How to Bend Plywood? 2 Method (With Picture)
Since plywood is made of wood material, it is produced in the form of a flat board, and in decoration works, these pieces are cut and assembled to produce a product. However, in some cases, plywoods need to be bent and processed. Plywood must be shaped to fill the required empty spaces. For example, you want to make a decorative bookshelf and the plywood needs to be bent in some parts of the product. In this case, there are some procedures to be performed.
As Matho, We’ll look for the answer to the question of how to bent plywood? Our goal is to give the right curves to the plywood material to provide a beautiful decorative product.
As you know, plywood is a natural wood product consisting of different layers such as 3-5-7. The number of layers varies according to the area to be used. For example, in some areas, thin-layer plywood may be sufficient, but as the number of plywood layers increases, its durability increases. Therefore, plywood with a high number of layers should be used in areas where you want to be stronger and more durable.
You can use flexible plywood if you want to bend plywood easyly.
It is more resistant to plywood bending with an increasing number of layers. Because the more glued layers, the harder it becomes to bend. The harder it gets, the harder it gets. Of course, plywoods with an increased number of layers can also be bent. There is a certain way. Today we will tell you this way in detail.
There is a special bending method especially for plywood used in an industrial area. For example, you will make furniture and you need twisted plywood, the easiest way is to steam the plywood. Steamed plywood is bent and made ready for use by special equipment. You can do this yourself at home.
Plywood Bending Methods
There are several methods of plywood bending. Let’s examine them in order.
- Steam Bending Method
For example, you have 10 mm plywood and you want to bend it. To do this yourself at home, you first need boiled water and steam. The boiled water is taken into a container and the plywood layer is placed on this boiling water. Plywood waiting for a while will begin to stretch.
Or another way to do this is to use a steam iron. You can also perform plywood bending with iron with high quality and continuous steam pressing.
Another method of bending plywood is to wet the plywood. For example, if you have a bathtub, fill it with water. Of course, the wetting time of plywood depends on the thickness of the sheet. You must set this time correctly. Because if the plywood remains in the water more than necessary, the layers can be separated. This results in an undesirable result.
Another detail of plywood wetting is the use of hot water. If you use hot water, the wetting time will be shorter. For example, a water temperature of at least 60 degrees should be used. If you use cold water, the plywood wetting time will be much longer. This means you can’t do your job on time.
Plywood starts to bend after being immersed in water and you can finally make the part you want and use it.
Attention! Plywood bending can occur in one step or several steps. It’s all about how much you want to bend the plywood. If you want a little twist, you can do it with steam in one step. However, you may need to repeat the steam treatment several times if you want a higher inclination angle.
Plywood bent to the desired degree should be allowed to dry. Plywood bent at the desired level must be fixed. The purpose of fixing is to prevent the flexed plywood from flexing again. The bending regions are fixed with some heavy parts and the ends of the parts are tightened with rope, cloth, or tape.
- Plywood Notch Bending Method
This method is more accurate if you want to bend thick plywood. Another method of this method is the incision method. In general, plywood with a thickness of 17-23 mm is bent by this method. Such plywood boards are very difficult to soak and bend. However, developing technology has found a solution to this problem, and its name is called notching. Notch bending is performed by this milling machine which has a conical shape.
Attention! Plywood sheets should be cut in opposite directions. This process is used to prevent cracking of the plywood. The cut pieces are then bent and secured. Epoxy adhesive and PVA materials are used to bond the bent material. You can bend by cutting both inside and outside of the plywood. This method is very useful.
Considerations When Bent Plywood
- Plywood should be kept in a moisture-free environment. Humidity should not exceed 10%.
- The product should not be completely cold when we bend the plywood. After steaming, the treated plywood should be hot.
- If several thin plywoods are joined together after bending, thick plywood is formed.
- Plywood will not dry So you should use some materials to secure the plywood for the first week.
Bent plywood can be used in many products, especially for decoration purposes. For example, people who love the look and feel of wood can make plywood chairs. Wooden hangers, chandeliers are also made using twisted plywood.
Plywood is one of the most used building and structural materials today. Therefore, it needs to go through some operations to use in different areas. Today we talked about plywood bending at home.
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