Cartonal Waffle system is intended to answer architects and contractors need to cast concrete with geometrical cavities of different sizes.
Initially contractors used fiber glass moulds and poured concrete on top. But these moulds are heavy, quite expensive and prone to break. They also tend to get stuck inside the hardened concrete and thus have to be destroyed in order to be removed. The main disadvantage to these moulds is that they are precast in set sizes that force the designers to adjust their designs to accommodate them.
Then engineers realized that these fiber glass moulds can be replaced with light weight expanded polystyrene, which is cheaper and easier to work with. Another problem appeared, expanded polystyrene sticks to the concrete and cannot be removed. Polystyrene is a hazardous material especially in fire, as it produces poisonous gasses when ignited; it also tends to disintegrate with time into granules that block air ducts. Engineers therefore insisted on removing the polystyrene blocks from the cured concrete.
Cartonal solved this problem by simply covering the polystyrene blocks with Cartonal boards.
Cartonal being a strong, flexible material that does not stick to concrete, provided an excellent separator between the concrete and polystyrene.
After the concrete is poured and vibrated, and the concrete has cured; the supporting structure is removed revealing the polystyrene blocks. The blocks are then easily removed and the covering Cartonal sheets are removed as well, to be reused over and over again.
General specifications:
Cartonal waffle system has the following advantages over other systems.
- It allows the designers/engineers to use measurements of cavities they find best to fit their needs changing lengths, widths and shapes as needed.
- The ability to reuse the system.
- Light weight and less handling problems
- Easy loading and unloading.
- Cartonal boards can be stored flat.
- Quick and easy installation.
- Large savings.
- Easy dismantling.
- Easy transporting from one roof to the next.
Cartonal has developed boards that can withstand repetitive usage of up to eight times.
Cartonal suggests the following technical specs of the board to maximize efficiency.
• Cartonal waffle boards of 4 mm thickness with special additives.
• Cartonal provides cutting and creasing of the boards free of charge to save the contractor time & money.
• Cartonal can produce box waffles in accordance with engineers requirements and measurements.
• Polystyrene blocks should be in the following densities 14 kg/ m³- 16 kg/m³, (the higher the density the longer it will last).
Installation
How to place your order for Cartonal waffle .
The order has to show the following sizes (see the diagram below) AB, BC, CD, and BE.
Cartonal will manufacture Cartonal waffle, cut it and crease it in accordance with the above sizes and ship it in flat form. Cartonal will provide covers for the front and back of the waffle the size of which will be B-C-D-E-B
The starting & ending covers are then connected to the body of the waffle with 5 cm / 1.5 inch duct tape.
Installation
- Straight line (string) is pulled between E& B
- Cartonal board should be placed under the string at point B such that the creasing goes along with the pulled string.
- Cartonal should be fixed to the wood by small flat head nails at intervals of 15 cm along AB.
- Polystyrene block is inserted under the Cartonal board. The board then covers the block and inserted under the other string at point E.
- EF then is fixed to the wood in a similar way to AB
- Side covers are then fixed at the starting & ending points of the waffle.
