How to make OSB lathing on walls. Self-tapping screws for OSB - choose and calculate correctly

Wooden floors in a private home lose their presentable appearance over time. Numerous layers of paint are cracking and peeling at the edges. And because of this, often even a newly painted surface looks sloppy. To tidy up such a floor, you have to completely clean the boards, treat the wood, and then periodically paint it again.

Therefore, when carrying out the next renovation, many homeowners make a different decision. Specifically: lay on top wooden floor one of the modern decorative coatings- laminate, parquet board, linoleum or carpet.

To implement such an idea, it is necessary that the base of the floor is suitable for laying a decorative covering. That is, it had a perfectly flat surface, aligned in a horizontal plane, without protrusions, “ladders,” or sagging areas. This can be achieved by installing OSB on a wooden floor.

General information about OSB boards

Unique physical and mechanical characteristics, with comparatively affordable price, make OSB boards increasingly popular in various areas construction. With the help of this material, floors can be perfectly leveled and laid, and with minimal effort, low costs and saving time. In addition, even a home owner inexperienced in the art of construction can handle the installation of slabs on the surface on his own.

Before learning the technology OSB installation-slabs, it is necessary to briefly consider their characteristics and compare them with other similar materials.

It must be said that oriented strand boards, in some of their technical and operational characteristics superior to other materials of similar purpose. But, due to their design features, they most often cannot be used as a floor finish.

Oriented strand boards are made from wood chips, laid in several layers in a longitudinal-transverse manner. On outer layers The chips are usually placed along the length of the slabs, and across them on the internal slabs. The layers are bonded together under pressure with polymer resins.

Thanks to this technology for manufacturing OSB boards, they have improved physical and mechanical properties compared to some other similar building materials.

The main characteristics of oriented strand boards are shown in the table:

The characteristic features of OSB boards during their installation and operation can be outlined as follows:

• High moisture resistance. When testing in laboratory conditions, the material was completely immersed in water for 24 hours. As a result, the swelling was only 18÷25%. And at the same time, the slab was not destroyed, and its strength was preserved.
• Durability and long service life. Oriented strand boards can withstand high loads and extreme conditions. Thanks to the multilayer structure of the material, the plates hold fasteners well.
• Easy installation of large-format sheet material.
• The low cost makes such slabs affordable, even if the amount allocated for repairs is limited.
• OSB boards, manufactured in accordance with technological requirements, consist of 96% natural materials. Therefore, they can be called conditionally environmentally friendly. If slabs are purchased for use in residential premises, you should choose material marked E1.

Thanks to your technical specifications Oriented strand boards are excellent for subflooring under decorative flooring.

• The slabs have a perfectly flat surface. Therefore, they can easily level wooden floors made from ordinary wooden boards and deformed during long-term use.
• Each slab covers quite large area floor. The most common sizes are 2240x1220 mm and 2500x1250 mm. And this corresponds to 2.98 and 3.125 square meters. When laying them, the surface will have a minimum number of joints. Therefore, they are ideal for arranging a base for flooring consisting of small-format elements - parquet boards, parquet, vinyl tiles, etc.

• OSB boards have self-supporting ability and stable geometry. Therefore, they can be used as a rough floor covering, fastening them to installed logs or sparsely left floorboards. Thanks to these same qualities, slabs can strengthen the old one, raising it bearing capacity and rigidity.
• Since the slabs consist of several layers of wood, which itself has sound and heat insulating qualities, covering them to some extent can protect the room from extraneous noise. In addition, an additional layer attached to the wooden floor will help reduce heat leakage from the rooms.

• OSB boards are not afraid of moisture, so they can be used to create a subfloor structure on joists. Moreover, by sheathing the logs with them both above and below, it is possible to fill the resulting space with one of the insulating materials.

In the table below, for greater clarity of information, comparative evaluation characteristics of various board materials made from wood raw materials and having approximately the same purpose are given.

Name of the estimated parameters	Rating on a five-point scale
Final average score	2,86	3,00	3,28	3,57
	MDF	Chipboard	Glued plywood	Plates OSB
Strength	2	3	4	4
Resistance to external weather influences	1	2	3	3
Stability of dimensional parameters	2	3	3	3
Weight	2	2	3	3
Manufacturability of machining	3	4	4	5
Manufacturability of surface painting	5	3	3	2
Probability of material defects (delamination, presence of sinuses, knots)	5	4	3	5

Types of OSB boards

Today, construction stores offer several varieties of oriented strand boards. They differ in characteristics, and therefore in purpose. Therefore, when choosing a material for a specific area of ​​construction or repair, it is necessary to pay attention to this factor.

• OSB-1 - this material has very low moisture resistance and strength, and is not of particular quality. Therefore, such slabs are most often used only for auxiliary work.
• OSB-2 boards are already of much higher quality, but their moisture resistance indicators are still not outstanding. They are, as a rule, intended for use in dry rooms in those structures where contact with moisture is completely excluded.

• OSB-3 is a universal product that can be used for covering surfaces both in dry rooms and in rooms with high humidity. They are used to cover walls, lay them on wooden floors when leveling them, and arrange floors along joists.
• OSB-4 have a thickness of 15÷25 mm and are most often used for construction load-bearing structures in rooms with any level of humidity or even outdoors. They can also be used for flooring as a subfloor.

Plates may have different linear dimensions, but the sizes already mentioned above are more common. However, you need to pay attention to this parameter when purchasing material. This way it will be possible to reduce waste when cutting them.

Preparing the surface for OSB boards

In order for OSB boards to fit perfectly on top of plank floors, and during operation to avoid problems in the form of squeaks and sagging, it is necessary to carry out a number of steps before installing them preparatory work:

• An inspection of the plank base is carried out to identify rotten boards and joists. Creaking and warped areas of the old flooring are identified.
• In addition, it is necessary to check the condition of the insulation, if it is present in the overall “pie” of the floor structure. Thermal insulation should not be damp, settled, damaged by rodents, etc. Sometimes you have to change it too.

You can check the evenness of a wooden floor using a building level or a rule. The tool is installed on the surface across the boards. If a gap has formed between the boards and the tool, then the floor is deformed and requires repair.

Unevenness in an old wooden floor is by no means uncommon. Over many years of operation, it is not only subjected to high loads, but is also “tested” by changes in humidity. A wet board becomes deformed when it dries - it can bend, wrap itself like a “propeller,” etc.

If the floors are not put in order, then the laid OSB boards will not rest on the entire plank surface, but only on the raised sections of the boards. And what will happen in the end?

During installation work, slabs with a small thickness will take the form of irregularities in the plank base. It will not be possible to properly lay laminate or parquet boards on such a surface due to the peculiarities of the interlocking joints.

Oriented strand boards of large thickness do not have pronounced flexibility, so it will not be possible to press them tightly to an uneven base using fasteners. This means that the coating will begin to creak either immediately after installation, or after some time.

There are two ways to level a plank floor:

• Dismantling deformed boards and replacing them with new, smooth ones. The option can hardly be considered cost-effective, so it is used infrequently.

• Surface scraping using special equipment.

The second option is possible if the boards have risen above the main surface to a not too great height.

If the boardwalk sags, it means that the board used is too thin. Or the logs underneath are spaced too far apart. If you use thin OSB boards to level such a floor, they will begin to sag along with the plank base. Well, the decorative coating will begin to “dance” along with them. In such situations, if the condition of the logs themselves does not cause any complaints, it is necessary to use OSB with a thickness of 18÷22 mm for covering the surface.

However, we repeat, this is only possible if the plank covering is mounted on strong, reliable joists. That is, they also need to be inspected by temporarily removing two or three floorboards.

If the floors were leveled using scraping, then upon completion of the work the boards must be thoroughly cleaned and then covered with a special impregnation with an antiseptic effect.

Installation work for laying OSB on a wooden floor

OSB boards are laid on wooden floors in different ways. This often depends on what kind of flooring will be laid on top.

• For example, if you plan to lay laminate, parquet boards vinyl tiles etc., then the installation should be planned so that the joints of the parts flooring did not coincide with the joints of the OSB boards.
• If you do not want to calculate the location of the floor covering elements, then you can choose the option of transverse laying. That is, lay the OSB boards so that the joints of the elements finishing flooring were perpendicular to the joints of the base slabs.
• Or, if you like, you can choose diagonal laying finishing coating, at an angle of 45 degrees. By the way, such an installation scheme, for example, of a laminated board, can be relevant in rooms with uneven walls. This option will visually hide flaws in the geometry of the room.
• Before starting installation, be sure to check the evenness of the corners. And it is advisable to start installation work with the smoothest of them.
• Another frequently occurring problem is the divergence of opposite walls in the form of a trapezoid. In this case, it is necessary to make preliminary markings and adjust the slabs laid along the walls according to it. Leaving narrow wedge-shaped strips along the walls in the hope of later filling them with scraps is absolutely the wrong approach.

Installation tools

To perform installation work, naturally, you will need some tools and auxiliary materials:

• To cut OSB boards, you need to have a hacksaw on hand, electric jigsaw and/or a hand-held circular saw. A cut made with a regular hacksaw will not be very neat, and it will take much more time and effort. Therefore, the best option is a jigsaw. Even a novice master can handle this tool. WITH circular saw the work is somewhat more difficult, but faster, and the cut is the most even.

If you don’t have such tools at your disposal, you can look for rental options. Many stores offer similar services.

• To secure the slabs to a plank surface you will need
• You will need a tape measure, a long metal ruler, a construction square, painter's cord for marking straight lines and a black marker.
• Fasteners - black self-tapping screws 35 mm long.

There is a lot of controversy about black self-tapping screws, saying that they do not provide reliable fixation. It is difficult to agree with this - with a prepared, leveled, stable foundation, exorbitant loads are not expected. And such a self-tapping screw can break off only under very catastrophic destructive influences. But in such a situation, no other fasteners will help.

Installation of OSB boards

So, the installation process consists of several stages and is carried out in the following order:

• The first step along the longitudinal wall of the room is to mark a line, which will immediately show how smooth it is.
• The edge of the slab that will join the wall must be marked and trimmed so that it takes the direction of the wall and the shape of the corner in which it will be laid. The outer lines of the slab must remain perfectly smooth, with a factory edge. Therefore, it is not recommended to touch at least two sides of the sheet.
• When laying the slab against the wall, it is necessary to maintain a deformation gap, which should be 10÷12 mm. To ensure that the gap is the same, you can use spacer wedges. Another option is to glue an elastic damper tape around the perimeter of the walls below before starting work.

• All sheets of the first row may have to be adjusted along the line of the wall so that on the outside their edge forms one straight line. To make it easier to maintain this border, focusing on the outer edge of the first sheet, using a paint cord, on plank floor a straight line is struck from wall to wall.

• All the slabs of the first row are laid along this line and then secured. It is necessary to leave a gap of 3–5 mm between the plates to avoid squeaks or even deformations during thermal expansion of the material.

• The second row of sheets, whatever their size, is laid so that their joints do not coincide with the joints of the sheets of the first row. That is, a shift is made like “ brickwork" It often happens that the remains of the last sheet of the previous row become the beginning of the next one.
• The last row will also have to be adjusted, but to the opposite wall. Well, the very last sheet goes to the corner.

• The slabs are fixed to the base using self-tapping screws. They are screwed in strictly vertically in increments of 350÷400 mm. And their caps should be recessed into the thickness of the slab by 2–3 mm. In order for the slabs to be fixed as firmly and reliably as possible, it is best to fasten them not only around the perimeter. As an option, draw two diagonal lines, and also screw in self-tapping screws along them with the same pitch. This is especially important if the base is covered with large, entire OSB sheets.

Some craftsmen use nails for fastening. But this is not recommended, since squeaks may occur during further use of the coating.

In fact, this is all the secrets of installing OSB boards on a wooden base. As you can see, the task is not so difficult, and any owner should cope with it.

* * * * * * *

A few final words. Although oriented strand boards are considered suitable only for arranging a subfloor, some craftsmen can easily turn them into a decorative coating. For this process, special technology and varnish are used. At the same time, the floor surface is no less aesthetic and durable than when expensive materials are laid on it.

One more thing. You should never forget about your own health and that of your loved ones. Completely environmentally friendly OSB can be considered products of emission class E1 or E0.5 with the designations “Green” or “ECO”.

Such materials are made without components harmful to human health. As a rule, these are products from European manufacturers that fully comply with technology that meets strict EU environmental standards. However, the cost of such products is somewhat higher.

Some Russian manufacturers, unfortunately, do not care enough about consumer health. And most often, adhesives containing formaldehyde resins are used as a binder. The cost of such materials is low.

When purchasing OSB, each owner must decide for himself what is more important to him: the price of the material or the health of his family. And to make sure that the selected slabs are clean, you should ask the seller for a certificate of material quality.

The information content of the article will be complemented by a video that shows the nuances of installing OSB boards on a wooden base.

Video: Leveling a plank floor with OSB boards

Before talking about the technical details and subtleties of the internal OSB sheathing or OSB boards (aka OSB, OSB sheets), it is worth thinking about the feasibility of this event. Installation of OSB boards indoors takes place in two cases, namely:

1. If you have frame house and the frame is not sheathed yet.
2. If the pattern and texture of OSB boards are a decorative element.

If you just need to level the walls, then for this purpose would be better suited plasterboard, since it is cheaper and more convenient to work with during installation and further finishing.

Technologies outer skin houses are described in the article: . Let's look at the question here correct installation OSB boards on the walls inside the house.

Selecting slabs for installing OSB on walls inside the house

When using any material inside a house, including OSB boards, you should pay attention to its harmlessness to the health of the inhabitants of this house. 34 years have passed since the appearance of OSB boards, and all these years the debate about the environmental friendliness of OSB boards has not stopped. In fact, there are grounds for these disputes, since in fact, when gluing wood chips, polymer resins containing formaldehyde are used. But formaldehyde is also found in many other surrounding things, for example, in fabrics in laminated chipboard furniture, combustion products, etc.

OSB boards on the walls inside the house.

To prevent people from being poisoned by formaldehyde, enlightened Europeans established control over the production of OSB boards and divided the harmfulness of boards into classes. Boards with formaldehyde emission class E1 are harmless to human health and are used in the construction of residential buildings. Therefore, when purchasing OSB panels, choose a reliable and trusted manufacturer, as your health may depend on it. The Austrian four-star hotel Arlmont, whose interior decoration is replete with OSB panels, can say better than any words about the environmental friendliness of OSB panels.

Hotel Arlmont, OSB sheets are used in the interior decoration.

OSB boards are divided into water resistance classes:

OSB-1 is the board class most susceptible to moisture and has the lowest strength. Such boards are used for furniture production.

OSB-2 is a class of boards with the same moisture resistance as OSB-1, but more durable. Such boards can be used for wall cladding in dry rooms.

OSB-3 - moisture-resistant boards with high strength. They are suitable for installation in damp areas. But with prolonged contact with water they become deformed.

OSB-4 - boards with maximum moisture resistance. They are able to withstand prolonged contact with water.

OSB4 boards are not widely popular due to their price, which is on average twice as high as OSB3 boards. Therefore, OSB3 boards are widely used. If they are treated with a primer or painted, then such slabs become resistant to prolonged contact with water.

More details about various characteristics OSB sheets can be found in the article:.

Cladding the walls of a frame house from the inside

Before you start interior lining frame house, it is necessary to insulate the walls, close the frame from the outside and insulate it with a vapor barrier.

It is recommended to insulate walls with mineral wool, and it is better to use slab wool, since it is easier to work with than polystyrene foam, it holds up better in vertical structures and does not settle down, which happens with fiberglass insulation. Other insulation materials are not excluded and are also suitable for insulating the walls of a frame house. More details from various insulation materials can be found in the article: .

After insulating the walls, they must be covered with a vapor barrier. Vapor barrier membrane protects the wall from moisture penetration, which will keep the house frame and insulation dry. The vapor barrier is fastened with a regular construction stapler, with an overlap of 10-15 cm, and glued together with special double-sided tape.

An example of a frame house wall design. WITH inside laid on the frame vapor barrier film, OSB boards are attached on top of it.

The sheathing itself is done as follows: the sheets are screwed one after another to the frame of the house. The gap between the sheets is 3 mm. The sheets are screwed with wood screws 35-40 mm long. All holes (for windows, doors, mounting holes) are cut with a jigsaw.

Decorative wall cladding with OSB boards and lathing

It is best to use it as a sheathing metallic profile as for gypsum board. It is easy to install and is not subject to deformation like wood. When choosing wooden bars for sheathing, it is better to use bars made from dried wood, because such bars bend and curl less when they dry out. The installation technologies in both cases are not fundamentally different, so let’s consider them using the example of lathing made of metal profiles.

In order to sheathe internal walls with OSB boards, you need to start by installing sheathing on the walls of the room.

The lathing installation technology looks like this:

1. First you need to install the starting profile, which is mounted on the adjacent walls, floor and ceiling as in Figure 1. On the sides, the profile should stand strictly vertically and close along the perimeter with the upper and lower profile.

Figure 1. The starting profile is mounted to the adjacent wall. And it closes with the upper and lower profile.

2. After installing the starting profile, you need to make markings on the wall for hanging. Since the suspensions will hold vertical racks lathing, you need to mark it in such a way that two solid OSB sheets meet in the middle of the profile, you also need to install one profile in the center of each solid OSB sheet.

Hangers are attached to the wall. The sheathing is attached to them.

3. Mount the profile. When fixing the profile on hangers, it is important to control the plane of the sheathing as a rule, so that in the future a “hole” or “belly” does not form on the wall.

Installation of OSB boards on interior wall using lathing.

The subfloor is quick, high quality and inexpensive - this is exactly the combination that most builders and their clients are trying to achieve. The easiest way to create such a floor covering is from OSB boards. The installation technology depends on the type of base and additional requirements for the finished floor.

OSB: composition and characteristics

OSB or OSB are oriented strand boards. In transliteration, OSP is often called OSB, but this is not entirely correct, since it contradicts the decoding, but is used everywhere.

The slabs are a composite of large wood chips and polymer binders. They are formed from several layers located perpendicular to each other. This design ensures the resistance of the sheets to twisting deformations and makes them resistant to tearing and delamination.

In terms of production technology, OSB is identical to chipboard with the difference that the first uses finely planed wood chips up to 4 mm thick and up to 25 cm long, while the second uses fine sawdust. Thermosetting resins (urea-formaldehyde, melamine, etc.) are added to the raw materials as binders. Typical sizes slabs:

• height 2440 mm,
• width - 1220 mm,
• thickness – 6-38 mm

OSB is available in 4 varieties:

• OSB-1 – thin boards used for the production of packaging, furniture blanks, construction of temporary structures, etc.
• OSB-2 is a standard sheet that can be used in dry, ventilated areas. Application - for internal rough work (flooring, leveling walls, ceilings, forming utility boxes, etc.).
• OSB-3 is a moisture-resistant material containing paraffin additives. It has increased resistance to high humidity and is recommended for use both indoors and for outdoor finishing work.
  

  Withstands high humidity both indoors and outdoors. When used in rooms such as bathrooms, bathhouses and others, it is recommended to use coating or floor waterproofing materials.

• OSB-4 – durable high-density boards. This is a material for forming load-bearing structures.

It is impossible to say for sure which one is better or worse. It all depends on the destination. Leveling the base for laminate, linoleum, ceramic tiles and other types finishing materials carried out using OSB-3 sheets. Their advantages are that they perfectly withstand heavy loads (furniture, equipment) even when installed on joists, are resistant to changes in temperature and humidity, are easy to process, and installation can be done even by an inexperienced beginner.

In addition to the above advantages, OSB is heat insulating material with a slight noise reduction effect. That's why vinyl and carpet manufacturers so often strongly recommend laying a warm, hard underlay on the concrete floor first. wood materials, which is closed with a fine finish.

The thickness of the slabs used depends on the installation method. For a flat concrete base with a difference of no more than 2-4 mm for every 2 meters of area, it is reasonable to use panels of 10-12 mm. When laying a floor on joists with your own hands, installation of OSB with a cross-section of 18 mm or more is justified. Experts recommend laying sheets of 10-12 mm in 2 layers with overlapping seams. The result is a multi-layered “substrate” that guarantees increased strength and durability of the base.

We will consider OSB installation technology below.

Laying OSB on a wooden floor

We especially note that semi-dry coating cannot be used on wooden floors. cement-sand screed, lay GVL, asbestos-cement boards and other similar materials.

The fact is that the coefficients of thermal expansion and moisture absorption of these construction materials do not correspond to those of wood. There is a high risk that the base may begin to rot under the leveling layer, mold, etc.

To install OSB on a wooden floor, you will need the following tools:

• electric planer for removing excessively protruding parts;
• hammer or screwdriver;
• electric drill;
• hydraulic level;
• nails or screws for wood;
• tape measure and construction pencil;
• hacksaw or jigsaw;

From building materials, you will additionally need a lath to form a lag 4x5cm, 3x4 cm, insulation ( mineral wool, ecowool, expanded clay) or soundproofing material, as well as antiseptic and putty compounds for filling holes and potholes in the base.

Installation begins with preparing the wooden floor. The surface must be carefully inspected, protruding parts must be cut off, and holes and other defects must be filled with quick-drying repair compounds. This can be a special wood putty, blitz cement, or simply sawdust mixed with PVA glue.

Before laying OSB, skirting boards, nails and other irregularities are first removed from the subfloor

To protect against mold and bugs, the base must be covered with several layers of fire-retardant impregnation or primer with antiseptic additives. Ideally, you can also coat it with varnish, but rarely does this happen. Complete drying time is at least 3 days.

The next stage is the frame. The joists also require protection, so the beams are treated with bioprotective compounds, cut to the size of the room and mounted to the floor with self-tapping screws at a distance of 30-60 cm parallel to each other. The evenness is checked using a hydraulic level; thin dies can be placed under the slats for adjustment. Heat-insulating or noise-reducing material is placed in the gaps.

The final stage of the subfloor is attaching the OSB boards to the frame with your own hands using self-tapping screws or nails. The sheets are marked, appropriate cutting is carried out if necessary, and tightly fixed to the joists.

It is imperative to leave thermal compensation gaps between the wall and OSB sheets 2-5 mm wide. It is not necessary to leave a distance between adjacent slabs.

After finishing the work, you need to check the resulting base with a level. If there are uneven spots at the joints, they can be smoothed out with a grinder or simply sandpaper. Additionally, to ventilate the “pie”, it is recommended to drill several holes near the walls with a drill.

If you lay OSB on a wooden base without joists, then the floor should be fairly level, dry and durable. In this case, you can only get by with self-tapping screws and a screwdriver, and the leveling can be done in a day. The coating will work of proper quality, if you fasten materials to each other not only around the perimeter, but also crosswise over the entire area of ​​the sheet.

Installation of OSB on a concrete floor

A subfloor made of oriented strand boards can only be formed on dry, “ripened” concrete with a moisture content of no more than 6%. But even in this case, it is recommended to use a waterproofing film, membrane or coating composition. If you install OSB without this protection, then excess humidity Mold, fungi, and areas of rot may appear on the base.

For laying sheets with your own hands directly on concrete base It is recommended to use panels with a thickness of 10-16 mm. Such leveling is allowed with differences of up to 2 mm per 2 m 2. This is enough to make the subfloor warm and smooth. Installation begins with laying the waterproofing substrate. The joints are fixed with adhesive tape. OSB sheets are placed on top and tightly secured with self-tapping screws. There should be a gap of 2-3 mm between the wall and the edge of the subfloor.

If installation is carried out on logs, then beams are first fixed on top of the film, heat or sound insulating material is installed in the gaps, then everything is covered with OSB sheets on top. Foam plastic, EPS and other types of insulation can be used as a thermal insulator.

To make a high-quality subfloor on joists or on a foundation, do not forget to constantly check the work done with a hydraulic level. This will minimize differences and correct errors in a timely manner.

OSB board is a modern construction material, which, according to its characteristics, has successfully replaced chipboard and plywood. These are also used in construction frame houses, and for insulation. These products are also used for arranging rough coverings. An OSB floor is an excellent opportunity to inexpensively and with minimal effort level a concrete screed or

What is OSB?

Oriented strand board consists of several layers pressed and then glued with special waterproof resins. It is glued together in three layers. On external sides The chips are placed along the length, inside - perpendicularly. This solution gives the new building material particular strength.

Types of OSB boards

Several types of these slabs are used in construction work, as well as during repairs. So, OSB-2 is a panel that has very low moisture resistance. This decision suitable only for interior work in dry rooms.

OSB-3 is more universal plate. Among the characteristics is high resistance to moisture both indoors and outdoors. The plate also has a huge safety margin.

OSB-4 is the most durable and most moisture-resistant materials. They are used only to create load-bearing structures in conditions where the humidity level is especially high.

Which slabs are suitable for the floor?

If you need to make a floor from OSB, then OSB-3 is best suited for these purposes. These slabs can withstand the impact of heavy furniture, various equipment and other mechanical loads.

These panels are used before laying the finishing floor covering. If on rough concrete or wooden base There are only small defects, then the thickness of the sheets in this case should be no more than 10 mm. If there are larger protrusions and depressions on the surface, then it is best to use thicker slabs. Their thickness in this case should be from 10 to 15 mm.

If you plan to build the floor on joists, then even thicker sheets should be used - the thickness should be from 15 to 25 mm.

Selection rules

It is worth knowing some selection rules. It is very important who made the sheets. Experienced experts recommend choosing products from Canada or Europe. As for the size, the standard for this material is 2.44x1.22 m.

Main functions of OSB boards

Such panels are used to create an even and maximum solid foundation under different kinds modern finishing floor coverings. It could be parquet ceramic tile, laminate, carpet.

This perfect option for leveling floors. The plywood that was used before does not have such high characteristics. If you have a choice - plywood or OSB flooring, then the latter will be more durable.

Advantages and disadvantages

Among the advantages of such a building material, there is also a fairly high density - even a large rat will not be able to damage this base. High resistance to moisture allows the material to be used anywhere - you can lay these sheets in bathhouses, as well as in various unheated rooms.

Laying OSB on the floor does not require any special skills - anyone can do it House master, which is a serious advantage. To arrange a rough foundation, it is enough to be able to use the usual building level, hacksaw and hammer.

OSB is a great opportunity to save money, since the price of these boards is low. One element will be enough to cover a large area. You can also highlight the high strength characteristics - even under heavy loads the floor will not deform.

Installation of OSB on a concrete floor

Let's imagine this situation - there is a terrible curve. To level it, you can use the following scheme. The technology is relevant for any concrete surfaces.

The first step is to clean the work surface as much as possible. To do this, you can use either a vacuum cleaner or a broom. It is necessary to ensure maximum cleanliness, because the sheets will be glued using mounting adhesive. Clean surface - high adhesion.

Then the cleaned base should be coated with a primer. This will help the glue to adhere better to concrete surface. In addition, the primer forms a fairly dense film on the screed, which will prevent it from collecting dust during use.

Then they begin to lay out the OSB boards on the floor. If necessary, trim the pieces to required sizes jigsaw or circular saw. It is applied to the material from the reverse side. It should be chosen only on a rubber basis - it is more effective for solving this problem. To ensure that the glue can be applied as evenly as possible, experienced professionals recommend using a notched trowel.

Additionally, the plate should be secured with a driven dowel. This is done to ensure a guaranteed and secure hold. It is best to hammer in dowels around the perimeter. Interval - 20-30 cm. If concrete screed is level, and the installation is carried out in a dry room, then OSB can be attached only in the corners, but this takes into account the fact that high-quality glue is used.

During installation, expansion joints must be left between the sheets. Their width should be about 3 mm. A 12 mm seam is also left along the entire perimeter of the room - between the slab and the wall. These are special deformation gaps that, if necessary, can compensate for the expansion of materials. The OSB floor is almost ready.

In conclusion, it is necessary to thoroughly clean the resulting surface from accumulated dust and various debris. Expansion joints are filled polyurethane foam. Then the surface is allowed to rest and dry for 4 hours. After this, all that remains is to cut off the foam, and you can lay the topcoat.

Installation of OSB on a wooden floor

So before you get started installation work, you should again prepare the basic foundation. It is very important to pay attention to nails, if any. They need to be recessed deep into the board. A regular hammer and a steel bolt are best for this. The diameter of the bolt must be equal to the diameter of the nail. If batten During operation, it has become unusable and needs to be restored using a planer.

After this, you can proceed directly to the installation of OSB. First of all, pre-cut sheets are laid out on the surface. Here, as in the case of installation on concrete, it is important to remember the need expansion joints. To fasten the slabs, it is best to use self-tapping screws, the length of which is 4 cm. The interval of fastening elements is approximately 20-30 cm. The screw heads are recessed into the slab.

After installation is completed, it is recommended to sand the joints. This can be done by hand, but if the room area is large, then it will do. If needed maximum effect, then it’s worth arming yourself vibration machine, which is equipped with a sanding mesh. It is worth processing the slab with the utmost care - you can easily make indentations on its surface.

Installation of the plates is extremely simple. It turns out that all craftsmen understand how to make a floor from OSB. This new building material is worth trying. He is efficient and pleasant to work with.

Tsugunov Anton Valerievich

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What to do if the room has an old wooden floor that is impractical to paint or varnish? If the boards are wobbly and? You can resort to a labor-intensive and expensive method - tearing off the old coating, making a new one, or laying fresh ones. But there is another, more practical, faster and cheaper solution - execution laying OSB on a wooden floor.

This method has its own nuances, which are taken into account during OSB installation. Looking ahead, it is worth saying that the basis of the technology is proper preparation grounds. Below is detailed guide, following which will allow you to achieve excellent result in terms of leveling the surface of the old wooden floor and subsequent installation of decorative coverings: laminate, linoleum, etc.

Tools and materials for work

The list of necessary devices is minimal:

• nail crowbar;
• hammer;
• hammer drill, drill, drill bits;
• screwdriver;
• a large bubble or laser level (with a second tool it will be more convenient to identify irregularities).

Necessary materials:

• OSB board;
• fasteners – hardened self-tapping screws with a length of at least 45 mm;
• washers for screws (their presence is desirable, but not required).

Choosing this method of “reanimating” old wooden floors, you need to have an idea about the material used for these purposes in order to choose it correctly. The result of the alignment directly depends on this.

Characteristics of OSB boards

OSB is a construction analogue of chipboard. These slabs are more durable and are perfectly adapted for finishing. The material appeared on the market relatively recently. OSB is made from wood chips, which are laid in 3 layers. They are glued together with special resin-based compounds. In this case, the layer in the middle is laid perpendicular to the other 2. Due to this, the resistance of the material to loads is formed.

When marked, this parameter is indicated by a number. The lower the value, the lower the resistance to loads and destructive factors such as humidity. For example, index 2 means that the OSB board is not moisture resistant and cannot withstand intense long-term loads. And the number 4 indicates that the product can be used as a ceiling that will not collapse even when exposed to moisture.

The material for laying on the floor is selected based on the mentioned designations in order to form a smooth rough surface. You should not skimp on the quality of the OSB board. This may result in the need to lay an additional layer, which is expensive and inconvenient. The best option– OSB 3 board.

The question often arises: “Do I need a substrate for OSB?” From a practical point of view, no. The wood itself is great thermal insulation material, and if we take into account that it fits on wooden boards, then no substrate is needed. But sometimes it is still used to achieve the maximum possible soundproofing effect.

Preparing the base

Executed correctly preparatory stage- this is more than half the success of floor leveling work. First, a thorough investigation is carried out wooden surface. This is done using a bubble or laser level. All protruding and loose parts are marked, this will make it easier to strengthen them.

The next step is to securely fix the boards. Some experts recommend doing this using dowels, but a more reliable option would be to pull loose elements with self-tapping screws to the joists. The old coating must be secured as securely as possible. To do this, you can use several fasteners in one area. The ideal result is when the “walking” floor fragments are recessed or are level with the rest.

• The gap between the wall and the slabs must be at least 10 mm;
• The plates should not be adjacent to each other. The minimum gap between them is 3 mm.

Attention! The slots are needed to avoid the slabs “creeping” on top of each other and deformation of the decorative floor covering. This occurs due to the expansion of the material due to changes in humidity.

Laying process

After completing all the preparatory work, all that remains is to tighten the slabs to the old wooden covering with self-tapping screws and fill the gap between the OSB and the wall with construction foam. After the foam has dried, it is trimmed flush with the flooring.

The slabs are fastened with self-tapping screws around the perimeter every 20–30 cm, but this distance can be reduced. Some experts recommend preparing the holes first, but using a screwdriver can quickly and efficiently tighten screws without pre-drilling.