Pointers in using Melamine plywood

[Jay Jolliffe]

I've never used the stuff but someone has asked me to make a cabinet for a store where she does all the baking & mixing. She wants a washable cabinet & I thought of this stuff. It would be easier than using Formica to do the panels on the sides, bottom & back. Face frame & doors I guess I'd use edge banding. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated...

[Jeff Duncan]

A couple things....first off I've never seen melamine on a veneer core, (plywood), it's generally on an particle board core. As such you'll want to think about how your going to go about fastening as regular screws are not the best. For commercial use your best bet is finding someone with an edgebander and using 1/2 mil, (or even 1 mil) PVC banding. The off-the-shelf iron on banding will not hold up under any kind of use. Lastly melamine is moisture resistant to a degree....but if the core gets wet....or even damp....game over!!!

All this being said for a store where you need a washable surface I'm not going to go with melamine. I'm going to go with laminate as to me it's more important a project hold up, than how easy it is to make;)

good luck,
JeffD

[Bruce Wrenn]

Because cabinet needs to be "washable," you need to use plywood covered with laminate (Formica,etc.) You need to do bottom of top first, then edges and lastly the actual top. This will allow water using in cleaning to "waterfall" off cabinet.

[johnny means]

Jay, despite what some may think, melamine covered particle board is the standard for washable cabinets and such in commercial settings. Use quality MCP, not the borg crap and good 3mm edge banding and they will last the 10-15 years they need to. Now if you really do mean plywood, there is a product out there called Melaply which is low grade veneer core plywood with a melamine coating. it is available in 1/2 and 3/4 inch thicknesses. The melamine coating on this is not the same as MCP. While MCP has a thermofoiled Melamine coating (it's melted on), Melaply has more of a stick on coating that is very thin and will show wear in short time. Also, the plywood used is not sanded well, thus grain and voids do telegraph through, lots of them.

A good supplier will have MCP available in many different colors and finishes. Many of the newer products are actually passing for wood to the untrained eye. Construction need not be anything fancy. Butt joints using melamine glue and screws is pretty much standard. I have built thousands of such cabinets for schools, restaurants, hospitals, etc and never seen a call-back due to cabinet failure.

Make sure your edge banding is glued thoroughly as this the edge is the Achilles' Heel of melamine. Though it is impervious from the face, get a thumb nail on the edge and you can pull up a chip fairly easily. Pre drill and use longish screws, I prefer 2" as it gives plenty of pull in order to close joints nice and tightly. pocketholes will work great for end units with exposed sides.

[Larry Edgerton]

Jay, in a commercial setting where it is going to get banged up and be exposed to water every day, you are setting yourself up for bad PR by using Melamine. It will get chipped/scratched in the situation you are wanting to use it, and then it will be trash in short order. As soon as moisture can get to the core all bets are off, or as soon as someone snags the edgebanding.

I had a cabinet shop for years, hate melamine, it is just so temporary. A melamine cabinet will be replaced, its just a matter of when. In a commercial kitchen, I am afraid that would be soon. Sometimes its better to walk away from a job if there is not enough money in it to do it right.

My 2 cents, Larry

[Jay Jolliffe]

Well seeing as it may not hold up I guess the next Idea would be either Formica or high gloss paint. Is there a Formica like product that would be white all the way through? I don't like when you do the edging there is a dark brown line that is the backing on the Formica....

[Carl Beckett]

I had to go back and read the OP intended use. Baking, and Mixing.

Quite a few melamine cabinets used in commercial applications (I see them all the time, and yes it appears a different grade that what you get at a home store).

But baking and mixing is going to need to be 'food grade', and also its going to need to withstand regular washdowns. Here is where the edges are critical.

For this application, I would use Formica. Its pretty proven/tested. Doing all sides of every piece is overkill - I would only do the tops/edges. The sides and interior could be something different (prefinished plywood, melamine?). Kitchens have been built this way for years.

I would stay away from paint.