Housebuilders – how to get on with the job in Britain’s extreme weather

Housebuilding can be challenging at the best of times, and with prevailing storms like the Beast from the East expected to make an appearance again this winter, it’s not set to get any easier. That’s why at Norbord Europe, the UK’s no. 1 engineered wood panel producer, we want to introduce you to our CaberShieldPlus: our waterproof chipboard flooring panel designed to keep you building even with the roof off!

How does it work? We hear you ask. It has a waterproof coating on the top and bottom surfaces and is BBA certified for up to 60 days when fixed with CaberFix D4 adhesive. That’s 60 days of protection, come rain, snow or hail! And, after the work is complete, the floor can simply be wiped clean so that it is ready for finishings, such as carpet or laminate. 

Using CaberShieldPlus is easy, and to make it even easier, we’ve created a handy installation guide in six easy steps to walk you through it.  

• Step 1: You’ll need to apply a 6mm bead of CaberFix D4 adhesive to the top of the joist and then use more CaberFix D4 adhesive on the rest of the joists and noggins in the area that is about to be laid.
• Step 2: Fix the panels at perimeter with annular ringshank nails or screws. Make sure these are between 200 – 300mm centres and are fixed flush or just below panel surface.
• Step 3: You’ll then want to use a generous application of CaberFix D4 adhesive on both the tongue and groove of the profile joint of each panel because this will ensure that the entire joint is bonded. A small amount of adhesive should be squeezed out of the T&G as the boards are pushed together which will seal the joint at the T&G too.
• Step 4: The boards will need to be laid in a staggered format. Panels may be secretly nailed through the tongue at the T&G joints. To get the best results, we recommend a minimum of 5 mechanical fixings per 22 x 2400 x 600mm board when fitted at 600mm centres, i.e. 1 fixing per joist.
• Step 5: To make sure that it’s completely weather tight, use the CaberFix D4 again to cover exposed nail heads, cut edges and any exposed perimeter edges.
• Step 6: Then, after all the construction and decoration work is complete and the building is weather tight, you can clean the deck down.  Once dry, you’ll be able to remove any excess adhesive with a scraper – which we highly recommend doing – and then, Bob’s your uncle! The waterproof flooring panel has battled the extremes to give you a great floor surface.

For a video guide to explain the steps, visit our YouTube channel – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkuMu1ASHoE or to speak to one of our Housebuilding team about CaberShieldPlus, please email Daniel.clarke@norbord.net or call 01786 812 921.