Exterior Plywood Grades Explained

EXPOSURE DURABILITY APA trademarked panels may be produced in four exposure durability classifications Exterior Exposure 1 Exposure 2 and Interior. Another option for an almost perfect sheet of plywood is B-grade.

Types Of Plywood The Home Depot

7 rows Exterior Plywood.

Exterior plywood grades explained. With many options for glue veneers plies and. If you have previously purchased Interior or MR moisture resistant plywood for construction purposes you should now specify plywood to comply with EN 636 Class 1. Only Douglas-fir and Western Larch plies without knotholes are permitted in the plywood construction.

A-grade plywood is the highest quality and is the most expensive as most sheets will be free of flaws. The grades of plywood in case of exterior are A-C B-C and CDX. Most sanded plywood grades are iden-tified by the veneer grade used on the face and back of the panel for example C B-D etc.

Single piece face and back veneer. Any wood defects have been repaired with synthetic. Plywood Grades A B The highest quality - and most expensive - types of softwood plywood are the A B grades - which is perfect for shop projects like workbench plans.

A B C and D. If you have previously specified or purchased WBP weather and boil-proof or Exterior quality plywood for construction purposes you should now specify plywood to comply with EN636 Class 3. A and B grade are both very high quality and so they will cost quite a bit more than lower grades.

A little lower down in quality C-grade. B-grade plywood also features a smooth sanded surface but may have more repaired defects up to 1-inch across. Occasionally you may run into a fifth grade called C-plugged Each sheet will have two grades such as AC.

All large knots are replaced with football-shaped patches which can be sanded and finished with the rest of the panel. For outside applications youll want hardwood plywood bonded with truly waterproof Type I adhesive. The first letter is the face veneer grade and the second is.

Plywoods standard grading system is A B C and D. Shop grades offered at a substantial discount to the on grade prices. Imported Plywood is graded with a face and back grade designation.

Shop panels are offered in the full 60 X 60 format in all of the grades listed above. The panels are available with sanded A-A A-B B-B faces or HDO and MDO faces only. While not part of the grading standards the classification of hardwood plywood as either Type I or Type II becomes important to you if your project will be used outside.

Exterior plywood is manufactured with a higher quality A B or S grade face with a reduced quality C or D grade back. The standards required by APA- The Engineered Wood Association for a product to be called marine grade are not that much higher than your typical exterior grade plywood. Marine grade plywood must meet all the requirements for Exterior plywood plus the following.

Most hardwood plywood has Type II adhesive a somewhat water-resistant bond. B-grade plywood has a mostly smooth. A-grade plywood features a smooth sanded surface without knots.

Panels allow for 1-3 splits on the face veneer along one edge of the panel in lengths no longer than 10 and no wider than ¼. Knots in plywood are replaced with football-shaped patches. The minimum grade of veneer permitted in Exterior plywood is C D veneer is used only in panels intended for interior use or for applications protected from permanent exposure to the weather.

Exterior plywoods possess either a permanent Type A bond or a less durable Type B bond. In the United States there are four basic softwood construction plywood veneer grades you need to worry about. Face veneers are considered clear and free of defects with a light-uniform color.

Back allows 3-6 color matched patches which are oval in shape and egg sized. In other words there are many shades of gray to it and and most likely a good product can be found for your project whether it be exterior home work a marina or a boat. All exposed exterior plywood should be treated to guard against fungal attack.

A-grade plywood is super-clean with little or no blemishes.