cabinet doors

[BJ]

Is mdf good for cabinet doors ? I need recommendations for the material to use for paint grade doors. I did use birch plywood but it warps most of the time before I can get them mounted. And it seems too expensive a nearly $40 per sheet. I have been told that mdf mills well but does not hold a screw and it needs to be kept from water. These cabinets are for a church and I would like them to last. I had planned to paint the cabinet with Kelly Moore oil based paint so if anyone could help I will be thankful.

[David Helms]

If you are going to use MDF, use the product called doorboard. It has a white finish all ready to use. The product will hold screws, but not like oak. But it IS made for doors. It is used by the thousands of square feet by cabinet makers.

[Greg]

I have used MDF for paint grade cabinet doors on many occasions, with great success. It does not hold screws as well as real wood, so I use one more hinge per door than I usually do. 3 years ago I finished a job that had over 130 cathedral arch raised panel doors (in 1 house!). I used poplar for the frame and MDF for the panel and painted them with an oil base paint. They turned out beautiful, and I haven't had a single callback.

[Robert]

It's become quite common for MDF paint grade panels to be set in maple or poplar frames. The results are perfectly acceptable.

MDF "slab" doors, however, are easily damaged -- as the edges are exposed. As noted, MDF does indeed to fail hold screws.

You just can't go wrong by spending a few extra dollars for quality maple plywood when making paint grade slab doors.

[Al Ramos]

Try using 4/4 poplar hardwood, MDF tends to expand when humidity is present.