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Garnet vs steel grit

Hardness, recycle life, dust, finish and nozzle wear. Which media BLAST APEX sends for site slag work vs shop recovery floors.

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Media choice

FeatureGarnetAngular steel grit
Mohs (guide)7.5-88-9
RecyclesA few cyclesHundreds in a room
DustLowLow if metallic and recovered
FinishSharp, evenAggressive anchor
Nozzle wearModerateHigh (B4C helps)

Most BLAST APEX site jobs around Mumbai still run graded copper slag. Use garnet when the coating spec names it. Use steel grit in a cabinet or blast room, not as loose bags on a jetty.

Garnet (Mohs about 7.5-8) gives a sharp, even profile and low dust. You may get a few recycles if you recover it clean. Angular steel grit is harder, cuts an aggressive anchor, and will run hundreds of cycles on a recovery floor, at the cost of nozzle wear. Copper slag is the cheap once-through bag for structural work. Do not mix the three in one pot: metering and dust change, and the profile becomes a guess.

Engineer FAQs

Can I recycle copper slag like steel grit?

Not in the same way. Slag is a cheap once-through site media. Steel grit is for cabinets and rooms with a recovery floor. Garnet sits in the middle: a few cycles, low dust, often named on marine specs.