Basic strength test for a 25mm x 48mm length of "metalclad" (metal clad is my invention of a door side off cut of grp skin upv core glued & screwed inside drywall lining steel'

This sample had grp on 3 sides & drywall channel on 3 sides . Apollo adhesives glue was used with slant drilled drywall screws (42mm.) As it was the dimple sided c-stud, I think this did not glue well. Flat sided stell would glue better imo

I weigh 16 stone (101kg) . Yes, the beam survived!

We will be doing more elaborate strength  / destruction tests in the new yr with thicker & longer samples.

Wood Framed Hexayurt Inspired Featherweight Panel (3.5-5kg) 

I did a bit of research on the excellent HEXAYURT shelter. A masterpiece of simplicity from  Vinay Gupta the Inventor  . He has some very informative videos. on a wide range of subjects.

Inspired by a posive email reply from Vinay, I thought I would have a go at a featherweight panel using other offcuts from the door factory (Rough prototype 1 in pic ).

Off cuts are from the inside of a specialist panel.  Weight is 3.5-5kg, as panel  / mdf  width varies


 I did a 1 yr outside test where panel was exposed to all weathers . Aparet from a few mm swelling of mdf edge , the panel was fine. A edge coating of paint might stop this.

The outer frame is 30mm thick & 1800mm +/-  high . Composite with outer skin of plastic both sides, then 6mm or 9mm mdf, polystrene or rigid foam core.

The cross bracing  is single sking plastic approx 3mm, a door side off cut, strong in tension.

I have put 3 screws in corners, but would like use small bolts & washers. The cross strips will extend a bit at bottom,  as well as top to attach roof panels, and for ground tethering.   

The shelter is designed to be covered in fabric or a tarp. 

Basic tent peg test from grp / plastic composite door side off cut. 

 Point made with chop saw with wood blade ( grp - wear mask)

Bashed in with normal hammer ok, solid top survived well with no splits, few dents. 

Could have barbs or slit on side added to fix better. \best not to cut grp skin as its composite strength

Needs hole drilled in top to take guy rope .

 

New panel designs using door off cut "window cut outs". Pics are side & stronger roof.

 All will be clad on sides with drywall stud or tracking steel metalclad (cutaway sides in pic 1.)

Note: finish is a bit rough due to trialling a new 1 part non toxic glue from apollo adhesives. 

This is working great!  £9 a litre for 12 x 1 ltr box. It is like superglue that foams up a bit to seal.

 Edges may still need a quick finger run of silicone (i've bought a pallet off ebay for 30p a tube in mixed colours)


I have contacted the local coast guard / fire brigade / army /Gov. as they could be used as crawling / walking / floating boards in flooded /boggy / muddy areas.

Pontoons I've designed using panels bolted together or tyres filled with door panels, & extra side / under strenghtening may be needed for buoyancy. 

I will test this in a lake new yr.

 

Further to the last post on our work with composite door off-cuts. Over the last year, we have experimented with various panel design prototypes in different thickneses & configurations.

Cabinz have been working with a large composite door manufacturer for over a year. 

We have re-used approx, 25-30 tonnes of materials that would have become waste without this service & been land filled, as it could not be recycled, being mixed materials of upvc & grp fibreglass. ( See pic 1) These have been used by folks for uses such as insulation & husky dog kennels.

 We believe we may have invented a new load bearing product, we are calling " METALCLAD"

Door side off cut strips are made of a composite of a solid upvc core with a grp fibreglass skin on 2 or 3 sides. 

In our research,  we have discovered that they fit comfortably within dry wall metal c stud / i-stud & tracking of 48 / 50mm, 92/94mm &  146 / 148mm. We have experimented with various configurations. This may possibly count as a new invention.

There are a few millimetres spare to allow for gluing or siliconing of materials. With a few screws, this forms a very strong beam upright, as the c stud is in tension & the upvc / grp, is in compression, exploiting the benefits of both materials.

They are 44-45mm thick,  2015mm long & from 5mm to 40mm thick. They are strong , yet flexible and are an off cut from a door that meets half hour fire regs, so reasonably fire resistant. The grp can be easily nail gunned together or c stud & core can be screwed.

By overlapping & gluing / nailing  / screwing the 2m lengths they can be extended to greater lengths as required. 

We also recently completed tests where they were left out in all weathers & sunlight for over a yr, they did not appear to degrade, de-laminate or be attacked by rodents / insects. We are building another garage sized structure next week for further testing. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you wish to buy strips to make metalclad (metal c stud & tracking can be bought locally from building suppliers)

Paul Ridley, co-ordinator Cabinz project 

Tel 0743 2315470 

email cabinznet@gmail.com

We've just had our 2nd delivery of Rigid foam & steel sandwich panels. These will make prototype, modular out buildings.

If a low income family or small business has a small project like a summer house or garage office. Contact us and we may be able to supply them at low cost .