Paper boards? Nonsense! Or is it possible?
There have already been several articles about how you can build the walls of a house in a summer cottage with minimal financial investment. For example, experts suggest using eco-bricks from plastic bottles, earth and adobe in construction. And this article will focus on making a material that replaces wood.
Paper boards - cheap and cheerful!
Wooden planks are needed for a lot. They are used to lay floors and ceilings in houses, make doors, jambs and frames, and make furniture. But such building material is not cheap.
It turns out that papier-mâché or, translated from French, "chewed paper" is a great substitute for wood. Amazing! And how can paper boards be as strong as natural wood?
In fact, papier-mâché building material:
- has less weight;
- does not crack when fastening boards with nails or screws;
- does not shrink from the sun and water;
- resists chips;
- paint and varnish coatings are used more economically;
- does not creak.
Papier-mâché in layers
Most people are familiar with the method of gluing paper scraps in layers. In this way, you can make not only small items, but also door frames or seats for stools. But still, this method is laborious enough to use it for the manufacture of the necessary building materials for the construction of housing in full.
Although a very beautiful and durable floor is obtained by gluing pieces of kraft paper in this way with PVA glue. This way you can renew the old floor.
If housing is being built from scratch, then there is an option. You can really get a durable and beautiful floor if you put the first layer of kraft paper on a metal mesh laid directly on the ground.
From above, such a floor is covered with stain and varnish. Although you can use paint or cover it with varnish only.
Pulp building material
This method is based on the casting of parts from paper-based gruel. Previously, this mass was made exclusively from the base. The paper was soaked, ground, and a product was pressed from the resulting gruel.
Today, masters suggest adding gypsum, chalk powder, cement, sifted wood ash... These ingredients increase the strength of the parts.
By mixing the pulp with substances that counteract the influence of water, or coating finished objects with such, you can make waterproof products from papier-mâché.
If it is necessary to create a refractory material, office glue is used, which has a second name - "liquid glass".
Papier-mache according to Winzer
This method appeared a long time ago. But only recently it was "rediscovered". You can use any waste paper to make papier-mâché boards: newspapers, cardboard, egg trays, notebooks, and the like.
All this is crushed and filled with water.
Periodic stirring and heating of the mass accelerates the process of soaking the waste paper.
Then the mass is squeezed out and ground well in a mortar - as it is written in the recipe. But today, masters prefer to use a meat grinder or blender at this stage to reduce labor costs.
Having squeezed the mass well through a linen cloth, the lumps are dried in the open air or in the oven.
Then it is recommended to grind them again by rubbing on a kitchen grater. The flakes should feel like cotton to the touch.
Now a glue base, for example flour paste, is added to the mass in small portions, and the "dough" is kneaded.
Having spread this mass on the table in a donut, sifted ash of hard wood is poured into the middle. Moreover, you need to take three times more filler than the paper mixture turned out. The ash is moistened with water, and all this is thoroughly kneaded again by hand.
Winzer advises to grind the mass again in a mortar, and then immediately start using papier-mâché. In some cases, you can save the material by stacking it in glass jars with tight-fitting lids. The dishes with the mass are stored in a cool place, where the sun's rays do not penetrate.
Papier-mâché boards
The most convenient way to make building materials is by casting in molds. For better removal, the bottom and walls of the mold are lined with dry newspapers or polyethylene. After filling the form, you need to press the mass well on top so that there are no air voids inside. The excess liquid that has come out is removed. Then the workpiece is taken out and left to dry. This process is reminiscent of making sand cakes.
Do not dry papier-mâché boards by heating, as this can lead to cracks in the workpiece. If this happens, the cracks are re-covered with mass and dried again.
Irregularities after drying can be easily removed with an emery or a file. The board is easily drilled, sawn, knocked down by nails. Any type of paintwork adheres to it perfectly.
When making a floor from this mass, you can immediately apply it to a metal mesh covered with cardboard. This will speed up the process. But on top, the still wet mass needs to be carefully leveled by pressing something smooth. Remove the press before the mass is dry.