Wire mesh: types, sizes and where each is used

What wire mesh is

Wire mesh is a sheet or roll of metal wires laid out in a regular pattern of openings. How the wires are joined decides what the mesh is for: The Mesh Company describes woven mesh by its uniform openings and expanded metal as a one-piece sheet with no separate wires. F H Brundle makes its hexagonal netting from galvanised steel wire for corrosion resistance outdoors.

Types of wire mesh

Types of wire mesh

Type	How it is made	Typical jobs
Welded mesh	steel wires welded where they cross into a square or rectangular grid	fencing, animal enclosures, concrete reinforcement, machine guards
Reinforcing mesh (BRC)	heavy welded bars; A252 has 8 mm bars at 200 mm centres, 3.95 kg/m², sheets 4.8 × 2.4 m	concrete slabs and floors
Hexagonal netting (chicken wire)	galvanised steel wire formed into hexagons; openings 13–50 mm, wire 0.7–1 mm	chicken runs, rabbit pens, fruit cages, garden boundaries, thatch protection
Woven mesh (wire cloth)	wires woven like cloth, warp and weft at right angles, in plain, twill or Dutch weave	filtering, sieving sand and aggregate, window screens
Expanded metal	a solid sheet slit and stretched into diamond openings, all in one piece	perimeter fencing, walkways, safety barriers

Chain link fencing mesh has its own page: chain link fence.

Wire mesh sizes sold in Tanzania

Shop listings in Dar es Salaam, collected for our wire mesh price list on 12 November 2026, describe the mesh in a mix of millimetres and feet.

• Light welded mesh comes in openings of 50 × 50, 50 × 60, 70 × 70, 75 × 80 and 80 × 90 mm, with wire from 2.1 to 3.0 mm, sold by the bundle with the bundle weight in the name.
• BRC mesh has 150 × 150 or 200 × 200 mm openings and bars of 4 to 8 mm, as 8 × 4 ft sheets or as rolls 8 ft wide.
• Chicken wire is listed by height, 4 ft or 6 ft, in 20 m rolls, plain or plastic-coated.
• Expanded metal appears as 1.2 m × 15 m rolls in 0.6 and 0.8 mm.

In metric terms, 4 ft is about 1.22 m, 6 ft about 1.83 m and 8 ft about 2.44 m (our conversion at 0.3048 m per foot).

What to check when you buy wire mesh

1. Opening size. Write it as two numbers in millimetres. A 50 × 50 mm opening and a 50 × 60 mm one are different products, even from the same maker.
2. Wire diameter, not only gauge. F H Brundle gives 22 gauge as 0.7 mm and 19 gauge as 1 mm: the higher the gauge number, the thinner the wire. Ask for millimetres.
3. Weight. For welded mesh sold by the bundle, the kilograms in the listing tell you more about the amount of steel than the word “light” or “heavy”.
4. Coating. Galvanised wire carries a zinc layer; plastic-coated wire has a plastic layer as well. Listings price the two separately, so ask which one a quote is for.
5. Code against bars. A BRC code such as A142 or A252 should match the bar size: A252 means 8 mm bars at 200 mm, according to BM Steel. One Dar es Salaam shop lists A142 rolls with both 5.5 mm and 6 mm wire, so check the diameter on the quote.

Where wire mesh is used

• Fences and gates. Welded panels and rolls, chain link and expanded metal all appear in fencing. Wire mesh boxes filled with stone are gabion baskets.
• Concrete. Reinforcing mesh goes into slabs and floors. Which mesh a slab needs is a structural design decision, not something to pick from a price list.
• Animals and gardens. F H Brundle lists chicken runs, coops, rabbit pens, fruit cages and vegetable plots for its hexagonal netting.
• Screens and sieves. Woven mesh is used for filtering and for sieving sand and aggregate, The Mesh Company notes, and fine woven mesh for window screens.

Wire mesh price

Prices depend on the unit (bundle, sheet or roll), the wire size and the coating, so they are kept on a separate page with sellers and dates: wire mesh price in Tanzania.

Wire mesh in Zanzibar

Kitovu sells from stock in Zanzibar, and wire mesh is not among the products it holds. The products in stock are shown on this page and on the full product list.