction. Experts will tell you that there are at least a dozen forms of corrosion. However , for our purposes, we can consider just two types: Direct Attack Corrosion and Galvanic Corrosion.

Direct Attack Corrosion is usually a simple chemical attack. The level of attack is dependant on the amount of water and salt present. In our case, lots. To avoid this form of corrosion you should choose a metal like Stainless Steel, Copper or Brass - or Zinc plated steel.

Galvanic Corrosion occurs when metals of different electrical potential are in contact. An electrical current flows from the less noble to the more noble metal causing corrosion in the less noble metal. So to avoid this type of corrosion you should keep unlike metals apart. However, this action can be of use for sacrificial coatings where the sacrificial coat corrodes in preference to the parent metal.

Standards
The main standard for testing for corrosion of hardware is now EN 1670. This gives four grades of corrosion resistance. Grade 1 being the lowest (mild resistance) and Grade 4 being the highest. So if you can find hardware which has been tested always go for Grade 4. Will this give you complete protection? Unfortunately not. Studies have shown that an item just complying with Grade 4 will give you around 2½ years before serious corrosion starts to occur. This is a new standard so not many products are classified as yet but it is worth looking out for it.

What practical steps can you take to reduce corrosion?
Firstly always buy good quality hardware.

Where ever possible choose corrosion resistant materials. There are various grades of stainless steels about. Austenitic stainless steel is the best (that's what sinks are made from). Other stainless steels will give limited protection but will not last as long.

Avoid a mismatch of materials such as steel screws into an aluminium bracket.

As a next preference choose materials with a sacrificial coating such as galvanising. Even if the coating is slightly damaged the nature of corrosion will mean that the base will usually stay intact. Obviously as the coating is sacrificial it will disappear as time progresses. Therefore, the thicker the coating the longer it will last.

Next a paint finish will give added protection. A normal paint will work by preventing the moisture coming into contact with the base metal. Simply a skin. If the paint film is perforated then the base metal underneath will start to corrode. Unfortunately, the damaged paint film may hold moisture in contact with the base metal thereby accelerating the corrosion so always maintain the paint finish. Some paints have a high zinc content thus giving some of the benefits of a sacrificial coating. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions for painting and make sure the surface is as clean as possible before applying it.

Finally lubrication and sprays work well. Usually the thicker the oil the longer it will last. However, always follow the lock manufacturers' recommendation as some lubricants can cause dust and sand to stick to the lock mechanism and cause it to jam. Specialist anti-corrosion sprays and materials do work well. However, with all of these regular recoating on exposed areas will be necessary.

If this doesn't work you could always try moving your hut to somewhere cold, dry and away from the sea!

Our thanks to Dr Martin White of The Master Locksmiths' Association for this learned treatise.

If you're a retailer or manufacturer of rust resistant products, send in your details!