Plywood is a common and basic building material.
Plywood is one of the quintessential supplies at a lumberyard or home center, and understanding a little bit about what it's capable of can really improve your construction projects. Plywood itself comes in a number of different styles and strengths, so understanding its specifications means you can choose the right type of plywood for the job.
Sizes
It's possible to get plywood sheets in nearly any size, but most lumber yards stores carry the material in the standard size of 4-by-8-foot sheets. Many stores will also cut the wood to a smaller size for you on request. The wood also comes in a variety of widths, and you can likely request the specific width of the wood that you need. The precise thickness is listed on a stamp on the plywood.
Rating
Plywood panels have a stamp on them which contains lots of information. For example, the first word under the Engineered Wood Association's "APA" logo describes what the piece of wood is recommended for. For example, "Siding" means the wood is recommended for wall siding, and "sheathing" which is ideal for subfloors and similar sheathed uses.
Span Rating
The first number on the stamp is the span rating. This is the recommended distance between two supports beneath the wood. For example, "16oc" meaning "16-inches, on center" is printed on the wood, which means that if you use it as a floor, you should put the centers of the support beams no more than 16 inches apart beneath the panel.
Bond Rating
Each panel is bonded with a special glue which has one of three different ratings for the use, "Interior," "Exterior" and "Exposure I." The Interior and exterior panels are rated for indoor or outdoor use respectively. Panels rated for exposure can survive in some weather, but not all outdoor weather.
Product Standard
Beneath a single black bar, on the trademark stamp, there will be a product standard description. It is just a few words, such as "Underlayment" or "Strength axis this direction." These describe the ideal use for the plywood board, as part of a subfloor for example. Consult these recommendations for more information on use the plywood.
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