6 Reasons to Choose Polystyrene Cornices

Cornices are the narrow mouldings that you see capping the lines where the walls of a room meet the ceiling. Traditionally, they were made from wood, plaster, paper-covered plaster, polyurethane, and nowadays, they are made from polystyrene.

“Traditionally, cornices and other mouldings were made exclusively from wood, but polystyrene has currently emerged as a leading favourite because they are cost effective and easy to install,” says Lourens.

There are many advantages of choosing polystyrene over other cornice materials:

1. Easy installation

The fact that the installation of polystyrene cornices is a really simple process is probably the number one reason why they are so popular. In fact, it is so easy, that it can be quickly and easily achieved as a simple DIY job. This is because polystyrene is really lightweight, easy to cut, glued into place, and it is flexible enough to ‘forgive’ surfaces that are not 100% straight.

2. Versatile mounting surfaces

Since polystyrene cornices are installed using special adhesive glue, they can be successfully mounted onto a whole host of different surfaces, including concrete, wood, face brick, marble, tile, vinyl, steel, granite and plastic, to name just a few.

3. Easy to paint

Polystyrene cornices have a smooth, white surface, which merges exceptionally well with white ceilings. To paint them, all you need to do is to apply a single coat of white water-based paint. This is much quicker and easier when compared to painting other cornice materials, which often require an undercoat, and then two to three coats of paint. To make it even quicker, you can opt to spray paint a quick coat of paint onto your polystyrene cornices.

4. Highly durable

Polystyrene provides excellent thermal insulation, and it is inert, durable and highly resistant to water damage. In addition, it is flexible, which prevents it from breaking at the slightest impact. It is also resistant to damage caused by household pests, such as termites and moulds, for example, which allows it to last for years on end.

5. Design variet

Polystyrene cornices are available in a wide variety of designs and styles, so there is something to suit any type of interior composition - from traditional to contemporary. In contrast to timber cornices that require multiple mouldings to create a layered structure, polystyrene cornices are available in a single piece of intricate design.

6. Suitable for wet areas

As a material, polystyrene is resistant to damage caused by exposure to water and moisture, which makes them ideal for applications in wet areas throughout your home, such as the kitchen, bathroom, outdoor patios, basements and attics.