Asbestos sheet substitute?

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

I'm looking for a sheet material (6mm thickish?) to go into the ground in front of fencing concrete gravel boards to bridge a bit of a gap to the ground. I've tried builders undercloak but it doesn't have any wet strength. I wondered if anyone had had any experience of such a material? I've tried Googling "asbestos sheet substitute" and haven't really got anywhere.

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

[RobboParticipant @robbo]

Try Googling "Corrugated cement sheets", "Fibre cement sheet", "Fibre cement board" – should get you plenty of hits

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

Many thanks for that – lots of hits as you say.

Dennis

[Alan Waddington 2Participant @alanwaddington2]

Tile backer board is waterproof cement based sheet. Any tile stockist or B&Q etc stock it. Trade names include ‘No more ply’’

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

…Hardibacker, Knauf Aquapanel etc….fibre reinforced cement board. Available down to 6mm thickness. These are typically for tiling over in bathrooms etc.

But for finishing roofing tiles, there are undercloak soffits. You fill the gap between these and the tiles with mortar where the edge of the roof meets the wall – have a look on a gable end above the facia. I suspect these might be a better size for this application, rather than 4'x8' sheets etc.

Murray

Edited By Muzzer on 11/02/2018 14:00:48

[KWILParticipant @kwil]

Murray,

That's the stuff Dennis says has no wet strength, it certainly does not have any dry strength!

Edited By KWIL on 11/02/2018 16:10:50

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

The problem is that this material is going to be in contact with the ground all the time. Undercloak has failed and I suspect that the boards intended for tiling over are not intended to get wet once they have been tiled over and grouted. Many years ago I had a shed with a timber frame and flat sheet asbestos panels. I'm looking for the follow up product in an asbestos-free world. Most of the stuff I've found so far is corrugated.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

As you are only likely to need thin strips why not get the barge board trims used with corrugated Fibre cement roofing sheets and cut the short leg of the "L" off. The plain wide ones would be the best to go for.

[MuzzerParticipant @muzzer]

You seem to think you need an asbestos-free cement board which is what all these links and suggestions point to. Fact is, they are the default solution for roofing and wetroom use. The primary difference between them and asbestos is that they use glass fibre instead of asbestos, although the tile backing boards are less like asbestos sheets, having embedded glass fibre mesh rather than bulk mixed fibres like traditional asbestos cement sheets.

A shed won't have spent most of its time under the water line(?), so as a precedent it doesn't sound very convincing.

If it's largely underground, and cement board doesn't work, surely you should be looking at resin or plastic instead. Cement is cement, regardless of what it is mixed with and you seem to have convinced yourself it's no good.

Murray

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

I think this analysis of the problem is spot-on. I started off with the hope that the construction industry had something off the shelf that I could use but it doesn't look promising. Some years ago I replaced the rotten tantalised 8 year old 4" x 1" timber which formed a barrier between my lawn and my ballasted track with similarly sized recycled plastic which looks like a permanent solution to that problem. The problem I have now is finding a suitable plastic material (6mm X 150mm x 1350mm (10 off) at an acceptable price. I'm on it!

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

How about offcuts of plastic guttering often found in skips. It is heat formable so you can heat it up and flatten it out. Also Correx the plastic version of cardboard used for estate agent's signs. If you can find a cable laying company (BT, Virgin, Electricity boards) they use it to wrap up the cable drums and may be available at the local depot.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by Dennis Rayner on 12/02/2018 12:40:38:

The problem I have now is finding a suitable plastic material (6mm X 150mm x 1350mm (10 off) at an acceptable price. I'm on it!

.

This, from our local stockist, should be a good indication of what's available.

**LINK**

https://www.eurocell.co.uk/soffit-board/flat-soffit-board-9mm

[ 9mm seems to be a preferred thickness ]

MichaelG.

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

It seems as if soffit board may be the answer **LINK** but as it is foam filled I have concern about immersion in wet ground. I have ordered a sample to test by soaking in a bucket of water over a few days.

[SamsarandaParticipant @samsaranda]

Immersion in wet ground won’t harm it, there will be no absorption because the foam is a continuous series of sealed bubbles therefore nothing to contain any moisture, depending how wet your ground is it may well float away being extremely buoyant.

Dave W

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

I received my sample and, as Samsaranda said, it is impervious to water. I have left it in a bucket of water however in order to ensure there is no delamination of the grey upvc from the foam core. All seems well so I will now order soffit boards for the whole job.

Many thanks for all the help and advice given in this matter.

[RedsetterParticipant @redsetter]

Excuse my ignorance of gardening matters, but why don't you fill the space with gravel, earth, or a row of bricks, none of which contain asbestos?

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

Hope the picture will show the problem. The bottom of the concrete gravel board is about 3" too high. The track is very close to it. Soil or gravel will not allow me to infill the gap with track ballast without becoming messy i.e. a firm edge to the track ballast is needed. Bricks may be OK but may be too wide. I suppose slate would do the job. I only mentioned asbestos sheet at the beginning as the sort of thing I was looking for. Soffit board is in the lead at the moment.

[RedsetterParticipant @redsetter]

My friend, are you being serious? You should be thankful that you have space for a ground level track, and don't waste time worrying about things which don't matter. It would look quite realistic with a few weeds along the fence.

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

Weeds!!! In our garden? You have obviously never met my wife!

[Mark RandParticipant @markrand96270]

Do you want my last four sheets of corrugated assy cement before I take them to the council recycling centre?

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

That's most kind but I really need a flat material. Thanks for the offer anyway.

[Gordon WParticipant @gordonw]

Nail a bit of wood to the existing posts and fill with concrete, move the wood and repeat as needed. You can buy sacks of ready mixed dry concrete, just pour in and water. An expensive way to buy concrete but very simple.

[Dennis RaynerParticipant @dennisrayner52782]

That's a real Rolls Royce solution effectively creating a new concrete gravel board at a lower level.

Sadly I'm on a Trabant budget!

Thanks for the suggestion anyway.

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