What Exactly Is FBE Coating?

We've been talking a lot lately about the Rhino Tank's FBE coating and what makes it superior to other tanks. But what exactly is FBE coating?

FBE = Fusion Bonded Epoxy

FBE stands for Fusion Bonded Epoxy. It is a thermoset epoxy powder coating that is applied to clean, pre-heated steel. When the powder hits the hot steel surface, it melts, flows and chemically "fuses" into a dense, continuous protective film — then cures into a hard, corrosion-resistant barrier. Unlike paint, which sits on top of the surface, FBE bonds at a molecular level to the steel itself.

How FBE Coating Is Applied

• Surface preparation: the steel is abrasive-blasted to remove mill scale and contaminants, creating the clean profile FBE needs to bond.
• Pre-heating: the steel is heated to the temperature at which the epoxy powder will melt and flow.
• Powder application: electrostatically charged epoxy powder is applied evenly across the surface.
• Fusion & cure: the powder melts, bonds and cures into a continuous, pinhole-free film.

Why FBE Matters for Water Tanks

Water storage is an aggressive environment. Chlorine, variable pH, dissolved minerals and constant moisture attack ordinary coatings over time. FBE is specified precisely because it resists this:

• Excellent corrosion resistance in aggressive water chemistry (pH 2–11).
• Strong adhesion that resists undercutting and disbonding.
• Compliance with AWWA D103, the international standard for factory-coated bolted steel tanks.
• A continuous barrier with no plastic liner to tear, crease or fail.

Cheap galvanised tanks transfer corrosion risk to the client. FBE controls that risk at specification level — which is why it's the standard for municipal, mining and fire-protection storage.

This is why Aquasteel's Rhino Tank™ is built with FBE coating — Africa's first FBE sectional steel water tank, engineered for the environments where galvanised and Zincalume tanks fail prematurely.