If you own a farm in New Zealand, you probably know how tough the weather conditions can be. Strong coastal winds, heavy rain, and damp air don’t just test your patience, they test your gear.
That’s why we don’t cut corners when it comes to protecting our steel. Every Onefarm yard panel, gate, and rail is hot-dipped galvanised in a world-class facility in China.
This process provides the steel with a tough, protective coating both inside and out, ensuring your yard remains strong, safe, and low-maintenance for years to come. It’s also the reason we confidently back our products with a 10-year warranty on hot-dipped galvanising.
In this guide, we’ll take you behind the scenes of the galvanising process and show you why it makes such a difference to your operation.
Step 1: Surface Preparation
To make sure the zinc bonds properly, the raw black steel goes through a thorough cleaning stage. It’s immersed in an acid bath that strips away mill scale, rust, dirt, and oil to ensure a smoother, cleaner finish. Without this initial step, the zinc wouldn’t be able to form its protective bond with the steel, leaving weak spots that could rust over time.
Step 2: Submerged into the Molten Zinc
This is where the real protection is formed. The steel is slowly lowered into a bath of molten zinc heated to 450°C, where it stays for four minutes. That allows enough time for the zinc to flow through the drain holes, coating every surface inside and out. During this time, the zinc doesn’t just sit on the surface. It reacts with the steel itself, creating a tough metallurgical bond that becomes part of the steel.
Once lifted from the bath, the panels are carefully extracted to ensure complete coverage. Skilled workers then use wooden paddles to knock away any excess zinc and drips to prevent sharp points and leave a smooth, even finish.
Step 3: Cooling and Solidification
After the zinc bath, the steel needs to set properly. The panels are cooled quickly using a water quench, which locks the zinc coating firmly in place. As the steel cools, the molten zinc solidifies into a smooth, protective layer that bonds tightly to the surface.
The result is a hard-wearing finish that resists chips, scratches, and the kind of corrosion that untreated steel would face within months in New Zealand’s harsh conditions.
Step 4: Inspection and Finishing
The final stage is all about quality assurance. Every panel is carefully inspected to ensure the zinc coating is consistent, with no thin spots or imperfections that could compromise durability. Sharp edges or excess zinc are removed, leaving a smooth, stock-safe finish.
This attention to detail is what sets our process apart. By the time a panel leaves the facility, it’s not only built to last but also safe to handle and ready for immediate use on your block. It’s this level of care that allows us to confidently stand behind our 10-year galvanising warranty.
Why It Matters?
Hot-dipped galvanising isn’t just about appearance, it’s about protection. In New Zealand’s tough weather conditions, untreated steel is highly vulnerable to rust, which is why the process is so important. By immersing every panel in molten zinc, the steel gains complete corrosion resistance, even in salty coastal air. The zinc doesn’t just coat the outside; it flows through the drain holes to cover every internal surface, creating inside-and-out protection that paint or surface coatings can’t match.
The result is a yard that requires virtually no maintenance. No tightening, no replacing, and no repainting. Just reliable strength season after season. It’s this process that gives us the confidence to back every Onefarm yard with a 10-year warranty.
Our Most Popular Panel: The 2.1m x 1.8m 7-Rail
The 7-rail panel is the workhorse of our yards - strong, safe, and built to last. Every one of these panels goes through the galvanising process above, giving you a product that stands up to New Zealand’s harshest environments year after year.
Built to Last
When you’re moving stock, checking fences, and working through a never-ending list of jobs, the last thing you need is to spend your time fixing buggered yards or patching up rotting timber. That’s why every yard is hot-dip galvanised for maximum durability, backed by a 10-year warranty, and designed to make stock work faster and safer.
For information about our Yards, get in touch with the team today.
