Perhaps the most important feature of furniture is the material from which they are made. Although not always visible, it is the basis of the strength and durability of your furniture.
Solid Wood
Solid wood furniture gives a unique style, aesthetics and elegance to your home. It is interesting to note different types of wood that can be used. Basically, when we talk about solid wood furniture, we mean luxury and expensive furniture made of oak, beech, walnut, mahogany and others. Usually all classic furniture styles are made of solid wood - antique and retro furniture, French style furniture "Provence", furniture style "Baroque" and "Rococo". The material allows an endless combination of ornaments, wood carvings, artificial aging, as well as a combination of gold and silver elements.
Chipboard
Chipboard is a plate of wood particles. A well-known material from our recent past, from which all furniture was made. It is made of ground wood particles, pressed and glued with a special type of resin. Its advantage is that it is the cheapest material and therefore its furniture has very low prices. Honestly, this is the end of its benefits. Its disadvantages are several, but the main ones are that it is the least moisture resistant and the most durable. It is unsuitable for rooms with high humidity, because when water penetrates, it swells irreversibly and loses its strength. It does not tolerate embossing - milling, which means that it is used to make cabinet furniture from flat panels without ornaments. During frequent disassembly and reassembly, the screw bearings expand several times and begin to remove themselves due to the fragility of the material. In order to overcome some of the shortcomings, three-layer chipboard is already produced (see photo) - in the middle there is a middle layer of large particles (approximately 2/3 of the thickness), and at both ends are two layers of finely ground particles. The lower density of the middle layer improves the strength, while the denser end layers improve the durability and strength of the slab as a whole. Adding the lamination of the plates, a material with good strength and density is obtained at an excellent price, which qualities make it the most popular material for the production of cabinet furniture. The three-layer technology and lamination significantly reduce the disadvantages of chipboard, but unfortunately not much has been achieved in terms of its weight and moisture resistance.
MDF
Medium Density Fiberboard. It is made of soft wood by dry pressing under high pressure and temperature. The wood is ground much finer than chipboard and then the particles are glued with glue / resin and wax / paraffin, which makes MDF a completely environmentally friendly material.
It is characterized by much greater strength and density than chipboard, which allows easy processing - cutting, milling, etc., and due to its low crumbliness is suitable for making small elements and decorative details. Other advantages are:
- very smooth surface;
- elasticity and very good water resistance;
- homogeneous composition and high density;
- environmentally friendly;
- good heat and sound insulation properties;
- moisture resistant - well tolerates moisture in the kitchen and does not swell and deform;
- mechanically superior to wood;
- cheaper than natural wood;
- resistant to fungi and mold, which makes it safe and hygienic for home use.
One of the biggest advantages of this material is that as a result of its above density and
strength, allows any processing, including milling. In the photo you can see milled MDF boards prepared for cabinet doors.
Of course, the price reflects all its advantages over chipboard.
It can be said that this is a material that provides you with excellent quality at a very reasonable price.