Which is stronger: MDF or plywood? What is better to choose for the floor: OSB, plywood, chipboard, fiberboard or MDF. Chipboard or plywood which is better

Plywood and MDF boards are two popular options for finishing. Whenever an issue is resolved wooden furniture for your home, you need to decide what basic material will be used.

There are various materials on the market, the most common of which are wood various breeds, plywood, laminated chipboard and MDF.

Wood is an expensive material and is used for high quality furniture. Laminate boards have a very limited selection of colors and patterns.

The most commonly used materials for making furniture for home and office are plywood and MDF. Even though MDF is a relatively new product compared to plywood, it has captured a huge market and is now preferred over plywood.

Plywood

Wood has been used to make furniture since ancient times, but it was a time when wood was available in abundance, and as wood scarcity increased, plywood was invented for those who could not afford teak, walnut or mahogany furniture. Plywood is made from wood, but every piece of wood is used to minimize wood loss. Plywood has many advantages, such as a variety of sizes and thicknesses. It can easily be covered with paint or laminate in any color or pattern. Plywood production minimizes wood waste, but does not eliminate it.

MDF

MDF is an abbreviation for wood fiberboard. medium density. Since the shortage of wood prompted the invention of plywood, MDF is another product that was invented as a wood substitute. MDF is made up of small pieces of wood that are broken down into wood fibers and then compressed using a hydraulic press at very high temperatures. high blood pressure in the form of a board. MDF boards are manufactured in various thicknesses so that they can be easily used in various industries. These slabs are very smooth surface and the furniture they make is of very high quality in terms of attractiveness. MDF can be easily covered with laminate various forms and colors or dyed according to your choice. MDF boards are made from wood fibres, hence they have very little screw-driving capacity.

Both plywood and MDF are made from wood and are used to make furniture for the home and office. Both of these products are widely used by furniture manufacturers around the world and provide flexible handling. The main difference is that plywood is made from solid wood, while MDF is made from wood fibers. Plywood is available in larger sizes than MDF boards. Plywood is much better for nailing and threading than MDF. For MDF fastenings a specific technique is used, and the plywood can simply be nailed or screwed into place. MDF has a better surface for making furniture than plywood.

Resume:

1. Plywood is made from solid wood, while MDF is made from wood fibers.

2. In the production of plywood there is wood loss, and wood loss is zero in the production of MDF; it is also made by mixing various wood fibers.

3. Plywood comes in larger sizes than MDF boards. But MDF is more attractive and you can paint it any color you want.

4. Plywood can simply be nailed down with nails or self-tapping screws; when making furniture from MDF, a certain fastening technique is required.

5. Furniture made from plywood is stronger than furniture made from MDF.

All over the world, MDF is rapidly replacing plywood in the furniture industry. The shortage of wood in the coming years will be completely eliminated by plywood and MDF boards. The most big advantage is that in the production of MDF, wood waste is zero, it is also possible to mix wood fibers of different species, while plywood is made from one species and at a time. Both plywood and MDF are used in furniture, but MDF is now mainly used for furniture, and plywood is used as packaging material as it is stronger than MDF boards. MDF is an environmentally friendly product; if you care about the environment, it is better to choose MDF for making furniture rather than plywood.

Why is the entrance so wet and why will the company look for what is cheaper and what it has http://dspnd.ru/product/27.htm Advantages of MDF boards - http://articles.m-strou.ru/article_5119.... Strength. MDF boards are not inferior in strength natural wood, therefore they can be used for the manufacture of both decorative and fully functional structures. Moisture resistance. The density of the boards and their homogeneous internal structure, as well as the protective outer coating, make it possible to increase the moisture resistance of products, which allows them to wet cleaning without compromising quality. However, the use of MDF panels in bathrooms and swimming pools is not recommended. Decorative. Possibility of finishing various materials(painting, lamination, veneering), as well as combinations in various ways finishing (veneering and painting), allow you to obtain unique designs to create exclusive interiors. Ease of processing. The density of MDF boards is 700-870 kg/m3, which makes it possible to process on milling machines and obtaining various reliefs: from simple ones - for furniture panels - to complex ones - in the production of 3D panels. Durability. MDF panels do not warp, crack or dry out due to temperature changes. Thanks to special impregnations, they are not exposed to insect pests, fungus and mold. Decorative and protective coating does not require additional maintenance - touch-up painting, varnishing, etc. If the operating rules are followed, MDF products can serve their owners for several decades. PLYWOOD is a layered material consisting of sheets of peeled veneer glued together. Peeled veneer is a thin layer of wood of a given thickness in the form of a strip obtained by peeling wood on peeling machines. In this case, a cylindrical piece of wood (block) makes a rotational movement, and the tool (knife) makes a translational movement in the direction of the axis of rotation of the material. Peeled veneer is made from birch, alder, aspen, pine, larch, cedar, oak, ash, beech, elm, and linden wood. Peeled veneer comes out from under the machine knife in the form of a continuous strip of a given thickness and width. To give the wood the necessary plasticity, before peeling, the logs are boiled in water heated to a temperature of 50-60 C. The veneer strip obtained as a result of peeling is cut with special scissors into sheets of a given format, which are then dried, cut, and sorted. Plywood is considered to be made from the type of wood from which its outer layers are made. Plywood has a number of advantages over lumber: it has almost equal strength in all directions; little warping and cracking; bends easily and is convenient for transportation; there are no through cracks in it; plywood sheets have large sizes. Plywood is very promising material who is behind recent years is increasingly used not only traditionally in furniture production, aviation and shipbuilding, but also in construction, interior decoration. It is currently widely used as a base for floor coverings under parquet, laminate, linoleum, carpet, while being an excellent thermal and sound insulation of the floor. The use of plywood in design gives access to volume, allows you to go into three-dimensional space, and lighten the design, especially if it is something non-standard. Plywood is attractive ecological cleanliness, all over the world, especially in Europe, plywood products are considered as solid wood products.

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Let's find out what is better suited for forming a subfloor in a residential area: plywood or chipboard. Both materials have mass positive qualities, which often makes it very difficult to choose. In this review, we will look at all their main characteristics in order to try to give the most comprehensive answer to the question posed.

Comparison

Before we talk about what better than chipboard or plywood, you should decide on the concepts themselves:

Definitions

• Plywood or wood-laminated board is a kind of “layer cake”, in which the layers are coated with special glue;

• Chipboard is an abbreviation for particle board. This material is made from wood waste in the form of shavings and sawdust, which are mixed with glue and then pressed into convenient sheets.

The first difference between chipboard and plywood that catches your eye is the presence of a much larger amount of glue in the structure, which dramatically affects many performance indicators.

Basic parameters

So, what is better for the floor - chipboard or plywood?

Let's look at all the characteristics in order.

1. Appearance:

• The wood-laminated board has an original textured pattern inherent in wood and a pleasant to the eye shade, which allows it to be used even for the formation of finishing;

• The appearance of chipboard is very specific and is usually not put on public display, since it is a compressed chip mass;

1. Strength indicators.

The answer to the question of what is stronger than chipboard or plywood is somewhat ambiguous:

• Plywood is quite hard and at the same time flexible material, which is easy to process with your own hands;

• But chipboard, although it has higher bending strength, crumbles during its processing and holds screws that are screwed in less well;

1. Thermal insulation properties. Here everything is decided by the thermal conductivity coefficient characteristic of these materials:

1. Environmental friendliness. In order to answer the question of what is more environmentally friendly: chipboard or plywood, you should pay attention to the amount of glue used in the manufacture of both materials, because it may contain harmful formaldehydes. From the definition it is clear that particle board uses significantly more adhesive solution, but a wood-laminated product cannot be called environmentally friendly either;

Advice: when purchasing the materials in question for use in a residential area, pay attention to the presence of marks about their environmental friendliness.
If they are absent, it is recommended not to take risks.

1. Installation instructions. Installation of both subfloor options is quite easy on our own. The sheets are not overly heavy, they are easy to cut and lay into a continuous covering, after which they are fixed with ordinary self-tapping screws;

Advice: when cutting chipboard, be sure to use a respirator and safety glasses to protect your eyes and respiratory organs from the toxic dust generated at this moment.

1. Moisture resistance. In this matter, the difference between plywood and chipboard is quite noticeable:

• Wood-laminated board has good resistance to excessive humidity due to the presence of layers of glue;
• Chipboard, although it contains an even larger amount of adhesive solution, does not have a solid wood structure. Sawdust that comes into contact with moisture swells and never returns to its shape;

Tip: both materials have the inherent hydrophobicity of wood, so it is recommended to use them in dry, heated rooms to avoid rotting and mold.

1. Soundproofing. Chipboard absorbs much better unnecessary noise, interfering with your peace;
2. Price. What is cheaper: chipboard or plywood when creating a rough base? Of course, the first option, which is made, in fact, from waste, which cannot be expensive. But for the production of wood-laminated products, veneer sheets are needed, which increases the cost of the finished product;
3. Flammability. Both options pose a danger in the event of a fire, as they are prone to fire. In addition, during the combustion process they will release large number toxic substances, which will only worsen the situation.

Combination

The most significant advantage of chipboard over plywood is low price. Plus, it’s also worth adding bending strength and sound insulation. In other respects, it is significantly inferior. But it is also worth noting that there is also combined option of these two materials - veneered chipboard.

As a result, we get a sample that:

• Better protected from the negative effects of excessive humidity, crumbling and abrasion by a layer of plywood;
• It is cheaper than a full-fledged wood-laminated board, since the inside consists of shavings;
• Looks aesthetically pleasing;
• It has excellent thermal insulation and noise-absorbing properties.

Conclusion

So, chipboard or plywood for the floor - which is better? Having understood all the main characteristics, we can conclude in favor of wood-laminated board. On the other hand, chipboard sheets will allow you to save significantly. In addition, some advantages, such as aesthetics, for example, will not be important for the rough foundation of a floor structure.

So make your choice according to your specific situation and allocated budget, and for special occasions you can always purchase veneered models that include the advantages of both products.

The video in this article contains some additional information that is directly related to the materials discussed. Make your choices wisely. If you have any questions regarding the above topic, you can ask them in the comments.