Birch plywood is a popular and high quality wood with fine grain texture. It is made out of birch veneers that are bonded and layered in alternating directions up to the required thickness. Standard range of birch ply varies in thickness along with the grading. The popular 18mm birch plywood offers great quality hardwood at an affordable cost. Birch ply that is birch …

Baltic birch plywood is the most versatile plywood available. Baltic birch plywood is unique because of its all-birch veneer core that’s cross-banded and laminated with exterior grade glue, making for a superior stable sheet. It also has a thicker face veneer than traditional cabinet grade plywood. It is famous for its easy machinability and screw holding strength, which is superior …

Principles to minimise potential problems with Class2 and Class 3 off form Surface FinishesPrinciple One: Most issues with off form surface finishes are associated with moisture.Wherever possible protect the formwork from weather. This includestarping where practical.Principle Two: The phenolic surface film used on formwork plywood is not impermeableto moisture. To ensure that moisture penetration is minimised, releaseagent and form oils …

Grain Raising or Surface SwellingGrain raising is caused by moisture penetrating the phenolic surface film and causingswelling of the surface veneer.The causes of grain raising are: Severe weather exposureFailure to use release agent or form oilDamage to the phenolic surface film i.e. misuse of vibrators, handling damageetc.Faulty phenolic surface filmAs mentioned previously, the purpose of the phenolic surface film is …

How to identify rust stainsRust stains can look identical to tannin stains. However, there is a simple method toidentify stains associated with rust or oxidised iron. This involves applying “rust converter”to the stain. If the stain fades or disappears, the stain is caused by rust or oxidised iron. Ifthe stain is unaffected by the application of rust converter, the supplier …

Staining in FormplyThe most common stains associated with formply are: Rust stainingTannin stainingPinking – free phenol from the phenolic surface film.In the writer’s experience, most staining is due to rust deposits on the deck at the time ofpouring or iron in the aggregate. These stains appear red/brown and are often mistakenfor tannin staining.Tannin staining is the result of extractives from …

How to minimise Distortion (Bow and Twist) inFormply Do not use any new panels showing bow or twist out of the pack. Wheredistortion exceeds 30mm, these panels fail the product standard. They shouldnot be used and returned to the manufacturer.Prevent/Minimise Exposure to MoistureWhere formply panels that have been supplied flat on site distort, there is onlyone cause, this is exposure …

Wrap and Twist in FormplyAS 6669 provides a 30mm flatness limitation for formply sheets. To measure flatness,formply sheets are placed concave down on a flat surface and any bow or twist exceeding30mm above the flat fails the product Standard.In addition, sheets must be able to be pushed flat using “palm pressure”, of approximately15kg.Formwork plywood supplied to the market with flatness …

Stress-grades range from F7 to F34. Stress grades F11, F14, F17, F22 and F27 are the mostcommon.AS 6669 specifies four (4) surface qualities Class 2, Class 3, Class 4 and Class 5. Thesesurface qualities are aligned with AS 3610.The most common surface classes from AS 6669 for formply manufactured in Australasiaare: Class 2Class 3Good 1 side – Class 2 one …

Formply is usually sold on the basis of surface class, stress-grade and bond quality. Forexample “Class 2 F17 A Bond”.This indicates that the formwork plywood is intended to provide a Class 2 surface finish,has a stress-grade of F17 and has a Type A bond.AS 6669 permits three (3) bond types as follows: A Bond – Durable for 50 years weather …