home > our products > ply underlay
-
- usage
-
Hardwood Underlayment provides a smooth and durable surface that will both speed up the installation and enhance the appearance of vinyl, ceramic tile, carpet and hardwood floors.
-
- dimensions available
-
The ply can be produced in a variety of configurations depending on your requirement.
thickness
12mm - 7 ply 9mm – 7 ply 6mm – 5 ply 5.5mm – 5 ply 5.2mm – 5 ply
size
4’ x 4’ Easy to handle and transport. Ideal for small installations.
8’ x 4’ Ideal for larger jobs with fewer seams
Other thicknesses and sizes can be considered on request for full container loads.
-
- construction
-
The manufacturing process for the Hardwood Underlayment starts with the original peeling of the veneer from the piece of timber. Each of the layers of ply is visually inspected for knots or holes.
Five or seven layers of good quality solid ply are then used to make up the Underlayment. There are no surface knots or core voids in the material.
top & bottom layer: birch wood or okoume
The Birch wood provides a surface that is strong, hard and durable and resistant to indentation. Both top and back surfaces are sanded to provide a flat and smooth finish.
Use of the inherently light Birch wood also ensures that there is no transfer of yellowing to the floor covering over a period of time.
core: okoume or poplar
The middle three layers are made of Okoume wood which is sourced from Africa. The wood is light in weight averaging 25lbs per cubic foot and closely resembles African mahogany.
lamination and formaldehyde content (E0)
The layers of ply, after being coated with glue, are subjected to heat and pressure for a specified time to produce the laminated product. The glue in the ply contains less than 0.5mg/l of Formaldehyde and is classified under International Standards as E0.
The reason that this wood is so good for use in ply is that it seasons well with no tendency to distort or crack. Furthermore the wood glues easily and strongly and the use of an exterior grade water proof glue helps ensure no delamination during the life of the floor.
Having the birch wood on the top and bottom with Okoume in the centre creates a sandwich effect. This ensures that, when subjected to heat and moisture, the Underlayment remains dimensionally stable with no tendency to warp or buckle over time.
A nail pattern is available to make installation easier and quicker
Economy: Other more economic options using a mixture of Poplar and Okoume are available
-
- testing
-
Visual inspection of each layer of ply to ensure that there are no voids or knots.
Squareness testing to ensure that all adjoining sides will be perpendicular.
The exterior grade glue passes a 2 hour boil test.
Flex testing to protect against delamination and cracking
The Moisture content is measured to ensure that it is less than 6%.
-
- packaging
-
standard packaging
4’ x 4’ 6mm thickness 70 panels
4’ x 4’ 5.5mm thickness 75 panels
4’ x 4’ 5.2mm thickness 80 panels
8’ x 4’ 6mm thickness 70 panels
8’ x 4’ 5.5mm thickness 75panels
8’ x 4’ 5.2mm thickness 80panels
The crate is made up of thin sheets of plywood which provide protection to the Hardwood underlayment panels.
Other packaging configurations can be considered on request.
Promotional Material
We have also created A5 dedicated brochures or fliers for our customers and these have been shipped with the product, providing a cost effective marketing tool.
-
- customer requirement
The above shows the range of options available to a customer. However, we are mindful that every customer will have their own specific requirements.
We can easily accommodate such requests within the overall supply of a minimum quantity of a 40ft container. There is also an option for the Ply Underlayment to be combined with the supply of grippers which means there would be a minimum requirement of 1 crate of Ply with the grippers filing the rest of the container etc.
We simply need your specification which will include the following:
Thickness/ply Size Surface material Core material Bottom Material Packaging
