I am considering making a dresser for a baby's room that will be painted. I
have never used MDF before, but I know someone here can help.
My plan is to build the carcass out of MDF and then face frame with solid
wood. Is MDF suitable for this? How well does it paint? Any
help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Eric
How do you plan on attaching teh face fram to the MDF?
I am using it now to make captains beds. the drawers and weight are
supported by a plywood drawer carcass that sits inside the MDF sides,
HB and FB.
This shit is very heavy as compared to 1/4" plywood.. It also might
not be as forgiving with bumps, vacuums and the like. The flat
surfaces are resistant, but the edges are like cardboard.
On Sat, 16 Aug 2003 08:25:59 -0400, "Eric Calvin"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I am considering making a dresser for a baby's room that will be painted. I
>have never used MDF before, but I know someone here can help.
>
>My plan is to build the carcass out of MDF and then face frame with solid
>wood. Is MDF suitable for this? How well does it paint? Any
>help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
>
>Eric
>
I have seen plenty of stuff made out of MDF.
Always predrill the holes.
I will second the warning about dust. I worked in a college shop where
projects were made with the stuff. Dust everywhere even with a super huge 8
bag, 3 phase, (you get the idea) commercial DC running.
--
Young Carpenter
"Save a Tree, Build Furniture"
"Eric Calvin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I am considering making a dresser for a baby's room that will be painted.
I
> have never used MDF before, but I know someone here can help.
>
> My plan is to build the carcass out of MDF and then face frame with solid
> wood. Is MDF suitable for this? How well does it paint? Any
> help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Eric
>
>
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On Sat, 16 Aug 2003 07:02:25 -0700, "Rodger Podlogar"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>
>"Eric Calvin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>> I am considering making a dresser for a baby's room that will be painted.
>I
>> have never used MDF before, but I know someone here can help.
>
>I've done a number of projects using MDF. I once built a massive headboard
>almost entirely out of MDF; dam near ended up with a hernia moving it from
>the shop to the bedroom. A word of caution, MDF is typically made with
>urea-formaldehyde resin totaling 9% by weight. While most people will not be
>affected by this, people sensitive to formaldehyde emissions should consider
>low formaldehyde or formaldehyde-free MDF, or consider methods of
>controlling these emissions through proper finishing. Finishes that work
>best at controlling formaldehyde emissions are solid add-on surfaces such as
>high pressure laminates, vinyl covering, and finished wood veneers. Less
>effective at controlling emissions are simple seal coats, oil and latex
>paints, Danish oil, and wax. Plum Creek makes low-formaldehyde MDF, while
>Medite II and Medex from Medite Corp. are formaldehyde-free MDF.
Didn't know about the formaldehyde emissions in MDF. <drat>
I find I'm allergic to more and more chemicals these days.
I've already got a sheet of 1/2" MDF for a model airplane building
table; needs a very flat surface so I can build directly on the plans.
I use epoxy thinned 50% with denatured alcohol to bond .6 oz/sq yd
fiberglass cloth to the models, and have lots of epoxy and alcohol.
Would 2 or 3 thinned coats of epoxy stop the formaldehyde fumes coming
out of the MDF ?
Cheers,
Fred McClellan
the dash plumber at mindspring dot com
I have made utility cabinets entirely out of MDF before.
It machines really easily (very dusty), just make sure you prime it first
before paint....it seemed to soak up a lot as I recall.
Paul
"Eric Calvin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I am considering making a dresser for a baby's room that will be painted.
I
> have never used MDF before, but I know someone here can help.
>
> My plan is to build the carcass out of MDF and then face frame with solid
> wood. Is MDF suitable for this? How well does it paint? Any
> help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
>
> Eric
>
>
"Fred McClellan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Didn't know about the formaldehyde emissions in MDF. <drat>
>
> I find I'm allergic to more and more chemicals these days.
>
> I've already got a sheet of 1/2" MDF for a model airplane building
> table; needs a very flat surface so I can build directly on the plans.
>
> I use epoxy thinned 50% with denatured alcohol to bond .6 oz/sq yd
> fiberglass cloth to the models, and have lots of epoxy and alcohol.
>
> Would 2 or 3 thinned coats of epoxy stop the formaldehyde fumes coming
> out of the MDF ?
> Cheers,
> Fred McClellan
> the dash plumber at mindspring dot com
>
Fred; the article I read stated that the best way to control formaldehyde
fumes was to encase it with a laminate. It did not state that formaldehyde
emissions from MDF were any kind of health hazard. The reason for my post
was to point out the potential health hazard of working with the material.
Cutting, routing and sanding MDF produces a very fine dust that is laced
with formaldehyde, gets over everything, and hangs in the air. I always use
eye protection, a respirator and plenty of ventilation when working with the
material. After spending a day in the shop working with MDF SHMBO requires
me to strip before entering the house; not a pretty sight, especially for
the neighbors..
On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 22:51:03 -0400, Fred McClellan
<[email protected]> wrote:
>On Sat, 16 Aug 2003 07:02:25 -0700, "Rodger Podlogar"
><[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>
>>"Eric Calvin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>> I am considering making a dresser for a baby's room that will be painted.
>>I
>>> have never used MDF before, but I know someone here can help.
>>
>>I've done a number of projects using MDF. I once built a massive headboard
>>almost entirely out of MDF; dam near ended up with a hernia moving it from
>>the shop to the bedroom. A word of caution, MDF is typically made with
>>urea-formaldehyde resin totaling 9% by weight. While most people will not be
>>affected by this, people sensitive to formaldehyde emissions should consider
>>low formaldehyde or formaldehyde-free MDF, or consider methods of
>>controlling these emissions through proper finishing. Finishes that work
>>best at controlling formaldehyde emissions are solid add-on surfaces such as
>>high pressure laminates, vinyl covering, and finished wood veneers. Less
>>effective at controlling emissions are simple seal coats, oil and latex
>>paints, Danish oil, and wax. Plum Creek makes low-formaldehyde MDF, while
>>Medite II and Medex from Medite Corp. are formaldehyde-free MDF.
>
>Didn't know about the formaldehyde emissions in MDF. <drat>
>
>I find I'm allergic to more and more chemicals these days.
>
>I've already got a sheet of 1/2" MDF for a model airplane building
>table; needs a very flat surface so I can build directly on the plans.
>
>I use epoxy thinned 50% with denatured alcohol to bond .6 oz/sq yd
>fiberglass cloth to the models, and have lots of epoxy and alcohol.
>
>Would 2 or 3 thinned coats of epoxy stop the formaldehyde fumes coming
>out of the MDF ?
>Cheers,
>Fred McClellan
>the dash plumber at mindspring dot com
No. The formaldehyde will eventually leak out. You can keep the
piece in a well-ventilated area for a few months. There are certain
house plants that will remove some formaldehyde. Our company moved
into a new contructed building (new cubicles, furniture, carpeting,
etc.). Several people (including myself) got daily headaches for
about 10 months. Aspirin and lunchtime walks helped us through this
period. I probably be concerned about babies and pregnant women.