Yellow Tongue Particleboard Flooring
Structural particleboard flooring - yellow tongue 19mm, red 22mm, blue 25mm - from the Australian-made Porta STRUCTAflor® range.
Australian Plantation Pine
19mm Yellow, 22mm Red, 25mm Blue
600mm & 900mm
3600mm
About Yellow Tongue Particleboard Flooring
Yellow tongue is the builder’s name for 19mm structural particleboard flooring, named for the yellow tongue-and-groove edge that identifies each sheet on site. Big River supplies it as part of the Porta STRUCTAflor® range: a strong, moisture-resistant flooring sheet made in Australia from plantation pine, engineered as a structural subfloor or a base for tiles, vinyl, carpet and timber overlay.
What is yellow tongue flooring?
Yellow tongue flooring is 19mm structural particleboard sheet flooring with a colour-coded tongue along its grooved edge. It is the most common structural subfloor in Australian homes. The board is precision-milled wood flakes bonded with a moisture-resistant resin, with a resin-enriched top surface and coated edges to handle exposure during construction.
The tongue colour tells the trade the thickness and span rating at a glance:
- Yellow Tongue – 19mm – Standard domestic flooring. Suits joists at up to 450mm centres.
- Red Tongue – 22mm – For wider joist spacing (up to 600mm centres) or higher loads.
- Blue Tongue – 25mm – Heavy-duty flooring for residential, commercial, industrial and institutional floors.
STRUCTAflor® yellow tongue is manufactured in Australia to AS/NZS 1860.1 (Particleboard Flooring, Class 1). Talk to your local branch for the grade and thickness that suits your framing.
Technical Specifications & Variants
Full Specifications
| Material | Structural particleboard - Australian plantation pine, moisture-resistant resin |
| Standard | AS/NZS 1860.1 (Particleboard Flooring, Class 1); install to AS 1860.2 |
| Thickness | 19mm (yellow), 22mm (red), 25mm (blue) nominal |
| Sheet widths | 600mm and 900mm (tongue-and-groove) |
| Sheet length | 3600mm |
| Coverage | 3.24 m² per 900 x 3600 sheet; 2.16 m² per 600 x 3600 sheet |
| Square-edge sheets | 3600 x 1800mm (STRUCTAflor and STRUCTAflor Terminator) |
| Surface | Resin-enriched top surface; coated tongue-and-groove edges for moisture protection |
| Termite option | STRUCTAflor Terminator - termite-protected sheet flooring to AS 3660.1 |
Where to Use Yellow Tongue Particleboard Flooring
Commercial Construction
Suitable for commercial building projects including offices, retail, and institutional facilities.
Flooring Applications
Suitable as a flooring substrate or finished floor surface.
Structural Applications
Suitable for structural and load-bearing applications.
Downloads & Documentation
Frequently Asked Questions
Is yellow tongue flooring waterproof?
No. Yellow tongue is moisture-resistant, not waterproof. It is bonded with a moisture-resistant resin and the surface and edges are coated to handle weather during construction. In bathrooms, laundries and toilets it can be used beneath an impervious floor surface, but the floor must be fully waterproofed to AS 3740. It should not be left permanently wet or used as a finished wet-area surface on its own.
What thickness is yellow tongue flooring?
Yellow tongue is 19mm. The tongue colour signals the thickness: yellow is 19mm, red is 22mm and blue is 25mm. Choose the thickness to match your joist spacing and load. 19mm yellow tongue suits joists at up to 450mm centres, which covers most domestic floors.
19mm or 22mm - which do I need?
Use 19mm yellow tongue for standard domestic floors with joists at up to 450mm centres. Step up to 22mm red tongue if your joists are spaced wider (up to 600mm centres) or the floor carries heavier loads. The choice is driven by joist spacing and load, not preference, so check the span capacity for your framing before ordering.
What glue do you use for yellow tongue flooring?
Use a construction-grade adhesive made for particleboard flooring, run as a bead along every joist and along the tongue-and-groove joints. Gluing as well as fixing gives a stiffer, quieter floor. Fix the sheet down before the adhesive skins over and clean off any squeeze-out. Installation follows AS 1860.2.
Can yellow tongue be used in wet areas like a bathroom?
Yes, beneath an impervious surface, provided the floor is waterproofed to AS 3740. The particleboard is the structural base, not the waterproof layer. The manufacturer recommends wet rooms be fully waterproofed.
What is the difference between yellow, red and blue tongue?
The colour codes the thickness and span rating. Yellow tongue is 19mm for standard domestic floors, red tongue is 22mm for wider joist spacing or higher loads, and blue tongue is 25mm for heavy-duty, commercial and industrial floors. All three are the same STRUCTAflor® structural particleboard, rated for different spans.
What is the difference between yellow tongue and green tongue flooring?
Yellow, red and blue are the STRUCTAflor® thickness codes – 19mm, 22mm and 25mm. Green tongue is not part of the STRUCTAflor range; the term is used in the market for some moisture-resistant flooring boards. Whatever the colour, particleboard flooring in a wet area must sit beneath a waterproof membrane installed to AS 3740.
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