You’ve been hanging around the lumber grand lately because you necessitate wood for one of your do - it - yourself project . You have n’t settled on one case of wood yet , but in utter to experts and other homeowner , something has puzzle in your ear : OSB .
You ’ve find out this acronym around town . What is it , you ask ? While it is a widely used acronym , specifically for sea groups and spiritual system , for our purposes OSB stand for oriented strand board .
Oriented Strand Board 101
orient strand board was make in the late seventies as inventors extend the use of waferboard . It differs from other wood - scrap Cartesian product because its rectangularly shaped wood strands are placed strategically rather than arbitrarily . These " cross orient layers " are manufactured to be piss repellent and resistant to warp [ source : APA Wood ] .
Manufacturers of OSB panels engineer their product to cope with a performance - rated exfoliation . maker need to make certain their mathematical product is strong , multifunctional , uniform and feasible . It comes in various sizes , usually range from a quarter - inch ( 6 mm ) to three - quarters of an inch ( 18.5 mm ) , though customers may put in peculiar sizing asking .
OSB utilise thewoodfrom trees that grow quickly and sustainably , like aspen poplar , southerly yellow-bellied pine tree and mixed hardwood mintage . The procedure of making OSB require cutting the log into strands that are then dry out , prepare and treated with wax , resin , and waterproof heat cured adhesive agent . To form gore , these fibril are group into with child sheets and pressurize at a high temperature .
OSB has come into fashion as a production with the same design and function as plywood — so OSB andplywoodcompete in the marketplace .
How Are OSB Panels Used?
Oriented strand board is a high strong suit building material that boasts a all-embracing range of pragmatic diligence [ source : APA Wood ] . Though they can be used to build just about anything , OSB panes are primarily leaned on for the pursuit :
OSB vs. Plywood
You’re probably conversant with plywood as the principal composite - wood product for expression purposes . You have doubts about the newness of OSB and its power to compete with plywood . So countenance ’s hear some expert judgment on the topic . Turns out , the hesitancy about OSB ring plywood when it arrived on the building scene as a intersection to put back wood sheathing .
plyboard and OSB are strong , durable and long-lasting , so you do n’t have to be concerned about the performance comparison in that area . And , as with any woodwind instrument ware , you require to make trusted to select the right form . You want a grade that will ensure waterproofing capabilities .
The matter to check out with OSB is that if the dialog box is cut at all , this will disable its waterproofing capabilities . OSB has a leaning to swell on the edges when exposed to water , but it resists humidity well compare to plywood [ seed : University of Massachusetts ] .
There ’s no set Leontyne Price for OSB and plywood , so it ’s hard to equate price . In general , though , OSB is less expensive . cost can count on supply , and when you take a look at the gauge number , OSB manufacturers put out almost double of what plywood manufacturers created [ source : Conner Industries ] .
