Given the increase in construction prices, reliable but fairly cheap materials are becoming increasingly important. One of them is moisture resistant chipboard.
Before we begin to describe it, it would be worthwhile to recall what a simple chipboard is. In fact, this is a mixture of crushed
wood chips, branches and fibers, bonded together using synthetic resins.
For this , urea -formaldehyde , urea-formaldehyde , formaldehyde adhesives are used. Plates based on them have good performance, but they are not indifferent to water. They quickly become soaked and destroyed, making their further operation impossible.
What is the feature of moisture resistant boards?
What is the difference between moisture-resistant chipboard? What substance in its composition gives it water-repellent properties? It's simple - the components are fastened with resin, which contains ordinary paraffin.
It restrains moisture, preventing its desire to soak a sheet of material. By the way, it is paraffin that can process household furniture. This is required to be done after you have carried out some work that required making cuts on it. In fact, the same process takes place in production.
How to distinguish?
How to understand what exactly is in front of you when you come to the store? All moisture-resistant chipboard contains a green dye. On the slice of the material you need, you will see a greenish tint. By the way, precisely because of this, it is called the "green plate".
Note that even these plates are still subject to swelling. Just as a percentage of moisture, they absorb less. So, the standard chipboard in just an hour increases by 22%, and its moisture-proof analogue - only by 15%.
Yes, you probably already understood: whatever your furniture is made of, in any case, it must be carefully protected from moisture. Even a moisture-resistant chipboard cannot guarantee the safety of the same kitchen sink if water constantly oozes from all the joints of the water pipes.
But nevertheless, it is this material that is used to assemble furniture that will be operated in conditions of high humidity. When buying such interior items, always require sellers to have all the necessary certificates. There are frequent cases when under the guise of moisture resistance hides an ordinary chipboard, glued with a plastic film.
In addition, in the bathroom, toilet and in the kitchen, experienced craftsmen use moisture-resistant chipboard for the floor. This material goes well with a moisture-resistant laminate.
What should I look for when buying furniture?
Inspect all joints and end parts: if they are poorly insulated, then you should not expect durability from the product. Cunning manufacturers often save on end processing.
It’s not worth buying such shelves for the bathroom and other furniture items: they will not only fall apart soon, but will also emit a lot of harmful substances into the air.
In any case, high-quality chipboard is moisture-resistant, the price of which is 1-1.5 thousand rubles, much more preferable when repairing a toilet or bathroom.