MARINE PLYWOOD

Marine plywood is manufactured from durable face and core veneers, with few defects
so it performs longer in both humid and wet conditions and resists delaminating and
fungal attack. Its construction is such that it can be used in environments where it is
exposed to moisture for long periods. Each wood veneer will be from tropical
hardwoods, have negligible core gap, limiting the chance of trapping water in the
plywood and hence providing a solid and stable glue bond. It uses an exterior Water and
Boil Proof (WBP) glue similar to most exterior plywoods.

Marine plywood can be graded as being compliant with BS 1088, which is a British
Standard for marine plywood. There are few international standards for grading marine
plywood and most of the standards are voluntary. Some marine plywood has a Lloyd's of
London stamp that certifies it to be BS 1088 compliant. Some plywood is also labeled
based on the wood used to manufacture it. Examples of this are Okoumé or Meranti.

Marine Plywood Standars

Figuring out marine plywood grades in order to choose materials for stitch and glue and
other methods of boatbuilding can be confusing.

Opinions range from the high and mighty: "Since you are going to spend a lot of time
building, you should use the best material available no matter what the cost" to the
economy version "Grab some Luan underlay, build a quick cheap boat and get out there
and have some fun"

Most of us would prefer to understand the options a bit better.

Marine Plywood Grades

In order to be a Marine Grade the plywood has to conform to a certain number of

criteria:

1. The Glue MUST be waterproof

2. Voids are to be avoided
3. Face and inside veneers have to be good

Plywood Glue

Any glue used for marine plywood or for that matter also used in exterior use has to
conform to the a stringent test. Plywood assembled from it needs to be able to withstand
boiling in water for several hours without de-laminating. This is WBP glue and stands for
"Weather and Boil Proof". Glues vary in their tenacity while being boiled.

The capacity of a plywood to not de-laminate under boiling is not only dependent on
the quality of the glue but also on the materials used and the care which was used in the
manufacture.

My page on Marine and Exterior plywood glue and on Phenol Formaldehyde which is
often used in marine plywood.

Voids in Marine grade plywood spell disaster.

Voids not only weaken the plywood but create a ready path for water infiltration. For this
reason Marine Grade Ply must not have voids.
The veneers used for the manufacture of the plywood must be of high
quality.

Depending on the grade, knot size and frequency is controlled. If a repair needs to be
made on an inside ply there are rules for this. If a ply needs to be joined inside it can not
be butted. The thickness and number of plies is also controlled.

Marine Plywood Grades

BS 1088

Although a British Standard, it is used by marine plywood manufacturers world wide. The
plywood does not have to be of British Manufacture. It is an extensive document which
details all characteristics of the plywood.

 The BS 1088 standard is a marine plywood specification that applies to plywood

made from untreated tropical hardwood veneers that have a stated level of
resistance to fungus growth.
 BS 1088 plywood must use a glue, which has been tested and shown to be highly
resistant to weather, micro-organisms, cold and boiling water, steam and dry heat.
There are standard BS tests for the glue.
 The Face Veneers must have a solid surface without open defects. Face veneers
must be free of knots except "sound pin" knots, (no more than six in any one
square foot,) the average of pin knots cannot exceed 2 per square foot over the
whole surface of the plywood sheet. The grain in the veneers should be
reasonably regular. Edge joints are limited, and end joints are not permitted.
 Core veneers requirements are similar to face veneers except that slits are allowed
as long as they are small. Pin knots and edge joints are also allowed. As in face
veneer, end joints are forbidden.
 Manufacturing Defects are strictly controlled. Poor bonds, overlaps and pleats,
and gaps in faces are not allowed. Gaps may be filled using veneer inserts glued
with appropriate adhesive.
  The Moisture content of the plywood must fall between 6% and 14% when it
leaves the factory.
 Boards will be equally sanded on both sides.
 Finished size The length or width of a standard sized sheet can not be less than
the stated size nor more than 6.3 mm (0.25") larger.
 Squareness -- The lengths of the diagonals of a sheet shall not vary by more than
0.25% of the length of the diagonal.
 Thickness tolerances:
4 mm +.02/-0.6 ; 6 mm +.04/-0.65 ; 9 mm +.06/-0.75 ; 12 mm +.09/-0.82 15 mm
+.1/-0.9 ; 18 mm +.12/-0.98 ; 22 mm +.16/-1.08 ; 25 mm +1.8/-1.16
 Face Veneer thickness -- For any three-ply construction, each veneer sheet will
not be any thinner than 1/8 of the total thickness of veneers assembled dry. Multi-
Ply Construction-- This applies to boards thicker than 4.8 mm (3/16")
Each face veneer shall be a minimum of 1.3 mm and not thicker than 3.8 mm.
Each core veneer shall be no thicker than 4.8 mm

Lloyd's of London Certification

According to their website

"Lloyd's Register Type Approval is an impartial certification service providing

independent third-party Type Approval certificates attesting to a product's conformity
with specific standards or specifications, and verification of an appropriate production
quality system."

In other words Lloyd's ensure that the standard in production is met. Lloyds do not
continuously inspect production lines or individual plywood sheets.
Many plywood are made according to the BS 1088 marine plywood standard but they
have not all gone to the trouble and expense of getting certified. On the other hand
some manufacturers claim to be up to this standard but are not. As usual it boils down to
you get what you pay for and it pays to go to a reputable dealer.

BS 6566

This standard is very similar to the BS 1088 with somewhat reduced quality.

It is a marine plywood standard using the same glues, but has somewhat more relaxed
requirements as to the quality of the veneers. The face veneers are often of slightly lower
grade and thinner. There are no voids and requirements for joins are similar.

It is generally considered an excellent material if not as pretty as the higher grade. Bright
finishes are not necessarily as successful as with the BS 1088. I have used both grades
and have not seen any defects in either.

Exterior Plywood

There are many exterior grades being manufactured. The glues are usually essentially the
same as the marine grades. The outside veneers vary a great deal depending on the
chosen grade. There is a possibility of voids. Boats have been successfully built using
higher grade exterior plywood.

AS/NZS 2272

This is an Australia / New Zealand standard. Marine Plywood manufactured to AS/NZS

2272 standard, is a structural plywood intended for hulls of boats and other marine
applications. It has a Type A (wbp) phenolic bond glue and is manufactured from woods
based on density, bending strength, impact resistance and surface finishing
characteristics.
None of the marine species are naturally durable and preservative treatment will be
required. Hoop pine is often used.

The Engineered Wood Products Association of Australasia is a rich source of information

and explains the standard in more detail.

The durability of the plywood wood is not always of paramount importance

in modern boatbuilding

The marine plywood is rarely left unfinished. It very often has an epoxy coating, often
with glass cloth as well. Okkume is a prime example of a widely used plywood wood
which is not particularly resistant to rot and fungus.

You may not always need the absolute best grade of plywood. Often a high end exterior
ply will do as well particularly in area that do not particularly stressed.