mdf doors?

[rhowell]

I want to make two built-in wardrobe doors measuring about 7ft high by 2ft. each. Can I make these by simply cutting out the doors from thick MDF (eg. 18 or 25 mm) or will they soon buckle horribly in a short space of time?

 

[Diyisfun]

They will be heavy & bow.

 

[big-all]

yes mdf is renown for bending buuuuutttt

choose flat 18mm boards hang them with 4 or 5 kitchen hinges hinges and decorate both sides at the same time and they will be fine

 

[rhowell]

Thanks. That's 4 or 5 hinges per door presumably?

 

[big-all]

you should be fine with 4 per door but check the max loading of the hinges you buy


jason b will know the hinge max load

 

[Jasonb]

BA got it covered, and for that size you come into 5 hinges per door.

Jason

PS can't post link to hinge chart as the site is down at the moment.

 

[rhowell]

Blimey! That's a lot of hinges. By kitchen hinges I take it you mean the sort found on kitchen cupboards. I've always had a bit of a problem with these. Is there a guide or some handy hints available for fixing these?

 

[Jasonb]

Is there a guide or some handy hints available for fixing these?

There is a 4 page guide on Woodfits site but it is down at the moment so I can't post a direct link for you.

Jason

 

[rhowell]

I've visited Woodfits site and there's a plethora of stuff there. Can you tell me which hinge (x10!) I'll be needing, please.

 

[Jasonb]

Do you want the doors to sit on top of the frame/carcase like a typical kitchen cabinet or inside the frame ?

Also a description of the frame carcase will help as this can affect th emounting plate used.

Jason

 

[rhowell]

The doors will be hung either side on 45mm square wooden uprights. I want the doors to be completely flush with the face of these uprights.

 

[Jasonb]

You will have problems with that size frame as the mounting plate screws need to be 37mm back from the rear face of the door when using inset hinges, easiest option will be to go upto 3x2PAR which will come out about 69x44, the end of the hinge arm will stick out a bit but the screws will have enough to bite into.

If you go for the above then I would suggest Cliptop hinges and the cam adjustable mounting plates.

Jason

 

[rhowell]

Hmmm. This is all getting a bit complicated without any visual support of what you're describing. I might just knock up a couple of lighter-weight T&G doors and use old-fashioned butt hinges. Thanks for your help anyway.

 

[Jasonb]

Not the best picture but take a look at the lower left door opening you will see that I have used a 44x94 hardwood frame to fix the hinges to that is in turn fixed to the wardrobe carcase.

J