How to treat polystyrene foam to prevent it from crumbling. How do you cut foam plastic so that it doesn't crumble? Thermal methods for cutting foam plastic
Read also
When carrying out work related to home insulation, best material You won't find anything better than polystyrene foam. It is popular because it is inexpensive and is a pretty good heat insulator. But when you get to work, a natural question arises: how to cut the foam and make the parts you need from it so that the cutting lines are straight and have the configuration you need.
There are two types of foam: hard, or also called hard, and soft. Easier machining The hard type of foam can be (cut) so it is more popular. Soft types of foam crumble, and special treatment must be applied to them. There are also no foam sheets of uniform thickness, and it follows that cutting modes will be different and require individual approach for every occasion. Soft look can be cut with any sharp thin object, even credit card. Place a ruler or straight edge along the cutting line and draw along the line with your cutting tool. Then move the foam board so that the cut coincides with the edge of the table, and pressing the part of the board that is on the table, lightly press on the sagging part. The foam will break along the cut line. You can use a serrated knife made of foam to cut foam. kitchen set . To make it more convenient to work, it must be rubbed with wax or stearic candle . If you need the foam to remain clean, then use a stearin candle. white . Cut the foam with even, long movements so that the knife is immersed with the entire blade. For cutting thin sheets foam, a paper cutter with a retractable blade works well. This knife can cut
Apply current to your unit, the nichrome will heat up, and use a rheostat to make the heating color of the nichrome thread dark cherry. With this unit you can cut parts of any configuration. Simply guide the thread along the cutting line. True, there will be smoke, so you need to work either outside or in a well-ventilated area. Also try not to touch the switched-on thread to avoid getting burned.
We have listed all the main methods of cutting foam, they are all good in their own way. Choose for yourself what suits you best. The use of penoplex in construction work
requires taking into account the specifics of installing the material using different adhesive compositions. They must have high elasticity. Working with penoplex often comes down to gluing different elements, so this issue is paramount. In addition, it is important to decide how and with what to paint the penoplex. This is due to the fact that various crafts are often made from such material, for example, boats.
How to use penoplex Penoplex is extruded polystyrene foam. Only when taking into account the composition and of this material, you can choose glue to attach it. Among the variety of adhesive compositions, it is worth highlighting several of the most popular and effective:
When choosing a specific adhesive for installing penoplex, it is necessary to take into account that the composition should not contain the following substances:
- toluene or benzene;
- formaldehyde and formaldehyde;
- gasoline, diesel fuel and kerosene;
- resins and solvents.
Important! When purchasing glue for installing penoplex boards, you should remember the need to take the composition with a certain reserve. This is explained by the fact that the base is not always smooth. In this case, glue consumption increases.
Knowledge of such means will allow you to figure out how to glue penoplex.
Gluing the boards together
Penoplex slabs can be made of different hardness and thickness. It is these characteristics that must be taken into account when selecting the right adhesive. It is especially important to choose a composition that will help connect the slabs to each other.
By doing installation work You may need to glue the foam boards together. For sheets of popular material, almost any composition can be used. It is important that the glue does not contain gasoline or acetone.
The procedure for installing penoplex on the facade of a house is as follows:
The sheets should be mounted in a checkerboard pattern. You should pay attention to several methods of installing penoplex:
- Insulation of room walls from the inside. The glue dries in such conditions for about 3 days. Then finishing work continues. Penoplex should be secured with dowels. One fastening element secures 2 plates at once. Dowels must be used on 4 sides, as well as in the center of the product.
- External cladding of the building. When choosing this technology, thermal insulation is carried out during the construction of the house. In this case, the thermal insulation of the building from the outside is carried out using a plaster or ventilated facade. In the latter case of possibilities designer finishing the façade is much larger. Plaster facades allow less steam to pass through.
Such features of installing penoplex on the facade of a building should be known before work begins. Gluing the boards together is quite simple if you choose the right adhesive composition.
How to cut material
By doing various works with penoplex, slabs of material have to be divided into parts of certain sizes. Every developer faces this problem. If you resort to simply breaking the material, the edges will be uneven, and it will not be possible to make a sheet of the required size.
That's why the best option dividing penoplex into pieces of suitable size - cutting. For such purposes, different tools are used:
Penoplex has not only high thermal insulation properties, but is also easy to install. To work with it, you do not need to learn complex installation technology. The use of this material provides maximum protection for the home from the penetration of cold. The material is highly practical due to low water absorption, excellent strength and low thermal conductivity.
Applicable universal material and in beekeeping. Building a hive from penoplex is quite simple. The main thing is to know the design features of the bee house. In addition, this material is often chosen when constructing toy boats. Possibility of using penoplex to create various crafts explains its popularity.
Paint selection
When working with penoplex, it is worth remembering that the material is afraid of organic solvents. When exposed to them, it worsens physical properties. They are in the majority paint and varnish materials. Therefore, when choosing paint you should Special attention pay attention to its composition.
The paint should not contain substances that were mentioned earlier when describing glue for working with foam boards. In addition, the composition must be without:
- ether and solvents based on it;
- polyester;
- tar.
Penoplex boards should not be used for painting. coloring compounds on oil based. Mention should also be made of substances that are not capable of causing harm to the material when interacting:
- paraffins, as well as oil;
- cement mortars;
- water-based paints;
- any acids;
- lime;
- alcohol paints.
For painting penoplex, paint that is marked RS is suitable.
Staining procedure
If there are doubts about the color and adhesion of the composition to the surface, a small test should be carried out. The purchased composition must be applied to a small part of the polystyrene foam sheet and left for two days. Then you should evaluate the result. If the effect is positive, coloring work can begin. Otherwise, the paint will have to be replaced.
When finishing penoplex inside a room, the composition being painted is decorative. The material is thus protected from moisture. Before painting the surface, make sure it is clean and free of greasy stains. When cleaning the surface, make sure that the rag does not leave lint. If there is a large amount of dirt, penoplex is quite easy to wash with warm water.
Paint is applied to penoplex only after the material has been thoroughly dried. In addition, it is applied in layers. They shouldn't be thick. To prevent streaks, it is necessary to work with the tool in one plane. Be sure to wait until the first layer has completely dried before applying the second. Penoplex is not able to absorb paint, so after applying the first layer you should take a closer look - is a second one needed? For painting the surface of penoplex a good one will do emulsion composition.
In construction, work is often carried out related to the insulation of structures, where polystyrene foam is used as the most inexpensive material. Accordingly, the density of such insulation is low, which, when cutting it, leads to the formation of a lot of debris, which is quite difficult to collect, since pieces of foam plastic tend to become electrified and stick to everything that comes their way. To facilitate the process of cutting insulating material, there are many methods and devices that help cut foam without crumbs.
Cut out foam parts with straight cuts
What and how to cut foam plastic
To cut a certain form for insulation, any device for cutting foam can be used:
- hacksaw for wood or metal;
- soldering iron;
- an angle grinder called a “grinder”;
- thin metal wire like a string;
- thermal cutter;
- foam cutting machine;
- jigsaw with heated file.
If you choose a hacksaw for wood, then its teeth should be as small as possible. All tools that are not heated to a certain temperature do not guarantee that the foam will not crumble. Such tools are used for small volumes of work, but when it is necessary to insulate all the enclosing structures of a house, it is better to use a foam cutting machine, the action of which is based on heating the cutting element.
How to properly cut polystyrene foam with a knife so that it does not crumble
When slabs are used in the process of insulating walls, ceilings, and roofs with your own hands polymer material, thermal cutters are not always justified. Designs, as a rule, have strictly geometric shapes, and cutting the material is quite possible with a simple knife, the main thing is that the blade is thin and its length exceeds the thickness of the insulation sheet. Good tool for such work - a stationery knife, if you have to cut polystyrene foam of small thickness.
To cut foam with a knife, you need to choose a long blade The fact is that the blade of such a tool is very thin and when cutting a sheet of great thickness, a perfectly even cut is unlikely to be achieved; wrinkles may form on the cut, which will not allow the individual parts of the insulation to fit tightly together. And this will lead to the formation of cold bridges.
In addition to the knife you will need:
- A rigid measuring ruler or a ruler of ideal shape.
- Roulette.
- Simple pencil, marker.
They cut polystyrene on a solid base so that the sheet does not “play” in your hands. Marks are made on the surface of the polystyrene plate the right size, after which they lay down a rigid ruler or rail, and make sharp knife incision. If the length of the knife blade is not enough, you can make cuts on two opposite sides of the sheet, the main thing is not to lose the size. Then the sheet is simply broken along the cut. With proper skill, the work will proceed quickly, without unnecessary noise and waste of electricity. Of course, there will be debris, but not as much as from a hacksaw. The main thing is that the tool is very sharp and of the required length.
Before cutting the material, the tool must be heated and the blade must be sharpened periodically.
The foam is cut stationery knife and thermal - comparison of the cut line How to cut polystyrene foam without using heat tools
The principle of cutting sheets of foam plastic using a hacksaw, regardless of whether it is for metal or wood, is no different from cutting with a knife, the main thing is that the teeth are small and the blade is of sufficient length.
In this case, the cut will be smoother and a lot of small debris will not form. The saw movements must be made smoothly, without jerking. But even with this cutting method there will be a lot of expanded polystyrene crumbs.
You can cut foam sheets using electric jigsaw or an angle grinder (grinder). However, with this method, a huge amount of garbage is guaranteed.
Grinder for cutting foam plastic High speed rotation of the grinder disk and sufficiently large teeth will provoke severe destruction of the structure of the material at the cutting site. When using a jigsaw it is also impossible to get a perfect cut flat surface, due to vibration of the file, which also leads to the formation of small polymer debris.
The least amount of foam crumbs is formed when cutting it, if used homemade device for cutting foam plastic. The simplest form such a device is a conventional thin wire(string), to the ends of which handles are attached for greater convenience. The wire diameter should be chosen as small as possible, no more than 0.5 mm. One person cannot cope here; an assistant will be needed. The wire is installed along the intended mark on the foam and made uniform movements on both sides. As a result of the friction of the metal wire against the polystyrene foam, it heats up and the material begins to melt at the cut site.
Cutting foam plastic with a string – the method is the most effective in terms of the formation of a minimum amount of debris, but the time spent on such work is much longer than when cutting with other tools.
Thermal apparatus and devices
Cutting penoplex on a thermal machine The use of insulation does not always involve cutting it according to the correct geometric dimensions. Sometimes you have to cut out semicircles, holes and other shapes with intricate contours. And here a knife or hacksaw will no longer help. But a machine for cutting foam plastic, which you can build yourself, can cope with such work.
Figured products made of foam plastic and penoplex The operating principle of such devices is that electrical voltage is applied to the cutting element, as a result of which it is heated to a certain temperature, which can be adjusted special device. And given the fusibility of the material, cutting polystyrene foam with a heated string or wire is easy and quick. And at the same time, difficult-to-remove small debris is not formed.
How to build your own thermal cutter for foam plastic
If you choose the best way to cut insulation without creating small debris, then, of course, the first place will be professional equipment. But for home use purchasing such a device can be an expensive “pleasure,” which is why many craftsmen make a machine for cutting foam plastic with their own hands.
Schematic drawing of a thermal cutter for horizontal cutting of foam plastic Required materials and tools
To assemble a thermal cutting device you will need:
- Tungsten (nichrome) wire Ø 0.2 mm.
- Materials for making the frame are bars, metal profiles of any section. Springs for fastening tungsten filament.
- Rheostat or step-down transformer.
- Insulators.
- Terminals.
Tungsten wire can be purchased at a specialty store or obtained from household appliances- from any heater, including oil. Cut the desired piece of the spiral and straighten it so that it is even.
The heater's spiral is made of tungsten wire The frame of the device must be assembled on a solid and durable base. This could be a table, workbench, or some other surface. You will need to attach the vertical metal elements to the base at such a distance that a sheet of polystyrene foam can freely pass between them. Next to vertical posts springs are attached, insulators are attached to the springs, and tungsten wire is attached to them.
Springs are needed to maintain the wire in a horizontal position, since when heated, it tends to change its dimensions in big side, which threatens to sag if there are no springs. Instead of springs, you can use weights, the task of which will be the same as that of springs.
When you rarely use such a cutter, a battery can serve as a power source, which is undoubtedly safer compared to electrical network, where the voltage is more than 220 V, while the battery produces no more than 10 -12, and this is quite enough to heat the wire. If there is a rheostat, the voltage supplied to the tungsten filament can be adjusted depending on the thickness of the sheet and the speed of its movement along the table.
This device will allow you to cut foam into horizontal plates, the thickness of which will depend on the distance between the wire and the table. If it is necessary to cut the material vertically, the wire must also be installed vertically.
1 - Tungsten wire 2 - Cargo
3 - Frame
4 - Base of the device
The vertical foam cutter is suitable for cutting shaped elements from extruded and regular foam. When using such a device, the cut is smooth and without crumbs. This device works on the principle of a jigsaw. In order to make a shaped part, it is better to use penoplex, a material obtained by extrusion from polymer feedstock - styrene, while polystyrene foam is not pressed styrene.
Cutting foam plastic with a modernized soldering iron You can quickly make a thermal cutter using a soldering iron. To do this, install a blade on the end of the tool if you need to cut foam plastic vertically or horizontally, or a crown from an electric drill when you need to make a hole or recess in the material. Instead of a crown, it is allowed to use a homemade round part, which is made of galvanized iron.
The main point of the article
How to cut polystyrene foam - with a mechanical tool - a knife, a file, an electric one - an angular one grinder, jigsaw, or using devices with a heated cutting element, everyone chooses at their own discretion. Thermal devices eliminate the formation of debris, but are expensive. For home use, there is an opportunity to save money and make your own thermal foam cutting machine.
Styrofoam - thermal insulation material, widely used in individual construction. It is sold in sheets, so it is often necessary to cut it to the required length. Anyone who has encountered such materials understands that it is difficult to do this efficiently with conventional tools. How to cut polystyrene foam at home? Let's look further.
What is polystyrene foam?
The full name of the material - the type of thermal insulation refers to foamed (cellular) plastic gas-filled masses. If you look at this material, you can see many small balls fastened together. Therefore, during normal cutting, it forms a large number of small debris, and the cut itself turns out uneven. The question is interesting and relevant.
Kinds
There are two main options for density:
- Soft. Such layers have a porous structure. When cutting, they crumble heavily and break.
- Solid. This material is easy to process. Minimum crumbling, cuts are more even.
It is worth noting that the first option is cheaper than the second.
Areas of application
For the most part, this material is used as insulation. Moreover, it is used for external and interior work. With the help of polystyrene foam, many designers create interesting compositions; it is also used for production ceiling tiles, baseboards, cornices, stucco moldings and more. This area of application is associated with several main advantages of the material:
- environmental friendliness;
- a light weight;
- low price.
All these areas are directly related to the question: “What is used to cut polystyrene foam?”
Knife
You can take a regular office tool. And execute the cut. In this case, the process will be accompanied by a creak, big amount debris, the edges may become chipped. This option is suitable for small amounts of trimming and thin sheets. In this case, you will need to replace the blade frequently.
The canvas should be processed on a flat, hard surface. To make the smoothest possible edges, you should mark the material and apply a straight strip to the line, pressing it with your hand. The knife must be guided smoothly; the guide will serve as a stop for the tool. Plus, by pressing it you can prevent strong debris from forming. This is one of the most common answers to the question of what is used to cut foam plastic.
Hacksaw for metal
This type of tool will allow you to cut sheets of any width, but the productivity will be low. Debris and squeaking will also accompany the entire process. The edges will crumble. This method is suitable for a small number of cuts. Work should be done on a table. The cutting part is shifted from supporting structure so that you can work with a hacksaw.
Power tools
How to cut polystyrene foam at home with a power tool?
For large volumes of polystyrene foam use, this actual question. Let's look at what equipment you can use:
- Jigsaw. It seems that the process is partially automated, the speed of work will increase. But the quality of the cuts will be low. There will be creaking and debris again. At the same time, you need to understand: slabs thicker than 80 mm are unlikely to be cut with such a tool.
- Bulgarian. It will also speed up the cutting process. But at the same time, the rubbish will be scattered in all directions, and even present loud noise from the operation of the tool. If you still choose a grinder for cutting, then it is better to purchase a diamond wheel with minimum thickness, this will help improve the quality of the cut.
We should also consider a tool such as a soldering iron.
Shaped cutting of foam plastic
Often, designers use polystyrene foam to create some kind of decor.
How do you cut the foam? In such cases, shaped cutting of foam is required good quality. The edges should be smooth and not crumble. For these options, use a regular soldering iron. In order to achieve maximum effect, the tip of the tool is flattened or a nozzle is made required size and shapes. A heated soldering iron allows you to perform high-quality, even cutting, which is necessary for decors. Another important point: During operation there will be virtually no fine debris.
Facade foam plastic
This material can be produced in several variations:
- pressed;
- suspension unpressed;
- suspension, non-pressed, self-extinguishing;
The thickness of the panels for facade insulation varies from 70 to 150 mm. You need to understand that such work is accompanied by a large number of cuts. Therefore, the previously listed methods of cutting foam plastic will not be very relevant.
Thermal cutting with knife
For this method, you need to think about heating the tool. Open fire or heating equipment may be used. The knife itself must be well sharpened. It is necessary to stock up with a straight guide bar for cutting. It is best to do the work outside. This will prevent the accumulation of harmful odors that negatively affect health.
The cutting line is marked, a guide bar is applied, and a cut is made with a heated knife. This method allows you to do it quickly and efficiently.
Nichrome wire
As noted earlier, cutting is best done under the influence of temperature. is no exception. Russian people have always been distinguished by their ingenuity, which helped them come up with equipment for manual cutting. Required:
- Desktop;
- transformer that converts 220V to 12 or 24V;
- nichrome wire;
- adjustable rheostat;
- wires.
The wire for cutting foam plastic is fixed across the table with a gap for the required size. Wires, rheostat, transformer are connected. When heated, the wire will easily make a high-quality cut. The material should be fed without much pressure; the heating temperature of the wire is also important. Too high can create sagging.
Designers also use this tool in their work. The wire also allows you to make a number of shaped cuts.
Security measures
Why is it better to take a 12 or 24V transformer for this device? If you are careless, you may receive an electric shock. With such parameters it will be just a burn, whereas with 220 V the situation can end in tears. Another important point: under the influence of heat treatment, polystyrene foam releases harmful substances, therefore it is necessary to use means personal protection respiratory organs - respirator. Styrofoam received wide scope application due to their unique properties. The light weight of the material and at the same time high thermal insulation properties make it possible to use it for large-scale insulation of facades, floors, and roofs. Such work does not place a significant load on the foundation, and this is a very important factor that allows you to save on strengthening the foundation. The use of this material in design developments again depends on the lightness of the resulting structures, environmental friendliness and the ability to produce any product.
But in any field, cutting of material remains important. The duration of the work and the final result depend on how quickly and efficiently it is completed. Which cutting option to choose is decided individually for each specific case.
Foam plastic is widely used today as sound and heat insulation building material, which has to be processed during the work process. In order for the sheets of material to correspond to the dimensions of the surface that is being insulated, they have to be cut. Cutting polystyrene foam can be done in several ways, one of which you can use in your work. The cutting process requires a certain approach for the reason that foam plastic can crumble and break if cut incorrectly.
Tools and materials
To work you will need:
- Styrofoam;
- ruler;
- pencil.
Return to contents
Methods for cutting foam plastic
Expanded polystyrene can be cut using a wallpaper knife. This tool will not only cost less, but will also be silent in operation, and cutting will be carried out in short time. As an advantage this method stands minimal amount garbage.
Before you start cutting, you need to check how sharp the knife is. This characteristic of the tool will allow you to perform work faster and with better quality.
Foam with a greater thickness is more difficult to cut, and you should not use a knife for cutting if the thickness of the material exceeds 5 cm, as it will be ineffective.
A jigsaw will also not allow you to get an even cut line; in addition, there will be a lot of debris.
Before you start cutting, you should purchase a long saw: it will allow you to cut sheets whose thickness does not exceed 10 cm.
It is preferable to cut polystyrene foam with a hand saw designed for woodworking. If for the process you intend to use regular knife, before starting it needs to be sharpened. Then the blade should be heated, only after that you can start cutting. In this case, cutting the material will be accompanied by melting of the edge. The cutting line will be smooth, the material will not crumble, and debris will be generated in minimal quantities.
You can cut polystyrene foam with your own hands and in an unusual way, which involves the use of hot nichrome wire. However, before you begin, you will have to do a little work on creating the tool. It can be made from wire, spring and transformer. The table must be installed at an angle of 60°. A wire has to be pulled across it; on one side, its end must be strengthened as rigidly as possible, and on the other, the end must be strengthened through a spring. To the ends of the wire you need to connect the wires of the transformer, which should be powered from the mains. After this, it is necessary to apply current and lay a sheet of heat insulator on the surface on top of the wire. Since the table is inclined, the thermal insulation sheet will move by sliding, succumbing to the influence of its weight.
To cut, you need to wait until the wire is almost red hot, but you should not let it get too hot. If this is allowed, the cut will become too wide. As the nichrome wire heats up, it will become longer. This indicates the need to use a strong spring in the design. This will allow you to adjust the length.
Cutting can be done with a grinder equipped with a metal disc. The thinnest disc should be used. This method cannot be called the most comfortable. In addition, the tool creates a lot of noise and a lot of debris will be generated.
Foam plastic lends itself well to processing with a soldering iron. The use of this tool will allow you to complete the work in the shortest possible time. The end of the soldering iron must be flattened with a hammer. After this, you need to put a special part on it, made of a blade and a steel cap taken from a fountain pen. The blade needs to be installed at the end. Then the soldering iron should be heated and you can start cutting the blades.
In addition to the fact that even sheets can be made from foam plastic, they can be subjected to figure cutting, giving the workpieces a variety of shapes.
If created from foam plastic curly elements, the material can be used not only as insulation, but also as decor for any room.
Polystyrene foam is not afraid of staining, which is why its surface can be coated with paint after cutting. Each of the above cutting methods has its own advantages, but you should prefer the one that will be less difficult for you.