Erik was out of town the other week and happened to stumble across a pile of crumbled concrete in New Hampshire. He stopped by to check it out, and of course, take advantage of a perfect real world example. Welded wire mesh, though inexpensive, is not your best option for reinforcing a slab for crack control.
When contractors use welded wire mesh, they typically lay the mesh on the ground, pour the concrete on top of it, and then try to pull it up to the center as they go. Unfortunately, this doesn't work very well and the mesh often ends up at the bottom of the slab where it adds no value. Rebar chairs are rarely used for a couple reasons: Chairs are easily snapped if someone steps too close to them. Also, wire wesh is easily bent and becomes mangled when stepped on during the pour if it is chaired up.
GatorBar is different. It is high strength, lightweight and flexible. You can tie it into grids and then chair it up without having to worry about breaking chairs or bending the mesh. GatorBar springs back after being stepped on, staying centered in the slab.