One of the most popular brands of extruded polystyrene foam on the modern market is Penoplex. This material is widely used in construction and finishing works. It is, in fact, an improved version of the foam.
How it is produced
The first plant for the production of extruded polystyrene foam appeared in the United States more than half a century ago. In the manufacture of this material, special chemical foaming agents are used - porophores. The chamber of special equipment is very hot at first. Then polystyrene granules are fed into it. After they are melted, porophores are added to the mixture. As a result, the polystyrene foams and expands significantly.
The resulting mass, which looks like whipped cream, is then fed onto a conveyor belt in an even layer of a certain thickness and cut into plates of the required dimensions. As porophores in the manufacture of polystyrene foam, for example, substances such as ground perlite, citric acid, sodium bicarbonate can be used.
This technology produces all types of such material, including Penoplex, Extrol, Technoplex, etc. During the production of such materials, various kinds of ingredients can be added to them to change, for example, such characteristics, like strength, density, combustibility. Penoplex, which includes such components, has the best technical and operational characteristics.
Material advantages
The advantages of "Penoplex" consumers include primarily a low degree of thermal conductivity. According to this indicator, such plates surpass even mineral wool, which is very popular, for example, among private developers. Also, the advantage of Penoplex is its light weight. It is very easy to transport such plates. This material is distinguished by its ease of installation. Attach it to the insulated surfaces on the glue of a special composition. In some cases, slabs of this material can be additionally attached to walls, partitions or, for example, to the ceiling using plastic mushroom dowels. Also this material is easy to cut.
Another advantage of "Penoplex", in comparison with the same mineral wool, is that it is not afraid of water at all. When moistened, this material does not lose its heat-preserving qualities and does not begin to break down.
Another indisputable advantage of "Penoplex" is the ability to withstand significant loads. Dense slabs of this material are often used for floor insulation, for example, under a screed. Such sheets are somewhat more expensive than mineral wool, but still the price for them is not too high.high.
Material imperfections
Among the disadvantages of Penoplex, among other things, consumers attribute a low degree of steam conductivity. Therefore, it is not recommended to use such plates for insulation, for example, wooden walls. Otherwise, fungus will form on their surface.
Also, expanded polystyrene, like mineral wool, is considered a material that is not very environmentally friendly. Sheathing baths with them, for example, is also not recommended. At high temperatures, these boards may begin to emit poisonous styrene fumes.
Another disadvantage of this material is not a very high degree of resistance to various chemicals. For example, under no circumstances should this material be allowed to come into contact with toluene.
Well, the main disadvantage of this material is, of course, flammability. "Penoplex" is able, among other things, to ignite quite easily and quickly. It is for this reason that the owners of country houses often refuse to use this material for their insulation, preferring to use mineral wool.
Classification by degree of flammability
Thus, one of the main disadvantages of Penoplex is flammability. The flammability groups of building materials are currently distinguished as follows:
- NG - do not ignite even when exposed to open flame;
- G1 - very weakly burning;
- G2 - moderately flammable;
- G3 - flammable;
- G4 - flammable.
"Penoplex", depending on the brand, may belong to the G3 or even G4 group. This material emits highly corrosive, toxic fumes when burned.
Some companies claim, among other things, that they produce Penoplex with G1 flammability. However, experienced builders believe that this material still cannot have fire resistance below G3.
Degree of combustibility of "Penoplex"
This insulation, therefore, cannot be exposed to open fire, otherwise this material will ignite. In order to reduce the degree of flammability of such boards, during their manufacture, manufacturers add special additives to the granules. Due to the presence of such components in the composition of this material, immediately after ignition, "Penoplex" fades. However, in terms of fire safety, mineral wool, which does not burn at all, is still inferior to a certain extent.
When using "Penoplex" as a heater, experienced builders advise installing the plates in such a way that the possibility of their direct contact with fire is excluded. For example, it is not worth using such plates for wall insulation near the stove.
The impact of open fire structures, insulated with "Penoplex", are able to withstand, as practice shows, about 15 minutes. This time may be enough for the safe evacuation of people. Moreover, drops of melting heat-insulating plates of this variety are not able to set fire even to paper. However, only material made usingspecial fire-fighting additives. This is worth keeping in mind when choosing an insulator.
Classification by species
At the moment, the industry produces several brands of Penoplex, which differ in purpose. For example:
- "Penoplex 31C" is mainly used for insulation of pipes and tanks;
- Grade 35 is universal and can be used for insulation of both pipes and walls of buildings, screeds, foundations;
- "Penoplex 45" has a high density and can be used for insulation, for example, runways of airfields, tracks and floors in industrial premises.
All these grades refer to materials with a fairly high degree of flammability. The Penoplex flammability group can be either G3 (with additives) or G4, depending on the variety.
Thus, for example, material intended for wall cladding usually has a higher degree of fire resistance than that used for foundation cladding. The combustibility of "Penoplex 35", for example, is such that it can be attributed to class G3. Material 45 belongs to group G4.
There is also a Penoplex Geo brand. The combustibility of such material is also high and it belongs to the G4 group. Such sheets are used for insulation of foundations. Sheets of this type are characterized by almost zero degree of moisture permeability and are resistant to biological attack.
Specifications
Thus, Penoplex is a material withexcellent thermal insulation properties, easy to use and relatively inexpensive. The technical characteristics of such plates differ as follows:
- service life - more than 50 years;
- working operating temperature - in the range of -50…+75 °С;
- degree of thermal conductivity - 0.030-0.032 (mK);
- water absorption per day - 0.4%;
- density - 28-33 kg/m3;
- vapor permeability - 0.007 mg/mhPa.
This insulation is able to provide sound insulation at 41 dB. It has a compressive strength of 25-35 MPa. According to the degree of flammability, Penoplex, as already mentioned, belongs to the G3 or G4 group.
Sizes
The thickness of this material may vary. On sale today there is "Penoplex" from 20 to 100 mm. 20 mm material is usually used for insulation of indoor partitions. The thickest "Penoplex" can be used for cladding facades, floors, and in some cases walls. The width of the boards of this material is always 600 mm. The length of the sheets in this case can be equal to 1200 mm or 2400 mm.
When buying such plates, among other things, you should pay attention to their integrity. "Penoplex" - the material, of course, is not as fragile as polystyrene. However, sometimes such plates can break. It is for this reason that experts advise always purchasing this material with a margin of at least 5-10%.
Where it can be used
Characteristics of "Penoplex" in terms of combustibility, degreethermal conductivity, strength determine, of course, among other things, and the scope of its use. In most cases, this material, like other brands of extruded polystyrene foam, is used to insulate the facades of residential buildings. Very well, this material, for example, is suitable for insulating brick and concrete walls from the cold. It is also allowed, subject to certain technologies, to be used for cladding foam concrete facades.
In addition to walls, this material can be used, for example, for cladding and roof insulation. With its use, slopes are isolated if desired, to equip a residential attic. In particular, this material is often used to insulate roofs on solid battens.
Also "Penoplex" can be used for insulation of foundations. In this case, it is considered a much more suitable type of insulator than mineral wool. Unlike the latter, extruded polystyrene foam is absolutely not afraid of moisture, including soil.
Also, Penoplex is considered very suitable for floor insulation. Such slabs can be used both for insulating floors along logs and under a concrete screed. Of course, ceilings are sheathed with such sheets.
Very often this material is also used for sheathing balconies and loggias, if necessary, their insulation. In this case, 50 mm Penoplex plates are most often used.
Sheathing with this material is allowed for buildings of almost any purpose. But since the Penoplex flammability class is high, it is not recommended to use it, for example, for warming baths or saunas. Also, this material is not used for insulation of heating mains.
Frameless Mounting Technology
What is the flammability class of "Penoplex" (35, 31, 45, "Geo"), and also what technical characteristics this material has, we found out. But how to properly mount the plates of this variety? When installing "Penoplex", as already mentioned, a special glue is used. Such a tool is applied to sheets, usually along the perimeter and diagonally. The insulated surface itself is pre-cleaned of dirt and dust.
Sticking plates produced in a checkerboard pattern. Sometimes "Penoplex" is mounted on facades and in two layers. This technology is usually used in cold regions. When installing the plates of the upper layer, when using it, make sure that they overlap the joints of the lower one.
After the surface is completely finished with slabs, they begin to putty the joints. To do this, use a special type of sealant. Next, a special reinforcing mesh is mounted on the polystyrene foam surface. Then, already on top of it, plaster is applied. At the final stage, the walls are painted.
Installation into frame
In this case, Penoplex is installed using the same technology as mineral wool. They use this technique when they do not want to plaster the facades, but close them, for example, with siding, clapboard or profiled sheet.
In this case, the crate is first mounted on the walls. Further, between its elements, the Penoplex plates themselves are installed. On top of themthe bars are attached to the frame with a waterproofing film. Then the finishing material itself is mounted - siding, wall paneling, etc.
