Plastic Overlays for Wood Products

Paper overlays on plywood, lumber, veneer, hardboards, and particleboards provide a new surface with properties that change the basic product. An overlay may hide defects and create a decorative surface; it can protect wood from deterioration from weather, wear, impact, and chemical attack; it can increase strength properties of single veneers; and it can improve the paintability of woods by providing a substrate of uniform light color, eliminating grain, and limiting paint penetration. Resin impregnated paper overlays are classified into four categories based on resin content. High density paper overlays with 30 percent resin or more cost about $60.25/M sq. ft. and are used to decorate and to protect surfaces from wear and chemical attack such as in cement forms. Medium density overlays with 15 to 30 percent resin cost about $44.70/M sq. ft. and are used on exterior siding to protect Douglas-fir plywood from the weather, hide defects, resist checking,and improve paintability. Low density paper overlays with 5 to 15 percent resin content and paper overlays with 0 to 5 percent resin content cost about $31.30 and $9.61/M sq. ft., respectively, and are used to add strength and stiffness and to improve handling of panel products. Overlaid single veneers utilize paper or low density overlay to impart strength, stiffness, and paintability. Paper overlaid single veneer used in shipping cases is expected to reach a production rate of over a billion square feet a year. Development of medium density overlaid lumber for bleacher seats and siding is underway and tests are encouraging–0.020-inch- thick overlay reduces swelling of some softwoods 25 to 40 percent. Use of low density overlay for shelving is expected to be an attractive process with No. 2 or No. 3 Common lumber. Hardboards and particleboards have good market opportunities using overlays to impart a decorative effect.

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