Thread: Melamine

Hi Ritchireg,

I have no connection to the following site but it may be handy for you to have a read through:
http://www.cabinets-online.com.au/index.htm

It will give you an idea of standard sizes which if you are able to work with will help keep the costs down. I would be using High Moisture Resistant (HMR) white melamine partical board over MDF.

Cheers

Stinky

Welcome to the forum.

G'Day & Welcome to a top forum "Ritchireg".
There are a stack of members Australia & the rest of the country.....
You'll find a heap of helpful & knowledgeable blokes & ladies on the forum and for most very willing to assist.
Make sure you show off your handiwork as everyone loves a photo, especially WIP [Work In Progress] photos with build notes.
Enjoy the forum.
Enjoy your woodwork..
Cheers crowie

PS - I make toys so not much help with your pantry question.... may I suggest that you write up a new thread in the "general woodwork" section to gain a wider audience and a larger knowledge bank to give you an answer....

Welcome to the forum. Personally I would not use MDF over chipboard.

I have used 16mm melamine for kitchen cabinets.

Just be a little cautious of the span for shelves as it can deflect a bit when loaded up.

Having said that, it won't deflect anywhere near as much as MDF.

Finishing edges with the iron on stuff is pretty easy with a sharp chisel and a file (and an old iron of course).

From memory there are some YouTube videos that show the technique and the angle and method to apply the chisel to trim the edging.

With melamine you will need a fine tooth SHARP saw blade to keep surface chipping as minimal as possible. Move pieces slowly through saw (or saw slowly through sheets). No matter how sharp, you will still get some chipping where the blade exits the cut, unless you have a scoring knife system.

Welcome to the forum

Hi Richireg,

I used to operate a CNC router and edge bander in a kitchen place so have probably cut a 1000 or so pantry sets of various sizes and shapes over the years.
How much space do you have to install the pantry in? This will give us some idea of the shelf spans you have and help determine setup for you. E.g, if you have around 2m width, you would definitely be looking at 2 cabinets to reduce shelf span, while at 900w a single bay would be viable and safe.
What sorts of goods does your daughter want to store? Total weight and wet/dry goods would help determine shelf spans and materials. E.g, if everything would be dry goods, you might get away with standard chipboard/melamine, but if there will be bottled sauces, drinks etc then HMR (heat and moisture resistant) board would be highly recommended.

As a guide, our 30yo pantry at home has 1167mm span shelves (1200mm OA cabinet) in 290 and 500mm depths. These are standard 16mm material and generally well stocked with canned, bottled, and dry goods. Without any centre support, we typically have about 2mm sag in the movable shelves, but we strip and clean the pantry annually and flip the shelves, so the sag developed over a year is reversed over the next. With a 16mm back as well, you can easily have matching support pin holes in the back as well as the sides, and that helps to reduce sag further.

Ideally, I would make the unit out of HMR material, either chipboard or MDF substrate. It will then last a long time without any swelling. The downside is that you can't just buy pre drilled /pre edged panels at Bunnings/Masters etc because they have is the normal stuff that will swell if it gets wet or damp. To go with HMR, you virtually have to go to a place that will do flat pack units and give them a sketch of what you want to make with dimensions, and they will set it up and prepare it for you.

Make a kicker frame for the cabinets about 100mm high (match height of toe space in existing kitchen). This is then installed under the pantry cabinets and adjusted to level it and eliminate any floor errors. This is normally done by shims etc to level and small angle brackets and screws to fix to floor/wall studs. Once that is fixed and leveled, the pantry cabinet(s) can be mounted on the base and secured to the wall studs. The kicker frame is hidden by a panel that matches the rest of the kitchen which is scribed and trimmed to the cabinet base and floor and glued to the base.

You could go with the pre drilled/pre edged Bunning/Master type material if you absolutely must due to availability etc, but you must make the kicker base out of hardwood so that washing the floor or spills don't start decomposition of the base. Other issues are that you probably won't be able to get matching predrilled back panels for shelf support, and you run the risk of having decomposition if any liquid leaks or spills inside the cabinet, or anything is returned damp or dripping.

If you want doors etc, they will be easier if done in MDF melamine, as the fibres in chipboard sometimes loosen and leave small chips in the coating beside the edging and always look bad. Not so much of a visual issue inside a cabinet.

Hope this helps.

Welcome Rich

Cheers
Tony