MDF vs Plywood for wood work/doors

Lord Nemesis

Lord Nemesis

Overlord
Skilled
Which is a better material to use for doors for the rooms inside the house.

Also, is MDF reliable for cupboards/cabinets and other stuff? I have seen people get the boxes built with ply wood and just use MDF for the doors on the boxes.
 
MDF is too bad in quality. Breaks/peals very easily if comes in contact with water.better to use plywood.
For doors.. use teak, if you can afford.Nothing can match it.

Technically speaking we are paying almost equivalent to low quality teak for plywood. Assuming good quality ply costs 80-90 sft, a 4*8 (32 sft) sheet costs -2560
Lets talk about low grade teak, it costs aprox1200-1800/- depending on your bargain for cubic feet . Now if you take 12mm thickness teak and place them side by side.. its almost 26sft, which is more or less equal to ply size and price :).
 
The major problem with MDF is its a very porous material which absorbs moisture in due time..
Please avoid MDF altoghether if you can..
else go by the usual way..

Use plywood for exposed places (Boxes 4sides)
MDF For non exposed/non load bearing places (Front/back & shelve liner...)
 
thenvk said:
MDF is too bad in quality. Breaks/peals very easily if comes in contact with water.better to use plywood.
For doors.. use teak, if you can afford.Nothing can match it.

Technically speaking we are paying almost equivalent to low quality teak for plywood. Assuming good quality ply costs 80-90 sft, a 4*8 (32 sft) sheet costs -2560
Lets talk about low grade teak, it costs aprox1200-1800/- depending on your bargain for cubic feet . Now if you take 12mm thickness teak and place them side by side.. its almost 26sft, which is more or less equal to ply size and price :).
Click to expand...


low grade teak (With less white fibers cost upwards 3500 per cu feet. just bought some for wood work last week, but mine was grade 1 6200 /cu ft.
 
If you're going to use plywood for cupboard etc, ask the carpenters to either stick laminates on all exposed sides or to use a good quality plastic based varnish everywhere. The ply wood will absorb moisture after few years where ever the wood is exposed to air and will start to rot. Once it rots it will catch that white fungus which won't go away no matter what you try on it. All the furniture in my house worth thousands of rupees have gone bad because of this fungus. Only option is to throw them away now. :(

Another option is to use marine ply, but I doubt their quality. They are supposed to be insect proof and water proof and cost more than regular ply. Going by Indian quality standards, I doubt the ply will be waterproof or insect proof.
 
You could use UPVC boards (like Multiwood) for Kitchen cupboards. Fairly expensive at ~Rs. 250/sqft for 1/2" thick sheets. PVC laminated MDF doors do fine for wet areas as well.
 
I am getting some wood work done at home - mainly doors for cupboards. The carpenter has advised plywood for all the work. He mentioned that he would be using mica sheets on the outer sides, and for the rest of the exposed areas he would be painting. Is this okay, or should I be asking for anything else?
 
Clarify which brand/make of plywood is being used as there is a large price range. Also, ideally get all the exposed faces (even those not visible from outside) laminated.
 
While its ok with laminating using mica sheets, do get reputed products. Also before painting the inner side get the Termite proof coating done using a liquid that comes in a tin can for 300 Rupees.
 
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