Chipboard flooring is available in 18mm and 22mm thicknesses, and the tongue & groove sheets are 2400m x 600mm (approx. 8′ x 2′) in size. The sheets use high-density particleboard and are suitable for both domestic and commercial flooring. Our two principle brands stocked at Southern Timber are Norbord Caberfloor and Kronospan, and large OSB stocks are maintained by this Devon timber merchant.
What is P5 Chipboard and why use it?
The maximum spans for joist centres are 450mm for 18mm and 610mm for 22mm in domestic installations. It is more usual to use 400 or 600mm joist spacing as they “fit” the most commonly used board lengths of 2400mm. At Southern Timber all our chipboard flooring stock is P5 grade, it utilises a melamine fortified resins to make the boards moisture resistant. When exposed to intermittent rain and dampness the product retains a high percentage of its original strength, but installation is preferable in dry conditions because the boards are moisture resistant, not waterproof.
The Caberfloor brand has a green identification dye added to the surface to make it recognisable as P5; the Kronospan P5 particleboard uses no green dye because they no longer manufacture any non-moisture resistant flooring.
Fixing Chipboard Flooring Panels
The T&G panels should be laid in a staggered pattern with long edges across the joists and short edges falling on the centre of joists. Should the short edges overhang then the overhang must be supported by a noggin. Gluing the T&G edges is recommended, it improves joint strength and accommodates a degree of joist variation. All joints must be glued with an adhesive such as moisture resistant PVA type to Classification D3 of BS EN 204. Gluing will also help reduce the effects of joist movement or variation which often lead to movement and ‘creaks’ in the panels.
Boards can be fixed by nailing or screwing. If nailing, annular ring shank nails should be used for fastening all edges to the joists. If screw fixing, use a suitable pilot hole followed by posi-drive No. 8 screws, or equivalent. Fix the boards with four fixings to each short edge joint, two about 25mm from each end and two equidistant in between. All joints must be tightly butted. Length of fixings used should be 2.5 times the thickness of the board. Four equi-distant fixings should be used on panel ends and three at intermediate joists.
Wherever possible full fixing details should be sought from the manufacturers website.
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