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View Full Version : Best material for this?



Tony Sade
04-07-2004, 12:37 PM
I'm putting an air conditioner in my shop. It's going in a tall vertical casement window and I need to fabricate a "curtain" to fill up the space above the unit, to replace the cheesy plastic one that came in the box. It has to be 1/4" to fit in a frame and will be exposed to the elements. I have some leftover 1/4" luan and some tempered masonite. Whatever I use will be stained to match some existing trim. I don't think the plastic-some kind of polycarbonate, I think-looks like corrugated cardboard-will take stain.

Would either of these work, assuming they're sealed properly, or should I be thinking of something else for long term moisture resistance? (Don't think I can get 1/4" cedar or cypress ply at the local borgs.)

TIA, :p

Carl Eyman
04-07-2004, 1:06 PM
Hope this helps. About 12 years ago I built a big box (abt. 4'x4'x12") to mount on a special purpose trailer. It has been out in the weather ever since. It was repainted once or twice and ,finally, was replaced last week. It was luan 1/4" plywood.

Michael Ballent
04-07-2004, 4:39 PM
Perhaps some marine grade plywood would be the ticket, but Carl's use of luan sounds like it could work as well.

-Michael

Dennis Peacock
04-07-2004, 5:04 PM
Marine grade plywood would last you a very long time, especially if you painted it to help further protect it from the weather.

Ed Falis
04-07-2004, 5:08 PM
Marine grade plywood would last you a very long time, especially if you painted it to help further protect it from the weather.

I agree about the marine grade plywood - probably the most cost-effective approach. If you have some epoxy and cloth around, you could coat the luan and use that, too, though I'm guessing that's going to be a more expensive option unless you already have the material hanging around.

- Ed

Jim Becker
04-07-2004, 8:13 PM
Have you considered using 1/4" clear Lexan? It would seal up the space and allow lots of nice light to come in. It's not quite as clear as glass, but easy to work with, etc.

Tony Sade
04-07-2004, 9:09 PM
Lexan clearly ;) makes the most sense. Ain't this a great place? Thanks to all.

Chris Padilla
04-08-2004, 9:50 AM
Was it Lexan or Plexiglass that is much stronger than glass? My local hardware store has both...check out both products, Tony.

Jim Becker
04-08-2004, 2:20 PM
Was it Lexan or Plexiglass that is much stronger than glass?

Lexan is absolutely what you want when using this material for anything of a safety nature and where extra strength is required. It flexes without shattering...something that Plexiglas is prone to do. Never use Plexi for tool guards, etc. For Tony's application, I could probably use either, but Lexan would be more durable.

Carl Eyman
04-08-2004, 8:14 PM
The people singing the praises of Lexan are "right, dead right as they roll along, but they're just as broke as though they'd been wrong" The stuff is expensive. Price it out. Luan mahogany - $0.40 per square foot or Lexan at $4.00 per square ft. I haven't researched these prices lately, but I bet I'm not far off.