Top 10 Ways to Use Cement Boards in Your Construction Project

Are you planning construction of your dream home? Then you might have came across cement fiber board already. The sustainability and reliability of the cement fiber boards are appealing. But, anyone new to the material will be confused on the uses. Here in this article, I will provide you 10 different applications of cement board and cement fiber-based products in your dream project.

You can use cement fiber boards in many interior and exterior applications since there are a lot of benefits using these in your project. You can use these cement fiber-based boards in association with different supportive frameworks like timber or wood, steel or iron sections, and aluminum. This will provide maximum yield and strength for construction projects.

Cement fiber board is made up of cement and fibers containing cellulose(wood pulp). 4 ft X 8 ft and 4 ft X 6 ft boards are available with thickness varying between 4 mm to 25 mm. The average cost of cement fiberboards is about Rs.3/sq ft – Rs.4.5/sq ft for 1 mm thickness but may vary market to market. The availability of material in many forms makes it convenient to utilize for different applications like planks, tiles, boards, ready-made panels, etc.

10 applications of cement fiber boards

1. Ceiling

Cement fiber based ceiling materials are available in two forms – board/sheet and tile. Different texture finishes are available for ceiling tiles. You can use cement boards in the traditional ceiling and ceiling tiles in a grid design. Projects where acoustic properties are important like an auditorium, halls, shared workspace, hospitals, malls, theaters – we can use the grid model.

2. Cladding

Cement fiber-based cladding products are mainly available in plank format with a thickness of around 8 mm and different dimensions. You can fix these planks with steel, cement or wooden substrates easily by screws or adhesives. Application area differs according to purpose like exterior walls, gates, lobby, facades, etc.

3. Dry Walls

Fiber cement-based wall partition solutions are best suited for high-speed construction works. Drywalls are lighter, easier to build and removes the ‘curing time’ associated with brick and mortar based construction. This is ideal for non-load bearing wall structures. Cement fiber-based drywall’s are more durable than gypsum drywall systems. Cement fiberboard partitions are highly recommended in wet areas.

4. Floor

We can use cement fiber boards in both traditional floors and in mezzanine floors. It will withstand high pressure in high footfall areas. Mezzanine floors are commonly made with cement fiber boards which are used for industrial purposes. Here the board acts as the final finished floor with a suitable framework of steel, timber, or plywood.

5. Ready Made Walls

Many companies have introduced cement fiber-based ready-made sandwich panels for the speedy construction. It is made of cement fiber board and aerated cement concrete filling. We can decorate these pre-made walls with paint, texture, wallpaper and veneer.

6. Roof Tile Underlay

Due to the thermal insulation and water-resistant properties of cement fiber board, you can use it as the underlay for fabricated roofing works. Usually, you can use it with the roof tiles and roofing shingles. This will provide a good uniform look for the roof from the inside and also provide good backing for the roofing material. In many cases, this avoids the requirement of a false ceiling under the roof as this acts with all properties of a ceiling.

7. Duct Covering

This is one of the best utilization of fiber cement board – as it adds aesthetic appearance to the external facade of a building when used as the casing of service pipes. MS framing is needed for this application. We will have different types of finishing options in this case – like paint or texture or tiles and cladding. Also, you can use laser or water-jet cutting to enhance the external view of the casing.

8. Back-Liners

We can use cement fiber board as back-liner or back panels of kitchen cabinets and the wardrobes. This is because of it’s very good anti-termite and waterproofing properties. Since it is a heavy product, it can also withstand the impact from inside and corners of cabinets. 6 mm or 9 mm sheets are ideal for this application. You can use any kind of boards available in the market along with it.

9. Cupboards

We can use cement fiber board to build modular kitchen cabinets. Mainly 16 or 18 mm thickness boards are utilized to fabricate cupboards. It’s high resistance against termites, moisture and fire makes them ideal for applications in any kind of project.

10. Counter Top

8/12/18/20/25 mm panels are ideal for counter-top according to the purpose. You can use it as counter tops in MS/GI or timber frameworks. As they are resistant to termites, moisture and fire, these are suitable for applications in commercial, residential and housing genres.

While I have listed 10, cement boards have a wide variety of applications other than above listed ones. Globally, manufacturing and consumption of cement boards are continuously increasing. Major chunk of cement board application is for commercial purposes rather than residential purposes.  

Have you used fibre cement boards in your construction project? Tell us how.