How to Cut Multi-Wall Polycarbonate
Building With Polycarbonate 101.pdf
Class materials given to attendees at the Building with Polycarbonate 101 class held at the Polycarbonate Store / Charley's Greenhouse.
4 mm, 6 mm, 8 mm and 10 mm Polycarbonate
You can cut small amounts of polycarbonate panels with a box knife. Larger jobs should be cut with a circular saw, table saw or saber saw. In all cases, a fine-tooth blade is required. (Plywood/finish blade for circular saw / table saw, and a metal cutting blade for a saber saw.)
Circular Saw / Saber Saw: Clamp a straight-edge to the polycarbonate sheet to guide the saw. Proper cutting speed is important ... Too slow and the plastic will melt, too fast and you may have large chips.
Table Saw: Push polycarbonate sheets through the saw as you would a piece of plywood paneling.
Box Knife: Not recommended, but can be used for small, short cuts. Always draw the knife away from the hand holding the polycarbonate sheet. A box knife tends to drag and skip, making it dangerous to use. Draw the knife lightly to start the cut then repeat with more pressure. When the cut is almost complete, you can flex and snap the pieces to finish the separation.
16 mm and 25 mm Polycarbonate
Cutting 16 mm and 25 mm polycarbonate: A table saw and circular saw are the best cutting tools. A saber saw may be useful for cutting holes or rounding corners.
''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
NOTES:
Multi-Wall Panels have film on both sides. One side is clear and the other will have printing on it, or will have blue film. The side with printing, or blue (if there is no printing), is the UV-treated side which must face outward.
Only remove the protective film from the inside of the panels before installation. Peel back the outside protective film about 4" from the edge, but leave the outside film on the panel until after installation is complete. It is difficult or impossible to tell the inside from the outside once both films have been removed. Place a small mark on the outside edge of the panel with a permanent marker.
When the polycarbonate panels are cut to size, small particles may have entered the flute channels. The Polycarbonate Store uses compressed air to clear the flutes. Peel off the protective film from the inside of the panel and inspect the panel closely. Remove any remaining particles with a vacuum or compressed air. Do not flush the flutes with water because it may take a long time to dry out.