Beech For Kichen Cabinets

[John Goodin]

We are getting ready for a major remodel and will be purchasing kitchen cabinets. Maple or cherry will cost about 2000 dollars more than beech. The finish will be a dark espresso so the subtle differences in wood will be mostly hidden be the stain. Beech seems to be plenty hard for cabinetry and I like the muted grain. So is there a down side to using beech and that is significant enough to justify the extra 10 percent up charge. Any advice is appreciated.

building cabinets is not an option.

[Jamie Buxton]

Dark espresso stain on cherry?!!! Criminal!

[John Goodin]

Oh yeah, I agree. If light cabinets went our plan it would be cherry cabinets without a second thought.

[Mel Fulks]

With the color you describe,I don't think much grain will show with any of those woods. I'm wondering why the maple
and cherry cabinets would be the same price, the cherry wood is more expensive.

[Yonak Hawkins]

Beech used to be considered a low end wood. It was often used for the interior structure of stuffed furniture and cabinets where it wouldn't show. I really don't know why. I love the look of beech. Personally, I would hate to see such a dark stain on that white- or rose-colored wood as that would obscure the unique grain (sort of like sycamore, at times) but beech would make some solid, attractive cabinets, even stained, in my opinion.

[Andrew Seemann]

Wood costs must be pretty variable depending on where you are. Around here, hard maple, cherry, and beech are about the same cost. Beech can have stability issues, but I know I have seen someone on this site use them for cabinet doors, Martin perhaps? They might be using that Yerpean beech; I think it is more stable.

[Malcolm McLeod]

I won't pry into finances, but cabinets are a long term investment and should help home values appreciate. I know paying 10% extra for maple/cherry is an up-front-horse-pill-kind-of-thing to swallow, but in the long haul....?? (I think Americans now average home move every 6-7yrs.)

As for the beech, I had a stack of 8/4 left from my workbench build. Since it was already paid for (yes, I'm cheap), I started playing with re-sawing and finishes, and SWMBO finally pointed, "That one." So I am currently building a 'bar back' with beech frames and curly cherry panels/tops/drawer fronts.

I didn't care for the way it took dark stains (YMMV), but it looks good with very light dye and clear finish. If quarter-sawed, it has a great ray flake pattern. I have not noticed any movement issues, and certainly seems hard enough for cabinets. I'll spare you how it machines, since that doesn't look to be in your future. ...Hope this helps.

[Martin Wasner]

Wood costs must be pretty variable depending on where you are. Around here, hard maple, cherry, and beech are about the same cost. Beech can have stability issues, but I know I have seen someone on this site use them for cabinet doors, Martin perhaps? They might be using that Yerpean beech; I think it is more stable.

Yes, we use European steamed beech for paint grade door frames. Drops that we can't get door parts out of get cycled into face frame parts

It's slightly more expensive than clear soft maple, but we get a straighter top and a slightly better yield.

We did a beech kitchen recently that was stained pretty dark. I don't think the finisher did anything special with it. I think they had to water pop it, but that's about it.

[John Goodin]

Thanks for the advice. The finance part is not a big deal and after working in the real estate industry I don't think many buyer care about wood species or quality of cabinet construction. It sad that style is more important than substance on a 400,000 dollar purchase. No matter there is no chance of us being transferred and this is my wife's dream house. We are here for the long haul.

I am concerned about the blotchy staining which is one reason why I am leary of maple. Does beech have the same issues? I know steps can be taken to prevent uneven staining I am just not sure how much cabinet makers do to prevent it.

I won't pry into finances, but cabinets are a long term investment and should help home values appreciate. I know paying 10% extra for maple/cherry is an up-front-horse-pill-kind-of-thing to swallow, but in the long haul....?? (I think Americans now average home move every 6-7yrs.)

As for the beech, I had a stack of 8/4 left from my workbench build. Since it was already paid for (yes, I'm cheap), I started playing with re-sawing and finishes, and SWMBO finally pointed, "That one." So I am currently building a 'bar back' with beech frames and curly cherry panels/tops/drawer fronts.

I didn't care for the way it took dark stains (YMMV), but it looks good with very light dye and clear finish. If quarter-sawed, it has a great ray flake pattern. I have not noticed any movement issues, and certainly seems hard enough for cabinets. I'll spare you how it machines, since that doesn't look to be in your future. ...Hope this helps.

[Chris Fournier]

Steamed Euro Beech is great for cabinets. I made my kitchen out of this laying up the veneer and milling the solids. Awesome species for cabinets.

[Mike Goetzke]

Steamed Euro Beech is great for cabinets. I made my kitchen out of this laying up the veneer and milling the solids. Awesome species for cabinets.

+1

I used rough sawn lumber. For door frames I milled it down but left some stock. Let them set a few days and gave them a final pass.

You can see them here ( my biggest project ever ):

https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread....light=Cabinets

[Andrew Seemann]

Yes, we use European steamed beech for paint grade door frames. Drops that we can't get door parts out of get cycled into face frame parts

It's slightly more expensive than clear soft maple, but we get a straighter top and a slightly better yield.

We did a beech kitchen recently that was stained pretty dark. I don't think the finisher did anything special with it. I think they had to water pop it, but that's about it.

In Europe, it seems they use Beech like we use Red Oak, almost like a default utility wood. Either it is inherently more stable than American Beech, or they dry and process it better, or the steaming does some kind of magic to the wood, releasing tensions or something like that. Almost all the American Beech I have seen looks like it was intended for hockey sticks, boat hulls, or airplane propellers, whereas the Euro Beech seems much flatter and straighter.

My old house, built in 1909, had Beech floors, only time I have seen it used as flooring. It wore very well, but it must have been installed somewhat wet, because it has some pretty bad gapping in it.

[Tom Bain]

This might be slightly off-topic, but kitchens get remodeled as we all know. I'm not sure what the average lifespan of a kitchen cabinet is, but I think one contributing factor (but probably not as big a factor as material and labor costs) to the general decline in cabinet construction methods is the knowledge that the kitchen is likely to get remodeled because the cabinetry goes out of style well before the cabinets actually "wear out".

As for the beech, I would definitely try to get a sample of the stain you want to use applied to the beech to ensure it doesn't "blotch" in an offensive way. One person's blotching is another person's natural coloration (think cherry).

[Malcolm McLeod]

...
I am concerned about the blotchy staining which is one reason why I am leary of maple. Does beech have the same issues? I know steps can be taken to prevent uneven staining I am just not sure how much cabinet makers do to prevent it.

The largest beech surface I have stained dark is some drawer fronts on a drill bit storage unit; just 18W X 42H and very much a 'utility grade' finish - - just slapped on some dark Watco to seal it and hide fingerprints. I didn't notice any blotching at all.

Sounds like others have much more experience with it, so I'll defer to them. But, based on my limited attempts, if I needed a quality dark finish on beech, I'd probably try to get proper tone and depth using dyes, then a clear finish.

[Carl Beckett]

This might be slightly off-topic, but kitchens get remodeled as we all know. I'm not sure what the average lifespan of a kitchen cabinet is, but I think one contributing factor (but probably not as big a factor as material and labor costs) to the general decline in cabinet construction methods is the knowledge that the kitchen is likely to get remodeled because the cabinetry goes out of style well before the cabinets actually "wear out".

Likely true. I remember being at a store with my mother once, when she was shopping for couches. The salesman was trying to upsell her into a higher end/higher quality brand. Made the mistake of telling her 'it will last 30 years'. Her response was, 'you mean I have to keep that same couch for 30 years??!?! No thanks!"

Remarkable that we have become the same with major renovation projects.

As for beech cabinets: I grew up with Beech cabinets and I believe them to be in service still to this day. Have also used Beech for a couple dressers. It is a great material to work with, and very durable. Would not hesitate to use it in my own house. Concerns on finish are no different than any other wood imo (cherry can be blotchy if you arent careful!). I havent experienced much blotchy ness with Beech, but that is only from a couple pieces worth experience.

I did use a very dark waterbased gel stain on some of it, before clear top coat. The gel stain worked very evenly and no blotching. I could dig up the jar and maybe some pics if interested.