What material for kitchen cabinets.?

recipio

Fellas, thinking of making a few kitchen cabinets.
A kitchen fabricator told me recently he had abandoned the usual white melamine and is using plywood.
I also see a thicker, matt finish melamine board in my usual hardware shop.
Just wondering what the current favourite board is or is white melamine still the first choice.?

peter bermingham

Being at the kitchens 20 years always being using 18mm melamine but i have seen units made from 18mm mdf sprayed clear which don't look to bad. But ya the birch ply would look good sprayed clear.

recipio

peter bermingham wrote: »

Being at the kitchens 20 years always being using 18mm melamine but i have seen units made from 18mm mdf sprayed clear which don't look to bad. But ya the birch ply would look good sprayed clear.

Ta. I'd be afraid to use MDF as the stuff seems to sag easily. Will look at Baltic ply.

peter bermingham

Ya your right about the mdf it dose sag all right that Baltic ply would look good

Slick50

Melamine comes in a wide variety of timber effect finishes these days, in fact, I can't remember the last time I've seen white cabinets being fitted.

woodturner

Birch plywood. It'll give the inside of the carcasses that solid wood look.

recipio

woodturner wrote: »

Birch plywood. It'll give the inside of the carcasses that solid wood look.

So good you said it three times !;)
I take it Baltic and birch ply are one and the same. I posted recently about Norwegian being the best but Latvian ply is being passed off as Baltic. The moisture content can be high giving problems a few months after construction with shrinkage and lifting veneers.I now use a moisture metre an nearly ever wood product I buy.

Miname

the spray finish doesnt weather well if theres jars or cans in it over the years. he may have been referring to melamine faced ply. id use it an odd time around belfast sinks for support and basic strenght of the unit. The birch ply works a treat but takes too much care in the average kitchen. theres a chip out the last few years with a higher density layer just beneath the melamine. gives a far cleaner finish and doesnt ripple like the old chip.. basically i put into the kitchen what i can get out of it. its impossable to compete pricewise like for like with some of the stuff being sold the last few years.

recipio

Its just a few units for myself. You can't beat melamine for maintainance and a hygienic look. Its just that it looks a bit cheapo cheapo at this stage, especially when the sides are exposed. I note the Yanks never seem to use it but they have a choice of all kinds of panel products.
I suppose veneered MDF is a good choice to match the doors but the shelves will need additional support. ?