Installation of plastic panels. Basics

Among a wide range of modern building materials, plastic panels are in high demand. First appeared on the market about 10 years ago, they quickly became popular both with secured developers, and with thrifty ones. The reason is simple: it is difficult to imagine a more versatile finishing material. Its advantages include:

• Simple installation of plastic panels. When they were created, it was initially possible to easily assemble. The groove system allows you to mount a perfectly flat surface even to a person without building experience, and for fixation on the basis no special preparation is required (compare with construction mixtures, wallpaper and some other coatings that require pre-cleaning and priming);
• Durability of coating and ease of use. The service life inside the living quarters is almost unlimited. Pollution is easily eliminated;
• Price categories are very different. Installation of plastic panels in the budget range can interest even a person with a small income;
• Universality. There are very few similar materials that allow you to finish the ceiling and walls. In addition, the installation of plastic panels can be performed both indoors and outdoors, although with some features. Residential premises or economic building - everywhere the panels organically fit into the overall design.

Installation of plastic panels begins with the choice of orientation of plastic strips (panels). Despite the presence of seamless modifications, all the same, one should strive to follow the recommendations and place the coating elements so that the joints of the future coating are parallel to the incident light. On the wall-base with the help of dowels a special frame is made of metal profiles or wooden bars. They are located perpendicular to the selected orientation of the sheets in steps of at least 0.5 m. If there is a thick insulation (foam plastic) outside the plastic strips, excluding the pushing, this distance can be doubled.

Stepping back 1-3 cm from the corner of the wall (depending on the type of plastic corner used), the first strip is laid. The protrusions of locks, grooves running along its entire length, are structurally different: on the one hand it is larger, which allows you to fix the panel on the crate and hide the fastening with the next strip. To fix the bars easier: suitable screws, carnations, staples. But for the profiles are designed self-tapping screws. It is advisable to perform the metal grating only for some cases: the outer skin, the installation of plastic panels is done in the bathroom with high humidity. The width of the last finishing strip is adjusted to the desired size (taking into account the margin of the wall for the corner).

Installation of plastic panels on the ceiling is carried out on the same principle. The difference is that panels with a smaller thickness (5 mm) can be used, since high strength from them on the ceiling is not required. On all four sides of the walls indents are made for the subsequent placement of corners or cornices.

Deciding to assemble a coating of plastic panels, you need to consider a number of features:

• If necessary, leveling the wall (ceiling) according to the level, the crate must be adjusted accordingly;
• When the ceiling is trimmed, you must be prepared for the fact that the room can differ significantly from the right square or rectangle, which will require accurate measurements and trimming of the last strip;
• External placement of the panels is allowed, but since over time, under the influence of environmental conditions, the plastic becomes brittle, it can be placed where it is impossible to accidentally break the cover (loft, inaccessible part of the wall).