I have a feeling that I may be in the position to do some painted, raised panel doors (for the laundry room of a Victorian house). My concern is that, since a solid wood panel must be free to expand and contract at the edges, won’t this crack the paint along the panel to stile line or jamb the expansion of the panel? This is actually something that I’ve been wondering about for a long time, before this potential job came along. What does everybody else do? Make a raised panel out of ply, sand well, and glue it? Well I guess MDF would be more like it. Pre-paint the panels, carefully brush the frames and hope no one ever wants to repaint? Use solid wood, keep door widths to a minimum and hope that the phone doesn’t ring? Even for a clear finish, seems wrong not to prefinish a wood panel.
I suppose MDF is the answer. Sometimes I have to write it out to find the solution. But what did they do in the old days? Am I correct in assuming that raised panels would be more suitable to a Victorian design than flat panels?
OldDusty–I’d particularly like your opinion on this. I can always trust your advise to be practical and grounded in experience.
Brian
Replies
The paint joint will crack over time. I try to finish my panels prior to assembly, at least the first coat, so the movement won't show. A center stile will help, since it will reduce the width, hence the movement, of the panels.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
Hi Brian ,
They didn't have plywood or MDF , solid was used either raised or recessed .For paint grade raised panels I typically will use MDF " Plum Creek " brand if I can get it . I use it in 1/2" .
I never have but you could prime the panels before assembly if you are doing the painting . Things do move in the real world , most good painters will do a tiny bead of caulk around the perimiter of the panel , if it moves the caulk will stretch instead of cracking the paint line . On mdf the movement will be limited imo.
I cut my panels an 1/8" shy for expansion .
dusty
I made these doors and false drawer front for a vanity in a SF Victorian in '05. The panels and false drawer front were MDF which was sanded and primed (all surfaces) before the doors were assembled.
AFIK, they've held up fine.
Brian,
Dusty has it exactly right. Painted MDF will give you a more or less perfect painted joint. When we are in doubt, we do a tiny bead of acrylic adhesive (the kind that will accept paint) in the crack, which will stretch a bit as needed. The look of solid wood doors with natural finishes are not usually bothered by that crack that appears in the finish. Since they are built to allow movement it's only natural that the finish doesn't bridge the gap. If it does, we break it on purpose by moving the panel a bit.
David Ring
http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1
This may be way off point, but poor ol MDF gets such a bad rap. It sure does have some wonderful properties if you need to paint. I am just finishing a mantle/TV Built in for a friend that is paint grade. For the cabinet doors I rough milled the some hardwood stock, stickered for a few nights, final sized, milled and assembled the doors. One of the darn doors is bowed about 1/16". Not much, but it bugs me. Above the mantle there is a little feature, so I grabbed some MDF scrap milled up the panels glued it up and the darn things sit perfectly flat on the table. Now if only MDF was a bit better to screw into and not soo messy to work with.
If I had a CNC I would have used a single piece of MDF. Are you sure you dont just want to order some solid MDF door panels? They can mill pretty much whatever you desire out of a single piece and you will never have to worry about any expansion. I bet you can find one with a hot press and then they can add a durable foil finish if you client likes. Just an idea.
Brad
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Edited 2/27/2009 11:47 am ET by brad805
My.02 cents.
Use wood, if you can quarter sawen. Pre paint the panel and edges that won't be glued.I have agonized about what ever if they re paint? well you can't pre guess the whims of all and any!!If you use latex, use a thin clear coat laquer after, keeps the panel from sticking to the grooves. Bet you know how I learned that?
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