Go to the fabric store and buy some silver ironing board fabric. Put that on top of the padding you have now and you should be set to go.
Nancy

tha's too bad. But i think I would also double the plywood. 1/4" is pretty thin. You need strength as well. then the staples would also work. whatcha think?

WOW!! What if you used your mattress pad and the aluminum foil and cut your sheet cover a bit bigger then made a casing to run narrrow elastic thru and then you could easily remove it to launder!!??!! I will try this for a quilters ironing surface...I make my regular ironing board covers with elastic in them to fit. Just leave a longer tail of elastic to tie it down tight. Sometimes I can not undo the knot to reuse but i keep lots of elastic around...

My husband solved the warping problem with a sheet of 3/4" masonite board. It's heavy, but it works. He built me a table that it covers. It's 3x4 ft - I used an old wool blanket on mine, just under the padding which is the padding made for hot pads. Then I used regular old everyday muslin and put a gridded cover on that. I use a staple gun when I have to recover. The grid fabric I get from the fabric store. Works great.

Then I made a board to carry with me when I go away - even has a carrying handle. It's about 2 ft by 15/16 inches wide, and even has little feetsies so it won't slide. Perfect. Then, I made a third one, about 12x12 inches to sit beside my sewing machine. Love to iron !!

I would make the cover with elastic casing and put it on like a fitted sheet. Then it could be taken off to wash. Just the way I made my BIG BOARD.

I think you should look for an old wool blanket to use as your padding. From what I have heard you need 2-3 layers to really do a good job.

I sewed around the edges and ran elastic thru both the padding & the cover. Then I took the elastic straps you can buy for your board or bed that have clips on each end. I made my own elastic for them custom length; easy to take on and off when needed.

It's all done now. thanks for the feedback. I used the aluminum foil, the cotton mattress pad with the insulate batting over that and then my old cotton sheet. It works great!

I am so sorry that happened, but they carry short staples that work great. God bless.

I made my "big" "big" board out of 1/2 plywood. Covered it with leftover batting and covered with a old cotton sheet. I zig-zaged a draw string around the edges (just like my ironing board) and tightened it up. I put in on a 2x4 table from Sams and away we go. I still take my old big board when I go to retreats. I just like the set up better than ironing on a regular ironing board. I guess I am spoiled.