Just about read every damn thread in this forum, and while some have touched on the subject, I haven't found one which addresses my particular concern. I did enjoy the scuffle between Arms and Silent C on manufacturers instructions though, and that comes perilously close to my current dilemma which, I hope, is a result of my own ignorance.

So..here goes. I'm sorry if this is a bit long but I think you need a bit of background.

Bathroom is a bombsite ...has been for quite a while now partly due to us deciding just how to go about the reno and what products to use.

Done the tile thing and would like a change so we've looked at the Laminex Aquapanel and Gunnersens Wall Art, and the Gunnersens product has the colour SWMBO likes, so that just about settles it. Anyway, as somebody said, the Laminex joiners are pretty agricultural.

My situation is that I have FC sheeting on all walls at the moment over which I want to apply a finish

In a conversation with a Laminex person, who seemed to know what he was talking about it, it was disclosed that the Laminex product "gases" formaldyhyde as a result of its manufacturing process and as result does not like being installed against flat panels, but rather on studs so that it can "breathe".

TheLaminex installation guide does mention that it can be installed directly onto flat surfaces but that they DON"T RECOMMEND it and refer you to their warranty which only clouds the issue - sounds like an out for them to me.

The installation guide for Gunnersens product, which has an almost identical manufacturing process, specifically excludes installation onto plasterboard, but I couldn't find out why. My guess is it's a similar situation to the Laminex product.

So here's my question . How do you apply a waterproof membrane over studs? Is thi sallowable? Moreover, in the case of the Gunnersens product, the jointing strips require nailing or screwing to the studs which will obviously breach the membrane.

I've asked both companies for some sort of explanation, and both have dodged the issue saying they only make and sell the stuff and that I'd have to speak to an installer. They both seem unaware of the waterproof membrane issue.

I've spoken to council building inspectors, builders, plumbers, and even Mitre10 and Bunnings sales staff, and they all just shrug and say "Dunno, never seen it done".

Both Laminex and Gunnersens advertise this stuff as being suitable for showers and they (presumably) sell a fair bit of it and yet I can find no one who will fess up to using it where they say it was designed to be used.

I hope I've made myself clear.

Can anyone throw any light on this for me please, or is it back to tiles?

Ian


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