Foam in wall panels of Ubi flat? HDB responds

During a renovation job, a contractor was shocked to find that the walls of a three-room flat in Ubi were not just made of concrete.

Posting a video of his discovery on Facebook on Wednesday (April 13), Lee Pei Hong said that the toilet wall was "filled with styrofoam".

"Why is there still such a thing in Singapore?" he asked. 

Speaking to Lianhe Zaobao, the contractor said he has been in the renovation industry for more than six years, but it was the first time that he had seen foam in the wall panels.

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In response to media queries, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) clarified that the 'styrofoam' is actually polyethylene foam, which is permitted for use in construction.

"The polyethylene foam is sandwiched between two layers of cementitious mortar and reinforced with wire mesh, to form a sandwich wall panel," HDB said. 

The foam, used for internal partition walls, provides good thermal and sound insulation qualities. It does not affect the structural safety of the building. 

Such panels are no longer in use in flats today, HDB said, adding that polyethylene foam in wall panels have since been replaced with drywalls or lightweight concrete panels in the newer flats.

ALSO READ: HDB investigating renovation contractor who stuffed newspapers in balcony walls of HDB flat

chingshijie@asiaone.com

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