C&W Berry, the North West’s leading builders’ merchant, has extended its Marley Hydropanel range with the addition of the 12mm board.

Hydropanel is a multi-purpose, fibre-cement dry-wall construction board that can be used on walls, floors and ceilings.

Berry’s took the decision to stock the 12mm board following a series of successful tests on Hydropanel. The tests were carried out by the BRE (Building Research Establishment) and showed that when used in a partition wall, Hydropanel passed BS 5234-2: 1992 on all criteria. Significantly, a pass was achieved for lightweight and heavyweight anchorage tests.

This opened up several new sales opportunities for Berry’s customers with the 12mm board. For example, it enabled it to be used for fixing grab rails in bathrooms – a requirement of many social housing providers. This concrete-like pull-out strength of Hydropanel therefore provided Berry’s customers with an effective solution for these demanding applications.

As well as anchorage tests, Hydropanel passed all other criteria of BS 5234-2: 1992 including stiffness, resistance to surface damage by a variety of objects and the effects of door slamming.

Added to this is the water resistant benefit of Hydropanel, which is again ideal for Berry’s customers carrying out tiling work in kitchens, bathrooms, showers and other wet room areas. Hydropanel’s water resistant properties mean that even if it becomes waterlogged, the fibre cement board retains its integrity preventing the tiles from dislodging.

Berry’s initially stocked the 9mm Hydropanel board following research with its customers that indicated they were using cement based boards mainly as a tile backer, which was causing issues where moisture was present.

Jon Aspin, Senior Buyer at Berry's, commented: “We originally changed to Hydropanel backing boards because it was water resistant. Tilers immediately found it a much more effective solution compared to gypsum-based boards because it is unaffected by moisture and impact. The recent BRE tests have now opened up new market opportunities for us in the social housing sector, which is why we decided to stock the 12mm board.”

Hydropanel’s qualities has led to both the 9mm and 12mm board being used for hospitals, underground parking, offices, swimming pools, shops and many other demanding environments.

The 12mm board available from Berry’s in size 2,600 x 1,200mm is interchangeable with standard plasterboard, which means that Hydropanel can easily be substituted for use in areas requiring these types of fixings. Berry’s also stock a 9mm board in both 2,600 x 1,200mm and a handy 900 x 1,200mm, single person lift size.

For more information on C & W Berry, visit: www.cwberry.com or call the showroom on 01772 431216.

For more information on Hydropanel, visit: www.hydropanel.co.uk. Alternatively, contact Marley on 01283 722588 or email: hydropanel@marleyeternit.co.uk