Cutting of cement board must also be done with carbide-tipped tools and saw blades. It is approximately twice that of gypsum board, making handling by one person difficult. One major disadvantage of cement board is the weight per square foot. In areas continually exposed to water spray (i.e., showers) a waterproofing material is usually recommended behind the boards (i.e., plastic barrier) or as a trowel-applied product to the face of the boards behind the finish system (i.e., liquid membrane). It absorbs moisture as well, but it has excellent drying properties.

Also cement board provides a stronger bond and support with tiles than typical gypsum board. The actual recipe depends on available raw materials and other local factors.Īs a tile backing board, cement board has better long-term performance than paper-faced gypsum core products because it will not mildew or physically break down in the continued presence of moisture or leaks. Cenospheres are used only in low density boards with quantities between 10 and 15%. Other additives like above mentioned aluminium stearate and PVA are normally used in quantities less than 1%. Typical cement fiber board is made of approximately 40-60% of cement, 20-30% of fillers, 8-10% of cellulose, 10-15% of mica. Many manufacturers use additives like mica, aluminium stearate and cenospheres in order to achieve certain board qualities. Fibre boards are made in very thin layers, making it extremely difficult to manufacture high thickness boards. Cement fibre boards are more used in decorative applications and can be manufactured from 1⁄ 8 to 13⁄ 16 inch (3 to 20 mm) thickness. These boards are made of a homogeneous mixture and hence are formed as single layer for any thickness.

Cement particle boards are manufactured from 1⁄ 4 to 1 + 9⁄ 16 inches (6 to 40 mm) thickness making it suitable for high load bearing applications. In terms of load-bearing capacity, cement-bonded particle boards have higher capacity than cement fibre boards. The fire resistance properties of cement bonded blue particle boards and cement fibre boards are the same. Cement boards are mainly cement bonded particle boards and Fibre cement.Ĭement bonded particle boards have treated wood flakes as reinforcement, whereas in cement fibre boards have cellulose fibre, which is a plant extract as reinforcement.

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