Oriented strand board (OSB) is an engineered wood board made of resin-bonded wood strands. It is commonly used in construction and furniture manufacturing. OSB is different from MDF, particleboard, and plywood. It is made by combining wood and resin veneer under high temperature and pressure. OSB is environmentally friendly and can be recycled. Builders should use boards rated as “Exposure 1” or “Exterior” to ensure they are water-resistant.
Oriented strand board (OSB) is an engineered wood board product composed of resin-bonded wood strands or chips. The wood threads are precisely cut and oriented to produce a wood panel with uniform strength and density. Like plywood, it is widely suited for use as a structural panel and is commonly used in roof and wall cladding, sub-flooring, and increasingly in furniture manufacturing.
OSB is made of long strands of wood and should not be confused with medium-density fiberboard (MDF), which is made of fine wood fibers, or particleboard, which is made of sawdust. All three of these engineered wood products are made by bonding wood particles with a resin or other adhesive, but each has different properties and applications. It should also not be confused with plywood, which is made of wide, flat panels of wood glued together in layers.
OSB is produced by combining wood and resin veneer under high temperature and pressure. Whole logs are soaked, stripped of the bark, and cut into strands that are typically up to six inches long and one inch wide. The strips are then dried, mixed with resin and a small amount of wax, and formed into layers. The inner layers of an OSB board are oriented at 90 degrees. The outer layers are oriented in a particular direction; the finished panel will be stronger in that direction. The mass is then fed into a press, where the wood and resin combine under extreme heat and pressure. The panels are cut to size, printed with usage and quality assurance information, and edge-coated.
Coating the edges helps seal the panels against moisture. Because OSB boards are often exposed to the elements during the construction of a home, builders should use boards rated as “Exposure 1” or “Exterior” to ensure they were made with a water resistant resin. Builders should also be careful not to leave boards that have been cut where water can get to them. Cutting a panel exposes new edges that have not been coated and can swell if they get wet.
Manufacturers advertise OSB as an environmentally friendly construction alternative. The resins used to make it produce very few emissions. It can be manufactured from a wider variety of tree species than plywood, including faster growing species. It can also be made from younger trees and uses more wood than one tree. As a result, the forests used to produce OSB can be renewed more easily than those used to produce plywood. Wood building products generally require less energy to manufacture than non-wood products. Oriented wire panel can and should be recycled.
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