Magnesiacore FAQs

Filler and jointing pastes to use: Magnesiacore is a solid integral material without a separate face sheet. It is a finely porous dense sponge. The edges are as hard and sound as the surface. Conventional fillers and jointing materials used with gypsum, cement and wood will function even better on magnesiacore. Magnesiacore has a variety of specialty accessory products developed and tested with our board material for many of the applications shown.

The installation shown on our video results in strong bonds and eliminate the need for tape, mesh or reinforcing materials over joints, thus significant savings in time and labor can be obtained.

Pictures of filler applied & trimmed by cutting and scrapping with a blade before fully cured without taping or sanding.

Magnesiacore advantages: With magnesiacore as the core material installed one has a very uniform smooth base surface to applying specific stucco materials. Significant savings in materials are realized when making uniform renders by extending the coverage of stucco by five to ten times over what is necessary over a rough uneven handmade plaster/cement base. Likewise, when laying ceramic floor tile over a magnesiacore base, floor mix can be applied using a 1/4" tooth spreader thus using one quarter the amount of flooring adhesive of a 1/2" spreader. This can extend floor coverage of a standard floor mix bag by up to four times or more reducing costs substantially and directly in the savings on costly material applied over it.

How to make a magnesiacore panel system with concealed fasteners? Pictured below is a simple hidden fastener and clip system for a T&G panel walls. It utilizes two basic clips. One for the bottom panels which is a "J" shape metal that is secured to the structure and clips into the "Groove" at the bottom panel. The top metal strap is screwed onto the back of the magnesiacore panel and then onto the structure from the front. The next panel wedges its "Grooved" edge over the "Tongue" of the other panel bellow thus concealing the metal strap at the top.

Make panels that interlock without making T & G edges: By adding metal, wood or plastic strips on the back of the board (with screws or glue); off-set from one another on adjacent boards, provides the function of T & G without routered edges. This is especially useful when using thin material that does not have the necessary thickness to groove and also saves installation time when field cutting on the jobsite.

Which side do I use? Magnesiacore has a smooth side and a textured side. The smooth side is more for painting, thin coatings and mastic adhesives. The textured side is for heavier coatings, stucco, ceramic tiles, stone, brick and other finishes applied with thick paste cement sand based adhesives. Either sides can be treated as finish material and can receive paint, sealers and specific adhesives to allow more options. Either side can be sanded to obtain different sheens, roughness and effects. With the front smooth face of Magnesiacore ready to directly receive paint, the back (picture below) is rendered dimensionally uniform by machined scoring that provides a uniform textured surface for greater versatility of use. The fine uniform texture is also suitable for painting or can be left as a natural textured finish.

What is the recommended thickness for use as a wall board: 9mm (3/8") is recommended for a wall board in place of drywall. It provides a plaster hard wall that installs like drywall.

What is the recommended thickness for ceramic tile floor backerboard? 6mm (1/4") is recommended for ceramic tile backer board on floors that is screwed over the plywood sub-flooring, floor boards or old finished flooring. We recommend a thin layer of floor mix between the sub-floor and the magnesiacore to eliminate voids.

What is the recommended thickness for ceramic tile wall backerboard? 9mm (3/8") is the recommended thickness on walls. Bonding is excellent with the ceramic and backboard combining strength allowing 6mm (1/4") with heavy large tiles.

Does Magnesiacore come with bevelled edges, tapered edges, "V" groove or other options for burying taping tape & compound or other jointing treatment? Magnesiacore comes with a 90 degree square edge. With Magnesiacore there are no paper face to worry about. The core is as dense as the face of the board and not friable. This allows edges to be machined with "V" grooves, T&G (tongue and groove) jointed and glued together in butted joints eliminating tapping. For tapered edges a thickness of the surface can be removed to create any bevel type, width, or amount of recess to suit taping or other treatments. The edge can also be sanded smooth and rendered the same as the surface of the board with sandpaper or planed ready for paint. This allows corners to be finished square without the use a corner bead and "J" trim for exposed edges.

Do we need to pre-drill or countersink for screws? Magnesiacore is denser than drywall but less than cement board. Standard light weight drywall screw will self drill but heads may break-off if not pre-drilled and over-forced. Standard weight carpentry screws are recommended and any size will self-drill and countersink themselves using normal tools. Standard carpentry screw from #4 to #10 will self drill and countersink with a strong hold. Pictured are screws for securing to metal studs in both a countersink type and versions for flush surface mounting. Stainless Steel screws are recommended when necessary to avoid rust.

Will magnesiacore take screws and nails? Yes, for fastening onto magnesiacore with screws, pre-drill a starter hole, smaller than the shaft of the screw, to create sharp threads to give as strong or stronger a hold than plywood. The same process of a starter hole can be used for nails. Without a starter hole the threads will tend to strip and not provide as strong a hold.

Cleaning and surface preparation suggestions: Magnesiacore surface is suitable to receive painting and sealers as is without requiring special surface preparation. Different surface effects can be created by rubbing with steel wool to polish the surface to a shine, or alternatively to get a uniform dull surface light sandpaper can be used. To fully clean the surface and remove all dusting, wipe with a cloth dampened with light vinegar or other light acid to remove weak surface particles exposing the hard integral material below. Cleaning is used to create the highest possible bond for the most demanding coating or adhesive.

Does Magnesiacore require special primers for painting or stucco? Magnesiacore can be treated the same as drywall, plaster or plywood. Primers are recommended based on the coating manufactures as are suitable for other porous materials like drywall, cements and wood. Magnesiacore has specific products developed for the applications described. Other product for finishing will generally work better on magnesiacore than they will on other materials they are traditionally used for.

What is required to leave magnesiacore in a natural finish? Magnesiacore requires a weatherproofing sealer to close pores and prevent staining and absorption from the elements. If the textured side is desired the logo can be easily removed by rubbing off with steel wool or light sandpaper.

The smooth side tends to have a shine, what is this? The shine is produced by smooth sides of boards rubbing together which polishes them to a gloss. If you want a uniformly gloss board surface you can apply steel wool to polish the surface further to achieve a natural high gloss. Alternatively using different grades of sandpaper will make the surface dull to obtain different natural affects with the board surface.

What certification is available for different parts of the world: Magnesiacore has the necessary properties to pass local testing for the applications described. We currently have in place the testing and certifications necessary for general non-structural uses for inside and outside of buildings. Please contact us to discuss certification and testing that may be relevant to your local jurisdiction.