Frequently Asked Questions
Fiber Cements produced in completely natural raw materials. It contains cellulose fibres, cement and mainly sand.
Absolutely Not, they are completely Environment Friendly.
They are totally incombustible. They can be fire-rated for about 1 – 3 hours and since incombustible and natural in nature, Fibre Cement are safe and do not spread fire and emit poisonous gases. Hence they are safely used for Exterior and Roofing.
Fibre Cement Boards can be long lasting generally due to the materials used in structure and since they are weather resistant under tougher conditions and under high temperatures.
Fibre Cement Boards are easy to cut, carve, paint, wall-papered or used as tile-backing. Any kind of acrylic or polyurethane paints can be used on a regular basis., however Paint duration would depend on the quality of the Paint and not the board. Since it does not chip, break or corrode, the paint usually remains intact.
No, sea-water can affect Fibre Cement Boards as they are completely Moisture Resistant and hence can be used in extreme conditions on coastal or sunny regions.
They have water absorption but not permeable.
With right use of material ie. Rockwool, Thermal or Acoustic Insulation can be obtained.
Fibre Cement Boards are highly Impact Resistant to heavy blows or objects., since they are evenly distributed with cellulose in their structure.
Yes, we can use normal application of Jointing Compounds as any other Gypsum board usage. Polyurethane Putty on the Exterior and Acrylic Putty on the Interiors without any use of Plasters due to their smooth finish.
Diamond Tipped Drill or Granite cutting knives can be used on them since they are very durable due to sand in their structure.
Yes, Fibre Cement Boards are Termite Resistant.
MDF is half price of the Plywood. B/C grade like Sandeply or Radiata may be more reasonably priced almost similar to MDF., but Plywood comes in Grades and Types.
Cabinet Plywood like Birch, Maple or Oak can be slightly higher.
Both are Tree-based Woods with by-products containing lot of GLUE.
Plywood is closest to normal Lumber made of bunch of Veneers or thin layers of Wood. They are pressed together like sandwich using GLUE, HEAT AND PRESSURE. Each layer is 90 degrees one below or above it, so it counter acts to split or bow. Much stronger than MDF as it has Cross- Laid Grains.
MDF is a fine Wood Pulp and Glue., sort of like a Mush, so it gets flattened and pressed into sheets and has no grain to it or Veneer Lumber going into it almost like a cake batter gets pressed into a sheet., lot more like Fiber board hence the name MDF – MEDIUM DENSITY FIBREBOARD.
Also a Cheaper alternative to Plywood as its more smoother and uniformed.
Both can be worked with and hold paint very well. MDF is not stain-grade so very smooth to paint directly., but Plywood would have to cover grains so would have to be covered for a smoother finish.
Plywood is more durable. The corners don’t get dinged or bent as badly.
Both respond to tools in a similar way. MDF produces sharper, cleaner cuts than Plywood, which tends to tear out. Both can be drilled with Drill bits. Plywood holds the screw much better esp. in the edge.
MDF edges should basically never been fastened into with extra support. None have good edge exposure.
Plywood makes dust similar to other lumber. But MDF makes terrible dust. Better to work with it with respirator and hook up vacuum filtration for your cuts.
Plywood comes in both grades. Treated Plywood is used for Exterior and does resist Fungus. Untreated Plywood does get delaminate and the layers come apart.
MDF is really an Interior material as it soaks up moisture and relatively turns into MUSH.
Both can be used for Shelving, Built-Ins and Cabinets.
Manufactured by Expanding Spherical beads in a mould, using heat and pressure to fuse the beads together. While each individual bead is a closed cell environment, there are significant open spaces between each bead.
Moulded in large blocks that are subsequently cut by hot-wire machines into sheets or any special shape or form by computer driven systems.
EPS blowing agent leaves the beads rather quickly creating thousands of tiny cells full of air.
EPS absorbs more water than XPS resulting in reduced performance and lost insulation power (R-value)
Manufactured in a continuous extrusion process that produces a homogènes “closed cell” matrix with each other cell full enclosed by polystyrene walls.
XPS is extruded into sheets – mixed with additives & a blowing agent, which is then melted together through the dye.
XPS blowing agent stays embedded into the materials for years.
XPS is often selected over EPS for wetter environments that require a higher water vapour diffusion R-Value
Compressive Strength of XPS is greater than that of EPS.