Why FBE Tanks Are the Best Alternative to Zincalume & Galvanised Tanks

When it comes to water and liquid storage tanks, three factors decide whether a tank is a good investment: corrosion resistance, durability and longevity. Galvanised and Zincalume coatings have served the industry for decades — but in aggressive water conditions, they reach their limits. Fusion Bonded Epoxy (FBE) is engineered to go further.

The Problem With Galvanised & Zincalume in Aggressive Water

• Galvanised (zinc) coatings sacrifice themselves to protect the steel. In high-chlorine, low-pH or mineral-rich water, that sacrificial zinc depletes faster — and once it's gone, the steel corrodes.
• Zincalume improves on galvanising with an aluminium-zinc alloy, but still depends on a sacrificial mechanism and is often paired with a plastic liner that can tear, crease or age.
• Plastic liners shift the watertight duty onto a wear component that must eventually be replaced.

How FBE Is Different

Fusion Bonded Epoxy is a thermoset epoxy powder fused directly to abrasive-blasted steel, forming a continuous, pinhole-free barrier that does not rely on sacrificial corrosion. It is the same coating technology used on buried pipelines and rebar in highly corrosive environments.

Why FBE Wins

Factor	Galvanised	Zincalume + Liner	FBE (Rhino Tank™)
Corrosion mechanism	Sacrificial zinc	Sacrificial alloy + liner	Bonded epoxy barrier
Aggressive water (pH 2–11)	Limited	Moderate	Engineered for it
Liner failure risk	N/A	Present	None (liner-free)
Standard	Varies	Varies	AWWA D103
Best duty	Light/standard	Agri / commercial	Municipal, mining, fire

Cheap tanks look identical on day one. The difference shows up years later — in corrosion, liner failure and replacement cost. FBE controls that risk at specification level.

That's why Aquasteel built the Rhino Tank™ — Africa's first FBE sectional steel water tank — for the projects where failure carries operational, financial or regulatory consequences.