Chipboard: building, laminated, grooved, dimensions, types

Along with plywood, there are several other sheet materials that are used in construction, for interior decoration. One of them is chipboard or chipboard. Inexpensive, popular material that is used when sheathing frames, for flooring or filing ceilings. 

What is chipboard and production technology

Chipboard – sheet building and finishing material. The name is an abbreviation of the technological name – chipboard. The regulations established the name chipboard, but in everyday life it did not take root, so most people use the abbreviated version. It is a slab of sawdust pressed under pressure and at high temperature, connected by a binder (natural or artificial).

Production technology: main stages

Chipboard is made from woodworking industry waste – sawdust, small chips. Can be shredded for non-commercial wood, regrading, offcuts, etc. The production process is as follows:

• Chips are sorted by size – for the normal strength of chipboard, there are several layers of chips of different sizes in the plate. Larger chips are placed inside, smaller ones along the edges. Laminated material is stronger and fine chips are more aesthetically pleasing.
• The finished chipboard carpet is pre-pressed – crimped, checking the required parameters, if necessary, make changes.
  

• Served in a press, where, at high temperature and high pressure, the chips turn into a monolithic material.
• Cut to size, cool.
• They are sorted into grades, put into storage or sent for grinding, laminating and other processing methods.

This is one of the technologies, but it can change. For example, in the production of single-layer chipboard, large chips are additionally crushed, for which special equipment is used.

Formaldehyde emission class

With an insufficient amount of natural binder (contained in sufficient quantities in conifers), synthetic binders are added to the chips during production. These are mainly phenolic and phenol-formaldehyde resins. Since they contain volatile substances, which in large quantities have a harmful effect on humans (formaldehyde), a classification has been developed according to the degree of emission of this substance.

Each batch of material, according to the results of laboratory studies, is assigned a certain class. E0,5 is the safest material that is approved for use in child care facilities. E1 is also considered safe, suitable for residential use. Higher grades – E2, E3 and E4 can only be used for outdoor work or as temporary materials (for example, when creating removable formwork for concrete).

Also, in the production of chipboard, substances can be introduced into the chips that increase the moisture resistance of the boards. In the “original” version, chipboard does not get along well with moisture, so that ordinary material is not used for outdoor work, but is applicable only for rooms with a normal level of humidity. With the addition of paraffin or its emulsion, water resistance is significantly increased (15% warping versus 22% or 33% for normal species of different classes).

Types and scope

Chipboards have many types. First of all, they are divided by scope:

• Construction. Can be applied both inside and outside. Must be durable, moisture resistant, resistant to the spread of fungi and bacteria. To obtain these characteristics, additional components are introduced into the chips during kneading. It can be polished or unpolished – appearance is not always important.
• General purpose. Suitable for indoor use, as it does not have moisture and biostability. From plates of this type, furniture is usually made, used for interior finishing work.
• Special. This item is made to order. Upon request, the boards can have certain dimensions or special properties (fire resistance, increased bio- or moisture resistance).
  

As you understand, for each type of work it makes sense to choose a certain type of chipboard. This will optimize costs – not to spend too much, but not to save on quality.

Decorative materials based on chipboard

General purpose boards may have a decorative coating. They are first polished on special machines, then covered with a decorative coating:

• Melamine film with subsequent coating with a layer of varnish. The process is called laminating, and the material is laminating. The letter “K” is added in front of the name.
• Melamine paper, but on machines under pressure and at high temperature. The film is glued (rather, welded) at a temperature of 150°C to 210°C. The process is called lamination, the material is laminated, the letter “L” is added to the name – chipboard. This coating significantly increases water resistance, improves appearance. Such plates are used for the manufacture of furniture, for interior decoration.
• Veneer. Veneer is the thinnest cut of natural wood. It is glued to the surface of the plate, then covered with a layer of varnish. In appearance, it is indistinguishable from natural wood; it is used for the manufacture of furniture and for interior decoration.

For the uninitiated, it can be difficult to understand which is better: KDSP, chipboard or veneered boards. The worst option is laminated KDSP boards. The varnish is quickly erased, then thin paper with a printed pattern is wiped off. The product is damaged and cannot be restored.

The other two types – laminated chipboard and veneered chipboard – are approximately the same in terms of coating reliability, but veneered chipboard has a lower moisture resistance, and is much more expensive. Despite the fact that modern technologies make it possible to very accurately reproduce the surface of wood, stone, and other natural materials, it is not very reasonable to pay a high price for veneer coating.

 Dimensions, characteristics, classification

The dimensions of chipboard sheets are normalized by GOST, as are the maximum deviations for each of the quantities. But many enterprises form their specifications, increasing the allowable deviations. Therefore, when buying a batch, do not be too lazy to measure several sheets to choose from. So, the dimensions of chipboard boards are as follows:

• Thickness: 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25 mm. The maximum deviation for polished is 0,3 mm, for unpolished from 0,4 mm to 0,7 mm, depending on the thickness.
  

• Width: 1220, 1500, 1750, 1830 mm. Permissible deviations – 3 mm.
• Height: from 1800 to 3500 mm in 10 mm increments, dimensions may differ from nominal by 5 mm.

The height is usually far from such a large range. Most often you can find 2440, 2750 and 3060 mm. There are also “halves” in width – 910 mm.

grade

Depending on the quality of the composite material, chipboard is divided into the following grades:

• 1 grade. Perfectly smooth surfaces and edges. No extraneous inclusions, chips, delaminations, other defects. Most often, most of the first grade is sent for further processing – grinding, laminating, etc.
• 2 grade. There are small defects. These can be cracks, irregularities, deviations in thickness in a small range, delamination of the composite. Not all of these shortcomings together, but only a few.
  

• Non-sorted products, or, more simply, marriage. Major defects listed above. It can only be used as a removable formwork, and even then not for all areas.

Whatever the sellers say, significant defects are defective, which means cheap sheets. And they should not be used for construction. Not for sheathing, not as a crate. Unless in a shed on partitions, and even then …

Mark

There is also such a classification of chipboard as brands. There are only two of them:

• P-A. More durable in tension and bending, has less roughness, less prone to swelling and warping when the standard humidity is exceeded (the degree of deformation from water is 22%).
  

• P-B. More fragile, not as smooth, has lower water resistance (degree of warpage from high humidity 33%).

The P-A chipboard brand is worth buying for those jobs in which appearance is important or strength requirements are high. In other cases, it is better not to spend extra money.

Number of layers

Initially, monolithic chipboards were created. They consisted of one layer. The material was not very strong, stratified at the ends, had an unpresentable appearance. But it was used, since single-layer chipboards have good characteristics at a low price.

A few decades later, after numerous experiments, they began to make three-layer chipboard. Large chips are taken into the middle layer, two outer ones are formed from small chips. At the same time, the material is monolithic, there is no separation of layers. This allows you to simultaneously increase strength (not as brittle in bending), improve appearance (fine chips allow you to grind to smoothness) and not drive up the price too much (due to the use of large chips). So three-layer chipboard can be called the best choice.

There are also five-layer chipboards. But they are expensive, rarely appear in stores, it is almost impossible to find them in the markets. This is one of the types that are made to order. It is used in car building and other “serious” industries.

Water resistance

Initially, chipboard boards had low water resistance and could not be used in damp rooms or outside buildings. To improve this characteristic, paraffin or paraffin emulsion was added to the mass. The material is commonly called moisture-resistant chipboard, and its swelling from moisture is 15%.

Moisture-resistant building chipboard is used for exterior cladding of frame houses, for a continuous crate for some types of roofing materials. Laminated moisture-resistant chipboard is used to make furniture for the bathroom, kitchen, and countertops are made from thick plates.

How to choose particle boards

We are talking about choosing a “regular” unfinished slab. You should immediately pay attention to the labeling. It can be applied to the side faces or affixed to the pack. Focusing on the marking (brand, grade, water resistance), choose the material that suits you according to its characteristics.

If there is no marking at all, this is a bad sign. All self-respecting manufacturers put identification marks on their products. Whether or not to buy obscure material with incomprehensible characteristics is up to you.

Next, you need to evaluate the following parameters:

• We check the appearance: chips, peeling, the presence of surface defects.
• Color. The best chipboard is light beige, maybe a little grayish, without spots and transitions. Not bad if it is slightly reddish – this means that rotted wood chips have been used. This does not affect the strength characteristics, but it is better not to use such material in wet rooms or for outdoor decoration. The worst option is a dark color. This is either a sign that the technology was violated (overexposed under pressure or overheated), or a lot of bark was used. Both cases degrade performance.
  

• We estimate the porosity of the plate. Take the keys, a piece of wire, any other hard object and try to stick it into the ends of the plate. Material of normal quality does not react to these actions in any way. If the item causes delamination, look for a more durable material.
• The formaldehyde emission class must be indicated on the label or on accompanying documents. If not, you’ll have to rely on your sense of smell. With normal emissions, at a distance of a meter, the smell of chemicals is almost imperceptible. If it is strong, this material is not suitable for interior work.
• In three-layer boards, larger chips should be located inside. This is clearly seen on the edge of the plate.
  

Thickness differences are also important, but it is difficult to evaluate them on a separate plate. You can “walk” along the edge of several plates with a drawing pen or a micrometer. But this gives only a rough idea of ​​the thickness at the edges. Checking deviations in the plane of the plate is not so easy. The only thing you can look at is a pack of plates. If it is skewed, somewhere there is a deviation in thickness.