Osb is much more waterproof than plywood and cdx plywood.
Osb vs plywood roof sheathing.
University of massachusetts meets most building codes for roof and wall sheathing.
It is generally believed that osb is cheaper than plywood.
In 2001 oriented strand board surpassed plywood in terms of square footage produced.
For a typical 2 400 sq.
Home at current prices would cost about 700 more with plywood than osb.
Osb panels can be manufactured in lengths up to 16 feet or sometimes even higher while plywood is generally limited to 8 to 10 feet.
Today you can find osb in thickness from 7 16 to 1 1 8 for different applications from roof wall subfloor i joists and everything between.
Osb is now used for about 70 percent of all floor wall and roof sheathing in north america.
Osb has earned its reputation as a low cost substitute for plywood.
In fact recent price quotes from denver boston and atlanta put 7 16 inch osb 3 00 to as much as 5 00 per sheet lower than 1 2 inch cdx plywood.
The glue and resin that is mixed in with the wood chips makes it much less permeable so osb holds up longer in harsher conditions.
That is why osb is sometimes used to secure houses when a hurricane draws near.
A 4x8 foot sheet of construction grade plywood costs roughly 10a sheet while the same size sheet of osb costs only 6a sheet.
Both types of panels contain phenol formaldehyde in the adhesive osb also contains isocyanurate resin but neither contains the urea formaldehyde which is quite toxic to humans.
While a sheet of plywood might be 5 to 7 plies thick a sheet of osb is made from as many as 50 strand layers packed and compressed into the same thickness.
Sheathing a 2 400 sq.
Osb boasts a more consistent density.
Both cost about the same to install 70an hour for a carpenter.
Installing either sheathing over a 500 square foot area would cost roughly 160in material for plywood and 100for osb.
2x greater shear strength than similar sized plywood source.
Osb is cheaper than plywood by about 3 to 5 per panel.
Talking about plywood or osb for roofing you cannot miss the information of the cost.