OT Plywood question

[Cebu_4_2]

Okay this might sound stupid but when did they stop making 1/2" plywood and OSB?

Redoing an area of flooring in my house and was making a list when I noticed Home Depot site showing only 1 sheet of OSB 50 miles away. So I go to the Lowes site, same thing but not even 1 sheet. So fuck this shit I go down to the store and nope nodda except the real expensive stuff. I go to the counter to place the order when the guy told me that 15/32 "Is" 1/2". I mean sure it's close but in replacing a section here and there that is thinner is all jacked up to me. Not any options around me besides big box stores.

WTF?

[hoarder]

They decided to cheat us out of 1/32" quite a few years ago. Hidden inflation. Also they have cheated us on the plies. 1/2" was 5 ply until 1994. Now it's down to 3 and looks like shop grade. Any plywood is still better than OSB/Waferwood/chipboard crap.
I still walk up to the lumber counter and ask for 1/2" CDX and without a word they give me 15/32".
Nobody uses 1/2" plywood on floors, not even mobile homes.

[Cebu_4_2]

I haven't bought plywood in a long time so it really blew my mind. I managed to get 4 ply and it's delaminated on 2 and 3 sides of the 2 sheets I ordered. The osb I got seems pretty good 'Legacy' 41499 at Homedepot. Degassing outside now, thinking of spacing them apart for a while.

Currently we have particle board on 1/4th of the house and the back door was left open for years letting the elements in and rotted the floor, joists and sill plate between the deck and house (19K foreclosure). No clue how difficult that plate will be to replace, right now tearing the deck down to get in there.

[midnight rambler]

OSB board is vastly improved over what it was like 20+ years ago. It used to be total crap which took nominal moisture exposure to cause it to crater, it’s now much more resistant to moisture, comparable to CDX plywood.

[woodman]

OSB board is vastly improved over what it was like 20+ years ago. It used to be total crap which took nominal moisture exposure to cause it to crater, it’s now much more resistant to moisture, comparable to CDX plywood.

This is true in my experience. I still do not fully trust OSB and it is nowhere near as strong as plywood. I actually did a couple of gym floors where the architect and mill spec'd OSB for the subfloor. It is really easy to work with because it has zero warping compared to the shitty plywood they are making now days (yes, Hoarder is correct). If I were patching a subfloor, I would not hesitate to use 3/4" OSB, but plywood is way stronger.

[hoarder]

This is true in my experience. I still do not fully trust OSB and it is nowhere near as strong as plywood. I actually did a couple of gym floors where the architect and mill spec'd OSB for the subfloor. It is really easy to work with because it has zero warping compared to the shitty plywood they are making now days (yes, Hoarder is correct). If I were patching a subfloor, I would not hesitate to use 3/4" OSB, but plywood is way stronger.

What about the swelling when wet aspect of OSB? Has that gotten much better? Looking at all the roofs on spec homes that were decked with OSB a few years ago, now you can see exactly where the trusses are.

[Cebu_4_2]

I think I should picture this stuff but haven't linked my phone to the forum. Could probably use some tips and tricks cause besides building new stuff I never dealt with old rot that I had to fix.

Ahhh! I forgot to mention the rot thing, this place was infested with carpenter ants big time, especially where I am working. Nothing helped until I fogged behind boards and stuff on the outside with regular mosquito stuff. Poof they disappeared in 2 days, not a single ant since and been like 5 years.

[Cebu_4_2]

The crap I got says guaranteed til covered or something like that, the Lowes one that's 36 a piece says for 500 days. (I thing or 300 days) whatever seems to be pretty waxy in material to stay flat.

[woodman]

What about the swelling when wet aspect of OSB? Has that gotten much better? Looking at all the roofs on spec homes that were decked with OSB a few years ago, now you can see exactly where the trusses are.

It doubt it's gotten better in that respect so I would still not trust it. I think for a patch it would be ok. I remember years ago when framing houses in the winter or in rainy weather, the OSB did warp and sag a bit when soaked. I would not use it myself anywhere I thought water might get to it. I used it on the second floor of my shop and it really does not feel as solid as ply. It is a lot cheaper though and if you don't need ply you can save a lot of cash.

[midnight rambler]

What about the swelling when wet aspect of OSB? Has that gotten much better? Looking at all the roofs on spec homes that were decked with OSB a few years ago, now you can see exactly where the trusses are.

I don’t see recently manufactured (in past 15 years or so) OSB swelling and sagging like the OSB board manufactured 30+ years ago. Virtually all construction around here now with few exceptions uses OSB board instead of plywood including the most expensive custom homes. Regardless whether OSB or plywood both are going to rot when exposed to prolonged moisture. Based on what I see OSB and plywood perform essentially the same under identical circumstances.

Still not a huge fan of OSB but it’s now more or less equivalent to the lower quality plywood.