Plywood vs OSB for Crating - Which is Best?

Plywood and OSB (Oriented Strand Board) panels are the most common sheathing materials used for wooden crates. If you need a sheathed crate, which one is best for your application? 

Here are the options:

Plywood

OSB Panel

• Plywood
  layers (usually 3 to 5) of thin wood veneers glued together to form a thicker panel.
    
  
• OSB
  layers of large chips, glued together to form a thicker panel.

For BOTH plywood and OSB, layers are rotated 90 degrees so that the overall panels have strength, stiffness and stability in all directions. Most of the panels used in pallets and crating are industrial grade and similar to that used in the housing industry. 

Within the housing industry, plywood and OSB are considered interchangeable. The load ratings are usually based on the panel thickness, rather than materials. 

For pallets and crating, plywood and OSB are NOT interchangeable. 

Here are some of the factors to consider:

• Durability 
  For outdoor applications under damp conditions, plywood is more durable than OSB.   Standard OSB panels will degrade over time, so plywood wins for outdoor use.
• Strength and Stiffness
  There is no difference in this category. 
• Appearance
  Plywood wins for most applications. The finished plywood unit has a smooth appearance and is more aesthetically appealing to most users.
• Weight
  Again, very little difference in this category.
• Cost
  Usually OSB wins here. Most of our OSB is used in the more cost sensitive applications, where performance and durability are required, but a lower price is a high priority. While the costs of plywood and OSB fluctuate, OSB is almost always the winner in the price factor.

So what do you think? Which material is best for your application? 

Post by: John Clarke, Technical Director

Use of OSB Panel by Lionel Allorge and Spruce Plywood by Bystander licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.