DIY leaf polycarbonate cutting. Cutting polycarbonate corner grind

How to cut polycarbonate at home

Polymer plastic, known to many as polycarbonate, begins to gain popularity in the market of goods. Such demand is due to a largely acceptable cost, high technical characteristics and small weight, which is very convenient when installing. Everyone can work with this type of material, regardless of the availability of special skills. If you cut polycarbonate at home during installation, the cut should be made efficiently, and the material should not be spoiled.

Undoubtedly, the cutting of polycarbonate at home is possible, but it is important to understand that, depending on the selected material, the specifics of the work may vary a little different. On sale you can find monolithic or cellular polycarbonate. The peculiarity lies in the presence of special partitions in mobile material. Before starting work, you must first study all the nuances.

What is cut polycarbonate

A feature of polycarbonate is the fact that in order to cut it at home, you can use any construction tool.

• stationery or construction knife;
• electric jigsaw;
• corner grinding machine (corner grinder);
• a circular saw;
• hacksaw designed to work on metal.

If we consider industrial equipment, then you can use a milling machine that has a numerical software control and a special laser of several types.

It is worth considering the fact that there are a number of building tools that in no case cut polycarbonate. This is due to the fact that there is a high probability of damaging the sheet, as a result of which the quality will suffer greatly.

Many experts recommend refraining from use:

• Hacksaw designed to work on wood. as you know, such a model has quite large teeth, so that the material is not cut, but torn during operation. Ultimately, the slice will have a large number of cracks, zabrin and burrs.
• Building scissors or metal scissors. this option is perfect for thin monolithic polycarbonate. Cellular polymer material will be deformed from two sides.

Before cutting polycarbonate, you need to choose the right tool.

How to cut monolithic polycarbonate

If necessary, you can carry out the process of cutting monolithic polycarbonate at home. For these purposes, a disk saw that has small teeth is perfect. In order to not only cut the polymer material, but also achieve the best result, many experts recommend giving preference to teeth that are equipped with special hard inserts. Thanks to this approach, you can prevent an undesirable process of heating the material. If it is planned to cut a sheet, the thickness of which reaches up to 2 mm, then in this case it is recommended to simultaneously cut from 10 polycarbonate sheets. As practice shows, cutting several sheets at the same time is much easier and more convenient than one.

It is important to understand that if you cut a single polycarbonate sheet of small thickness, then the material can be covered with cracks during operation. In this case, it is best to use a guillotine cut, but this method has a significant drawback. the edges of the cut will be rough. If necessary, you can use a strip saw up to 2 cm wide.

Advice! For monolithic polycarbonate, the thickness of which exceeds 6 mm, it is recommended to use an electric tool.

How to cut cellular polycarbonate

If it is planned to cut cellular polycarbonate at home, it should be understood that this type of building material has a porous structure, as a result of which the process of work can be very specific. If the thickness of the material does not exceed 1 cm, then in this case you can do only with a clerical or construction knife with a retractable blade. When cutting cellular polycarbonate along the ribs of stiffness, it will be necessary to perform work in several stages.

The starting cutting should be carried out on the outer surface, after which a sheet of cellular polycarbonate is turned over and performed a similar action, only on the other side of the building material. Когда возникла необходимость резать поликарбонатный лист поперек ребер жесткости, то алгоритм действий будет включать уже 3 этапа. Thus, as in the previous version, the product is cut on both sides, after which they carefully cut the internal partition.

When a polymer product in thickness exceeds 1 cm, you will need to use a hacksaw for metal or wood, while the teeth must be divorced. In the presence of an electric tool, for example, an angular grinder or a jigsaw, it is possible to give preference to them, but at the same time the revolutions of the selected tool should be at the minimum level.

Installation of profiled polycarbonate. leaf features

Profiled polycarbonate, very similar to metal corrugated board, although it has some differences. composition, transparency, size, etc.P. Having almost the same shape, it is actually mounted equally. Of course, “corbonate corrugonate” still has its own properties and characteristics. What does its subtleties also mean when installing. Let’s take a look at what these subtleties are and how to properly install profiled polycarbonate.

To make it convenient to absorb information, I laid out everything by points. For the ease of perception, consider the installation in two parts. And so, we go in order.

• The frame that will serve as the basis for laying panels should be painted in light colors. To avoid excessive overheating of the contact sites with panels. It is worth adding that it is better to paint with hammer paints. Because their service life is much more than oil, enamels and nitroemale.
• Panels and components that have significant damage obtained during transportation and processing are not suitable for installation. Their use will lead to a significant reduction in the service life of the product.
• Installation of panels should be done at a plus temperature, that is, above 0 ° C. As a rule, this will greatly simplify the installation of polycarbonate and reduce the likelihood of damage. Plates should only be laid in UV protection to the sun. The side with UV protection is covered with a plastic film with a marking applied on it.
• The panels are laid from the bottom up, as when laying a conventional slate.
• The slabs used for canopies are fastened along the crests of the waves. And those that are for fences. by depressions.
• Edges, as well as panels, must be fixed to the base on each wave. Fasteners in the middle of the panels are carried out after 2-3 waves.
• The edge of the plate should not protrude less than 50 mm from the place of fasteners, but also not exceed 200 mm.

Installation in detail: Part 2

So, the second part of the discussion of the installation of polycarbonate step by step. Go:

• When installing sheets of this type, you must always remember the thermal expansion of this material. Therefore, in the places of connection and fasteners, it is worth making the necessary gaps. It should also be known that the holes for screws should be 2-3 mm larger than the screw of self-tapping screw. This will make it possible to expand freely or narrow polycarbonate panels.
• Do not pull the screws during installation. Remember that the panels should move without much effort with the thermal expansion. The screw should be wrapped perpendicular to the surface of the sheet.
• The corrugated board is laid longitudinally an overlap every 2 waves. It is possible in one wave, but then it is necessary to lay a sealing tape in the places of overflow. The transverse overlap should not be less than 200 mm and be sure to get on the beam of the crate.
• Performing the installation of profiled polycarbonate, you can not move directly on the surface of corrugated board. To do this, use wide boards of at least 250 mm wide and at least 25 mm thick, wrapped in non.sliding fabric.
• The slope of any polycarbonate canopy should not be less than 15%.
• Manufacturers recommend not using sheets more than 7 meters long. But unfortunately, already with a polycarbonate of 6 meters long, you will have to suffer pretty.
• The minimum radius of curvature for the sheet is 0.8 mm, and should be at least 4 m. For panels of greater thickness and the radius should be larger.
• Laying laying is carried out against the main direction of winds, as well as snow and rain.

When installing this type of polycarbonate, use the same elements of compounds, adjacents and fasteners, which are recommended by the manufacturer.

Cutting profiled polycarbonate

Two more points should add to all of the above. cutting and drilling profiled polycarbonate. When cutting polycarbonate of any kind, it is better to use manual saws, electrolobsics or grinders (corner grinders). When using a saw and electrolobian, it is necessary to use saws with small teeth. The same as for cutting metal. Do not use knives when carving panels, as even experienced craftsmen make mistakes. Perhaps the carving with a knife is very unpredictable.

Drilling profiled polycarbonate

The holes are drilled with a conventional metal drill by 2-3, and in some cases 4 mm more than the screw of self-tapping screw, to account for thermal expansion. Of course, drilling should be carried out at low speeds with minimal pressure to avoid torn holes. Do not make holes closer than 40. 45 mm from the edge of the panels.

It must be remembered that before any process of processing the material it must be well fixed on a flat surface. These precautions will relieve the mass of trouble.

Crate for profiled polycarbonate

Well, in the end, we will touch the notorious topic. this is a crate under a wavy sheet. For cellular and monolithic flat sheets, it is very important that the crate takes into account the horizontal and vertical. This condition is not necessary for the profiled. Since stiffness ribs allow to withstand transverse loads without taking into account their support. For example, for a cellular 6 mm in a snow load of 100 kg/sq.m, the crate cell should be no more than 900×900 mm, well, or with a multiple of these parameters. And for polycarbonate in the form of a profile, only the size of the step is taken into account in the direction of the slope of the water, that is, along the ribs of the stiffness of the sheet itself. Thus, the crate itself has a slightly simplified look. This enables the customer to save a little on the design.

Table for the parameters of the crate for profiled polycarbonate.

Of course, for the installation of profiled polycarbonate, there are its own label parameters for different snow loads. There are also parameters for a certain thickness of the material. They are presented below in the table. And so, today we examined what is the installation of profiled polycarbonate. We also saw the installation step by step. We met a crate under a sheet of polycarbonate. And learned how to drill and cut this material. Probably, this article helped you solve issues related to the installation of polycarbonate. Well, if you still have any questions about this topic. Then write Комментарии и мнения владельцев and we will definitely analyze them. Good luck. Do not forget to leave your like in the social. networks.

Choosing tools and cutting rules

Consider how and what is better to cut cellular polycarbonate and monolithic translucent polymer.

It is important that the tool does not spoil the material. for example, scissors for cutting plastic or construction scissors cannot be used, they compress cellular polycarbonate, deforming the edges of the cut.

A sawing tool with large teeth is also contraindicated, including a hacksaw on wood. it tears the material, the cut turns out to be uneven, with burrs and zazubes.

• knife (mounting or stationery);
• corner grinding machine (corner grinder);
• circular saw;
• hacksaw for metal;
• electric jigsaw;
• laser.

The cutting method is selected based on the tool at the disposal, thickness and structure of the material.

Using a knife

For cutting polycarbonate, a stationery knife is used, in which the blade consists of broketing out segments. A construction knife is also suitable, it is more convenient to use thanks to an ergonomic handle. You can use a shoe knife.

For monolithic polycarbonate, this tool is not suitable, since the material is too hard and the work will require a lot of time and effort. It is convenient to cut cellular sheets of small thickness with a knife. no more than 6-8 mm.

Before cutting the panel, check the sharpness of the blade on unnecessary scraps. If necessary, sharpen the boot knife or remove the dull elements of the drawer blade. Use the rule or metal ruler for cutting in a straight line. The knife blade should be located at an angle to the surface. the thicker the material, the more the angle should be closer to the straight.

First, an incision is performed at the end, then, without removing the blades from the serif, they slowly lead it along the marking line. Irregularities and random extra fragments are removed after the element is cut out of the stove. If polycarbonate material is not cut from one entry, repeat the process according to the same scheme. It is impossible to disinfect, break the sheet, otherwise its edges will be strongly deformed.

If you need to cut the sheets of large area, it is better to choose a tool that will provide higher performance. In this case, the knife will be required in any case to remove the burrs and cut off the irregularities, adjusting the glazing element exactly to the specified dimensions.

Cutting corner grinding

To cut polycarbonate with an angle grinding machine, use circles designed to cut metal. Cut the panel with a corner grinding, without afraid to melt the edges of the polymer material, will help:

• the use of a cutting circle for working with aluminum (it is less heated during friction);
• The use of corner grinder with a speed regulator (work should be carried out at low speeds, this also reduces the risk of burrs).

It is convenient to cut a monolithic polycarbonate and cellular panels, including along a curved trajectory. When working, be sure to use protective glasses that protect your eyes from flying chips.

Having turned on the power tool, you should wait until it gains the necessary speed of rotation. Cut the leaf material by moving the corner grinder from yourself along the line of cutting. Cutting the panel along the jumpers, keep the tool so that the blade goes in a straight line without touching the ribs of stiffness.

At the end of the work, check the evenness of the sections, remove the chips and dust that fall into the cells using a blower or vacuum cleaner.

The use of circular saw

The circular saw should be equipped with a working disc with small cloves. use wheels designed to work with plastic or metal. To cut a monolithic or cellular panel, act on the same principle as when working with a corner grinder. First, let the tool pick up the tools, then cut the pancreas raised using two boards, moving the tool from yourself. Press the supporting plate of the tool to the sheet. this will help more precisely cut the material along the drawn contour.

Using metal hacksaw

A hacksaw equipped with a canvas with small frequent cloves will help cut off a straight line of polycarbonate, cut a sheet along or across. Elements of complex outlines with this tool cannot be cut out.

When planning the cutting of polycarbonate at home using a hacksaw, pay attention to the following moment: so that the cutting line for the cutting trimmer is as flat as possible, it is necessary to firmly fix the panel. It is recommended to use clamps and boards. The canvas of the hacksaw is located at an angle of about 30 degrees. Drink the panel in the direction of yourself.

Using a hacksaw, you can cut a polycarbonate for a greenhouse with a pitched roof, since the tool cuts the material only in a straight line. Electrolobsik will help to cut semicircular end elements of arched structures.

The use of a knife habits for metal is permissible with a small cut length. For a long cut, use a knife on wood, but with small teeth.

Cutting with an electrician

The most suitable tool for cutting polycarbonate on elements of complex shapes is an electric jigsaw. The tool equipped with a thin saw is safer and convenient in operation compared to the angular grinding and circular saw, while the speed and complexity of cutting significantly differs for the better with a knife. Electrician is allowed to cut a monolithic and cellular polycarbonate.

When choosing a file, pay attention to the shape of the cloves. Divorced teeth are designed for wood, they will tear polycarbonate, making the edges of the cut to defective. To make cuts with even edges without burrs and cracks, use a file with small straight or wave.shaped cloves.

Cutting the material with a knife

With the help of this most affordable option from among the presented tools, it is also possible to easily cut a monolithic or cellular polycarbonate, so even a beginner can use it without appropriate experience.

This task will require the use of a construction or stationery knife, which has a retractable and shift cutting element. The first option is preferable, since it has a comfortable handle and better mechanism comfortable during the cut, which fixes the blade. In addition, an excellent solution for the cutting of polycarbonate is the use of a boot knife.

Whatever variety the tool is involved, in any case, it must have a fullly sharpened blade. When using a knife with a blunt cutting element, the cutting process will not only noticeably slow down, but a significant probability will also appear that a huge number of burrs are formed on the sheet.

If we compare this tool with an electric jigsaw or corner grinding, then when it is involved in the work, they will take an order of magnitude more time and effort. With a cut of large sheets, its use is not convenient enough and, in addition, it should be taken into account that by means of a clerical and construction knife, a sawdust of polycarbonate can be carried out, the thickness of which does not exceed 6-8 mm.

Important! With the help of a construction, stationery or boot knife, only cellular polycarbonate can be cut, since the sheets of monolithic same thickness are very hard for them.

Work when using this tool is carried out in the following sequence:

• First of all, it is necessary to prepare the work site described earlier in the way, as well as draw a marking on the sheet through a black marker.
• Following this, it is necessary to test the knife used on scraps or excess material, which will remain in the future and will not be involved. This action is carried out to make sure of the proper acuity of the tool. With the need, it is necessary to replace the cutting element (stationery or construction tool) or its sharpening (in the case of a shoe knife).

Pay attention! When working with a tool with the presence of a sharp blade, it is necessary to observe extreme caution so as not to cut and not scratch the surface of the material.

• Next, it is required to attach a rule or metal line of large thickness to the cut line. In their absence, you can resort to the use of a construction level or a flat board. When interacting with large-sized sheets, it is advisable to work together with someone, since in this case the accuracy and quality of the cutting will increase significantly.
• Then you need to bring the tool blade to the end of the cut line. While working with sheets of significant thickness, it is necessary to hold the knife in the perpendicular position relative to the plane of the material. If polycarbonate is thin, then the tool used can be kept at an angle of 30-45 °. It is necessary to introduce a knife into the end of the sheet slowly in order to leave the initial surplus in it.
• Next, you need to conduct a tool from the cutting in the cut of the saw. To comply with the evenness of the cut, the rule or ruler should be used.

note! When cutting, accuracy plays a more important role, not speed. During interaction with round elements, it is necessary to carefully start a knife in the corners, avoiding the formation of burrs and a fit for a strip planned by a marker. The remaining excess material can always be cut to the desired state in the future.

• If the cutting polycarbonate cannot be separated from the rest of the sheet, then it is necessary to re.pass the blade along the cutting strip. It is strictly forbidden to bend the material, since in this case there is a probability of the formation of cracks and other damage.
• At the next stage, you need to cut the burrs if they are present. After that, it is required to circumcise with the excess, bringing the sheet to a suitable state in accordance with the preliminary marking.

Important! If the cut of cellular polycarbonate was carried out, then it is necessary to glue the ends with electrical tape or construction tape, so it will be possible to avoid dust and garbage in the cells of the material.

Cutting an electric jigsaw

This tool allows you to combine three positive qualities that the corner grinder and the construction knife are provided, namely the cutting speed, safety and simplicity of involving. Using an electric jigsaw, you can easily draw not only straight lines, but also cut out other more complex figures from different varieties of material. It can be used for a sawing polycarbonate with a thickness of 3 mm. If the sheets are too thin, then in this case, with its help, it is better to cut several pieces at the same time, after laying a cardboard of the corresponding size under them.

However, before cutting polycarbonate, it is necessary to choose a suitable file that plays one of the key roles. When choosing it, it is required to take into account a number of the following tips and recommendations:

• To cut cellular polycarbonate, it is better to give preference to a file with the presence of straight teeth. This cutting element provides slight cringing of the material and helps to make the maximum spray.
• It is necessary to choose files with frequent and small teeth. Cellular polycarbonate should be cut with cutting elements with TPI labeling, which indicates the number of teeth per inch. In this case, this indicator should be from 9 to 13 or more.
• It is necessary to give preference to high.quality files, which are designed for cutting metal, plastic or organic glass, which will provide clean cut with a minimum amount of shortcomings.

The very process of cutting polycarbonate using an electric jigsaw is as follows:

• Initially, it is necessary to prepare the place at which work will be carried out, after which it is required to mark the sheet.
• Then you need to install a pre.prepared saw in the tool. It is recommended to use a new and sharp cutting element that has no defects yet. In this case, the file must be securely fixed and adjusted. With incorrect fixation during the work of the jigsaw, it will begin to vibrate and will cause the appearance of various shortcomings on the surface of the material.
• The tool connected to the outlet or carrying should be brought to the end of the polycarbonate sheet along the sawing lane. For greater comfort, it is advisable to make a cutting in the indicated place using a knife with a sharp blade. In this case, before the end of the cut, the protective film should also remain on the material.
• Next, press the supporting tile of the tool to polycarbonate. In this case, it is not necessary to apply a very great effort, since otherwise the sheet along the cut of the cut is bending. It is recommended that there are clamps or people who would help to exclude vibration and shift of the material during work.
• At the next stage, you need to turn on the tool and wait for the moment when it gains suitable speed. As soon as the jigsaw reaches them, you can proceed to cut into polycarbonate in the intended strip. The tool should be carefully and slowly forward, making its supporting plate to the plane of the material.

note! In curved areas, it is necessary to observe the maximum caution, having previously prepared in cutting parts of a rounded shape on future surpluses and remnants, due to which it will be easier to carry out work.

• At the end of the cutting, you need to turn off and disconnect the tool from the mains.
• Then the cells of the material must be cleaned of chips by means of a vacuum cleaner or a jet of compressed air.
• Next, it is required to cut excess and remove the shortcomings from the edges of the sawed polycarbonate. After that, they should be covered with construction tape, which will protect the cells from the penetration of dust and garbage.

Important! With the simultaneous cut of only one thin sheet, there is a high probability of cracking it.

How to cut polycarbonate: 5 proven options for work

Polycarbonate is cut quite simply, for this you can use a different tool

Do not know how to cut polycarbonate at home? Afraid of spoiling the material? I will tell you about the methods of cutting I know, all of them are suitable for inexperienced masters and provide high quality work. The main thing is to follow all the recommendations described below.

Even ordinary building knives are suitable for cutting polycarbonate

The main options for conducting work

We will figure out how to cut cellular polycarbonate at home. The following types of tools are most often used:

• Construction knife. You can use ordinary options, but they should be very sharp;
• Large scissors;
• corner grinder or disk saw;
• Electrician;
• Wood hacksaw.

Cutting with a construction knife

This is the easiest and most popular option. You will need a construction knife with blades 25 mm wide.

The blade of the knife for cutting polycarbonate should be well fixed in the structure

You can use structures with a trapezoidal blade. This option is more durable, which means it is more convenient for them to work.

Trapezoid blades are highly stiff and well suited for cutting polycarbonate

Do not forget to purchase spare blades, as they usually have to break under loads.

It is very important not to make a mistake at this stage, so the wrong marking will lead to corruption of polycarbonate.

It is very important to reliably hold the ruler. Most often, polycarbonate deteriorates when cutting in cases where the ruler slides and the blade goes to the side.

The knife is well suited for a 6 mm thick material. It is very difficult to cut thicker sheets in this way, and the quality of the work is not very good. Remember that an ordinary stationery knife with a narrow blade is not suitable, you need a 25 mm wide option.

The main advantage of this method is the low price of the tool.

Cutting with scissors

This method is used for polycarbonate with a thickness of not more than 6 mm. For work you need tailor scissors or scissors for metal. The main thing is that the tool is sharp, otherwise the ends will be damaged.

Before cutting polycarbonate, find large scissors

Cutting corner grinding

Considering the question of what polycarbonate cut, one cannot help but tell about the option with a corner grinder. It has a high speed of work and good quality cutting.

You will need a small grinder (under a disc 115-125 mm). It is small and it is convenient to keep it, unlike larger options that weigh a lot and therefore are not very convenient in our case.

The corner grinder copes well not only with metal, but also with cellular polycarbonate

For cutting, use cutting disks for metal with a thickness of 0.8-1.0 mm. They cut the material much more evenly, and less garbage enters the honeycomb, which is also important.

Remember one simple rule: the protective film is always removed after cutting polycarbonate immediately before its installation. It doesn’t matter how you cut the material, it costs to remove the protective layer only after the end of work.

Cutting with a disk saw is carried out in the same way as a corner grinder. The difference is that cutting is carried out using a disk with small teeth, and the tool itself is more convenient in operation due to a design that fits tightly to the surface. In some versions of the tool there is a special guide and a vacuum cleaner that immediately removes all the garbage, which is very convenient.

This power tool is good because with it you can make even cuts

Cutting with an electrician

The electric jigsaw is great for cutting polycarbonate of any thickness. You can quickly and efficiently cut out a fragment of any form.

Electrician allows you to cut polycarbonate into pieces of any form

To work, purchase canvases with a small tooth size. The quality of the cutting depends on this.

Fabric for an electric jigsaw should have a small tooth for clean polycarbonate cutting

The workflow in this case looks like this:

• Polycarbonate sheets are marked. If you have curved lines, it is easiest to apply the element on which the material is cut and mark it on it. So you definitely are not mistaken and perfectly mark polycarbonate;

• A polycarbonate sheet is laid out on the surface and is fixed. At the same time, it is very important to arrange it so that under the cutting line there is an empty place, since when cutting the electric canvas is lowered by 5-7 cm down. The sheet can be fixed with a load, but not very heavy so that it does not deform the material;

Polycarbonate cutting an electric jigsaw

To cut monolithic polycarbonate of large thickness, they often use an eclectic jigsaw. Due to a powerful drive, cutting is achieved without the application of human efforts. Thin products, as well as cell panels, are best placed in a pack and cut several elements at once. It is not recommended to cut single thin sheets, in order to avoid cracking at the site.

The use of an electrician significantly reduces the complexity and increases the efficiency of construction. Rationally resort to such a method of sawing polycarbonate paintings when performing large.scale work.

Features of cutting a plastic canvas using an electrolobian:

Using corner grinder for cutting polycarbonate

Corner grinder is a high.performance tool for cutting materials. Efficiency is achieved due to huge revolutions of the cutting circle during work. However, there are some subtleties that should be taken into account when working.

Correctly cut polycarbonate with an angle grinding machine in compliance with the following recommendations:

How to cut polycarbonate is best

Corner grinder

So, the first tool is an angular grinder. Yes, yes, this is not a typo. Of course, an angular grinder, under the 125th circle of metal, I use in order to cut polycarbonate evenly. That is, in order to make any even cut, I recommend using a small corner grinder. Even the cheapest is suitable. She can withstand the load on the sheet sawing with more than.

The only thing that is required is a small skill in working with this tool, since this is a highly resourceful tool and with an experimental use, you can ruin the sheet. It is advisable to practice some kind of polycarbonate waste. You can find waste from any master who is engaged in the installation of polycarbonate.

Cut polycarbonate with an electrician?

The second tool is an electrician. The most ordinary household electric. The saw on it should be with small teeth so that the carbonate is cut, and not torn. This tool is easy to use and does not require special training skills. But still, for the most confidence, you can also pre.train. They can cut polycarbonate in places where it will be difficult to do this corner grinder.

For example, it is very convenient to cut rounding with an electrician or cut complex decorative shapes. For even cuts, I do not recommend applying a jigsaw as it takes more time for a cut more than a similar section of a corner grinder.

Stationery knife

And the third tool that I often use is a clerical knife, preferably good quality. I think any newcomer in this case will be able to cope with him. The main thing is not to rush when working with a knife, since the blades of this tool are very sharp and you can easily get hurt.

Chancellery with a knife, of course, you can easily cut cellular polycarbonates 4-6mm, a little more difficult polycarbonate 8 mm. By the way, I would not recommend cutting a polycarbonate of large thickness with a knife. There is a high probability that the panels can be spoiled. Perhaps I use a knife in cases where it is necessary to cut a large section of the sheet, so to speak, fit it in size.

Saw or scissors

Some craftsmen usually use a file and scissors. Perhaps this improvised inventory can be used for cutting polycarbonate. If only he did not violate the structure of polycarbonate and did not affect the correct technology of its installation.

So, how to cut polycarbonate, I think, have figured out, let’s now consider how to do it.

How to cut polycarbonate correctly

Let’s step by step look at how to cut a polycarbonate sheet correctly:

• We clear the site for a sheet (s) of polycarbonate. We remove stones and extraneous objects that can leave traces on the panels. Ideally, it is better to pierce the site with sheets of a wood-fiber slab, a wood-cutting plate, or a mustache can.
• We make the necessary marking on the panel with a marker with the use of I sank or any even object. If necessary, we move along the panels with a wide board (moving along it) so as not to make dents on the surface of the plastic.
• Before cutting polycarbonate, we put under the panels on both sides of the marker marking of the board, at least 40x100x2200. On top of the panel, we put another board on top of the bottoms of the boards from above (at least 20x100x2200), in order to move along it during cutting. If you need to cut it on a flat line, then we use a corner grinder. If a rounded or curly cutting is required, use an electrician, and for a slight fitting sheets we use a stationery knife.
• With an even cut along the entire sheet, that is, along the honeycomb, the use of a marker is not required. As a rule, you can safely make a cut along the honeycombs themselves with a corner grinder, an electrician or knife, since the honeycombs themselves in this case will serve as a guide for the cut. This must be done so that it would not be stomping over the sheets of polycarbonate once again.
• Of course, after the sawing, you need to remove the chips and dust by purging with compressed air.

So in this article we figured out how to cut polycarbonate, and most importantly, how to cut polycarbonate sheets correctly.

In conclusion, I want to remind you of another important thing, as you know, “we mark it seven times, we cut off once”. So, do not forget this wisdom, because polycarbonate sheets are not cheap pleasure, and their spoilage will become a good penny.

Yes, I almost forgot, when cutting a corner grinder or an electrician, be sure to put on the goggles. They will undoubtedly protect you from dust and microparticles. Well, that’s all. Good luck in a difficult, but necessary business!

Than and how to cut. The main recommendations

Carrying polycarbonate, it is worth performing the following actions:

• The place of work should be clean and not contain any garbage. This will avoid the appearance of cracks, dents and deformation. For convenience, a drywall, a wood-and-fiber slab can be placed under a sheet of polycarbonate.
• Before cutting on a polycarbonate, you need to mark with a marker, which will be clearly visible.
• In those cases when in the future it will be necessary to move along a sheet of polycarbonate, you need to lay a plank flooring on top of it, which will allow distributing the load. Then no dents or cracks on the material will not appear.
• Cut the cutting from the side of the laminated or mirror coating. Before the end of work, you should also not shoot a protective film.
• After the cutting of the material is completed, waste and dust must be removed from the surface of the sheet, as well as shake out the garbage from the cells.

If you need to drill polycarbonate, you will need standard metal drill. This process is even for a beginner.

Pay attention only to a few nuances:

• You need to make holes in the intervals between stiffeners;
• At least 4 cm must be back from the edge of the sheet so that the piece of the stove does not break.

Polycarbonate fastening tips

Fixation of polycarbonate sheets should be performed with self.tapping screws. It is noteworthy that the diameter of the screws should exceed the cross section of the hole in the polycarbonate by 1-2 mm. This allows you to compensate for the expansion of the material when heated.

In addition, it is very important that the entering the self.tapping screw into the polycarbonate sheet is free. Otherwise, the hole that is not properly drilled can lead to deformation of the material.

Laying polycarbonate must be performed VST, however, for thermal expansion of the material, gaps should be left. This approach will avoid errors in the installation of polycarbonate.

To seal the joints of the material, use neoprene or silicone ribbons. Do not use soft sealing materials from PVC, since as they operate polycarbonate, they emit substances that gradually destroy the material.

Sealing compounds for isolation of polycarbonate joints can only be silicone and no other.

How to cut polycarbonate

It is known that polycarbonate is shockproof material, which is firmly more 200 times. It cannot be broken, split even in the most severe weather conditions. This property allows you to easily cut PC lists, without worrying about cracking, rupture. In this article we will help you find out how to cut polycarbonate sheets using a circular saw and a jigsaw.

When cutting long sheets, circular saw is the best option. This will lead to a cleaner and more precise cut. You need a disc with thin teeth of a standard size 250-300 millimeters. Use a saw at a recommended speed of 4000 revolutions per minute, and you will get a good smooth cut. In addition, due to the features of the material, polycarbonate will not crack or crush around the section. It is the saw that determines the cutting speed, therefore, the feed rate, which should be about 8 meters per minute or 10-15 centimeters per second.

Another way to cut polycarbonate sheets using a jigsaw. When using a jigsaw, it is important that the sheet is tightly pressed during cutting. If the sheet moves up and down along with the saw disk during cutting, this will not lead to a good cut and a desirable result. Thus, you must keep the sheet tightly pressed, which can be achieved using boards and clamps. To cut a jigsaw, you need to take a saw disk with small teeth made of non.ferrous metals. It is necessary to set the average speed of the saw and allow it to slowly move along the sheet, leaving the base of the jigsaw on the sheet.

In addition to the circular saw/jigsaw, which will be needed for cutting sheets, wooden strips, clamps, protective equipment to protect the eyes, face, hands, legs will be required. Despite the fact that cutting polycarbonate is simple and safe, it will not hurt to be careful.