The sheet material is the most widely used material by architects and interior designers in a residence. Fashionable cabinetry increases its worth. But it is well known that solid sheet wood material expands and contracts to depend upon its surrounding temperature. Therefore, it is suggested that to use the best quality sheet material in your residence, for kitchen cabinetry, flooring applications or any interior design. Variations in the quality of sheet material with respect to variability in the application have become one of the main concerns nowadays.
The selection of the sheet material is done based on engineered wood products keeping in mind that it is reliable and at a cheaper cost. MGN Builders Merchants has got a wide range of quality wood sheets selection online including quality OSB board.
The wood-based sheet material is made of timber or from recycled timber. There are various types of sheet materials, such as:
- Plywood
- Chipboard
- Cement bonded particleboard
- Oriented strand board (OSB)
- MDF board
- Edge-glued panel
- Blockboard
- Multi-ply board
- Hardboard
Making the right choice
Selecting the right wood sheet is most essential. In its construction work, a different sheet of wood material is required with a different application. It is essential you select the right type of sheet material or sheet-based product to fulfil with Building Regulations. It is also required to look for certification markings to show that the raw material is from legal and sustainable sources. While selecting a sheet of wood materials, it is much needed to ensure that product is suitable for the desired requirement. Sometimes it becomes necessary to take into consideration fire resistance, moisture resistance and its appearance. Below is the list of other important factors that need to be taking into account:
- Orientation
- Function of sheet
- Appearance
- Formability
- Reliability
- Cost
- Water-resistance / waterproofness
- Availability
Quality grading of Sheet Material
It is used for categorising the various types of sheet materials specifying what type of panel is present at what location. It is distributed in a grading system starting from A to D. These grades are as follows:
- Grade A Type: It has high-quality sheet material but has very few imperfections.
- Grade B Type: It has slightly lower quality and slightly increased imperfection than the grade A-type.
- Grade C Type: it has low quality and a high imperfection.
- Grade D Type: it has the lowest quality among all above and highest imperfection.
Most popular sheet materials
Plywood
Most of the designers recommend plywood boards not just because it is a low-cost material easily available, but also it has a higher resistance to moisture and greater structural stability compared to other sheet material. The wood sheet material is manufactured by layering each panel like a sandwich, where the thin wood board is bonded with glue on top of another.
The plywood sheet material is generally glued together with phenolic resin. Phenolic resin is a water-resistant adhesive. To protect plywood from the outside, and exposed thermofoil coats plastic laminate or wood veneer is applied. Plywood is made in such a way that its strength and stability in one is superior to others. Because of its durability and cost-effectiveness, plywood is widely used in the make of roofs, floor, furniture, boats, and caravans and cabinetry purpose of the kitchen.
Particleboard
It’s also known as chipboard. Particleboard is made of compressed chips and bonded with resin. Using chips in preparation also termed as chipboard. There is a continuous production line installed to manufacture a chipboard sheet material. Each layer of wood chip is coated with fine adhesive, whereas a sheet of wood chips is coarser. Resin and chip are layered, pressed, and ultimately cured under pressure, heat for sufficient time.
In the process, chips are spread on a conveyor and travelled in a direction. This may lead to variation in the properties across its width and along its length. Since its laminae are stacked together with highly pressured equipment there is less chance of void is present. Usually, it has good surfaces to finish make it suitable for painting and glittering. It can be prepared in a range of grades and thicknesses. And therefore, it is used in different types of structured and non-structured places. Such as subfloors, walls, ceilings, furniture, and interior fittings.
Cemented particleboard
It is manufactured with help of fine chips are bonded with cement. Laminae of cemented particleboard have hot harness and resistance to fire at an elevated temperature and do not affect by water or have good microbial decay. It is an engineered wood sheet material in which an estimated amount of cement is added to fulfil its intended application. It is also designed in such a way that it offers an elegant colour and better surface smoothness. The chipboard is made on basis of customer-based requirement. It can be recommended for the use of the wet room, bathroom, kitchen, and roof.
Oriented strand board
OSB board coined by researcher and very often used industry for oriented strand board. It is manufactured by strands of wood of lower thickness bonded together with resin and pressurised into layers to form a laminate. Since strand are closed packed there is less likely that voids are presented ins It, and it has well-structured stability. OSB has a flat strand of wood it is visible near the surface of the sheet of wood. OSB is highly recommended for corner breakage because it is resistant to it. Phenolic resin can be sued as an adhesive in powder form. Melamine adhesive can also be used in some cases. OSB is used for interior fittings of dry rooms and in heavily loaded structures.
Medium-density fibreboard
Wood panel MDF wood panel is a flat sheet manufactured with help of wood fibres glued with resin. It is an engineered sheet material that has no knots or surface roughness that appears when machined. It is directly available in the market in form of finished products. It can be used as architraves, shirting board and mouldings. It is fire resistance highly stable as compared to other grades.
There are many factors to consider before choosing the right sheet material for your project. MGN Builders Merchants has got an extensive range of sheet materials in a variety of different sizes and types to suit any construction project. Just browse online or simply call and the team of experts will be able to guide you in your selection process.