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Ask Dr. Steel: “Why Use Stainless Steel Staples?”
Staples, what could be so fascinating about those? You put them in your papers to hold them together and that is the end of it, right? Well, not exactly. Staples are used for far more applications than just holding papers together. In this article we will examine how staples are used from everything from papers to surgery and why stainless steel has become the metal of choice for staples.
Let's start with the use we are all most familiar with, holding our papers together. For decades now the stainless steel staple has been common in all of our swing-line staplers. But why use stainless steel? Why not just use whatever metal is the cheapest? One word: humidity. Papers may sit in filing cabinets for years or decades being exposed to a wide variety of environmental conditions. Stainless steel resists rusting and for documents, especially legal documents, that is an important concern. Rusty staples fall apart, and can tarnish the document itself. It's for this very important reason that the stapler on your desk contains stainless steel staples.
The same principal applies to cargo and boxes. If you have every bought a heavy item at a retail store that comes in a big cardboard box you may have noticed that instead of tape, which might not be able to withstand the weight, the box was stapled with large stainless steel staples. This is done because freight often comes from all over the world and may spend months at sea, or in a warehouse. Staples made of any other type of material would rust and weaken. Stainless steel maintains its strength and won't rust through, which means safer packaging for all of us.
I'll bet you didn't know that if you ever had surgery that involved stitches that your stitches were probably made of stainless steel. Surgical staples are made of stainless steel because of its inert properties. Of all the metals and materials that stitches can be made of, stainless steel is the one metal that has the least chance of causing a reaction with the patient. They will maintain their strength, which is important for closing a wound, despite being inserted into skin which can contain any number of chemicals. Medical processionals enjoy stainless steel staples because they are the easiest to insert and remove as compared with other stitching methods.
It's a sunny day on the lake and we're out for a boat ride. Hey, look at that fabric over the chair, it's stapled down! And guess what, they are using stainless steel staples ! The choice here is obvious because of the wet conditions the fabric must endure. Though salt water can cause stainless steel to rust because of the salts ability to break past the protective layer of chromium on the staple, they will far outlast any other type of metal in a similar situation.
Going to tack up some new wiring inside your house? Chances are that staple gun is using stainless steel staples as well. Homeowners don't want rusty staples and stainless steel ensures them they won't have an eyesore down the road. They also rely on the strength of the steel to hold up everything from wire to fabric to even certain type of plywood and particle board.
As you can see, staples aren't just necessarily an office supply. Stainless steel has unique properties that make it suitable for a wide variety of applications where staples are involved. From strength, to rust resistance and even to its inert capabilities to prevent reactions, stainless steel staples are common in a wide variety of both home, industrial and medical applications.