I remember from the first dresser I refinished the old ones mostly had dust shelves between the drawers . I built a few reproduction or period looking dressers for a client and in the first one made the dust shelves with panels .
The second one had the same web frame but no panels.
Where does the dust come from between the drawers ?
Why were they so common ?
dusty , but not between the drawers , everywhere else tho .
Replies
dusty,
"where does the dust come from between the shelves?"
probably from the natural fabrics in the drawers. cotton, wool, linen and the like. also the action of the drawers sliding in and out and the resultant wood-dust.
have you ever noticed those dust panels made from cardboard and how, over time,they sag right into the space beneath them.
eef
oops, i meant drawers, not shelves.
Edited 11/12/2008 7:41 pm ET by Eef
Hi eef ,
The fabrics inside the drawers are contained by a drawer bottom , how can the fabric dust go through the bottom ?
dusty
The dust panel does help prevent a drawer which is being pulled open from hanging up and fouling the drawer above when it is overstuffed with clothes. As for where does dust come from, I don't know but I have plenty to spare when you run short.
Ben ,
To help the over stuffed drawer from fouling one above is interesting but wheres the dust from ?
dusty
Dusty,
"Where does the dust come from between the drawers?"
Termites?
This sounds like a case for CSI!
BB
PS: Winds/rain only at 60mph, so far-no leaks.
edit: PS
Edited 11/12/2008 8:43 pm by boilerbay
Hi BB ,
It's been a warm day here ,60s sort of humid a light drizzle off and on.
d
Dusty,
Dust panels served two purposes. First to slow down the accumulation of dust (read soot from the fireplace) onto clothes and secondly as a theft deterrent. Cloth was extremely expensive in Colonial times and consequently there were locks on each drawer. By putting in dust boards, one had to jimmy each drawer to access the contents thereby increasing the odds of being caught in the act.
Dick
Dick ,
Now there's a good one , I dunno .
dusty
"Where does the dust come from between the drawers?"
Termites?
This sounds like a case for CSI!
Does this mean that you will have to weild one of those CSI lights that spot seminal fluid on your drawers? ;)
Lee
OMG , I hope they don't look for pecker tracks as well .
dusty , but knot between my dust shelves and no fluidual remnats on my drawers to speak of
Edited 11/13/2008 12:38 am ET by oldusty
I was hoping one of our resident experts would chime in but imo the dust shelves main purpose was one of strength and a means to keep the case sides from bowing or otherwise moving much .
The frame without any panel actually is what any reinforcement or strength comes from not the panel , remember the panels rarely got or get glued into the frames .
While apprenticing my pal and myself would always ask each other where does the dust come from , it got to be sort of a joke .
dusty
I would think its main use is/was to keep the stuff from the lower drawer getting into the way of the next drawer up.
Doug M.
Just a guess, but I suspect that - in pre plywood days - dust frames were used to provide internal strength without having to make up solid pieces. Since drawers ran on wood "runners" I've always thought that the panels kept the dust from one drawer from dropping into the drawer below.Since I seem to accumulate lots of "strips" of plywood, I use them to make up "dust" frames (w/o panels) for my drawer units. I get to use up scraps that would otherwise be thrown away, buy a little less sheet material, and keep the weight down somewhat.
Morning Dave ,
I also feel the use was more structural , I have never really noticed much in the way of dust coming from the wood slide or drawers , dunno but often times the dust shelf was dovetailed into the case side so the wood side could move but stay flat .
I learned to always wax wood slides and the mating drawer parts that make contact , the wax prevents any dust to my knowledge .
I think keeping the contents from getting caught up in an above drawer is not the reason the panels were there to begin with .
thanks for chiming in dusty
As I said, I was just guessing. - lolAs to dust from wood drawer runners, we have a 30+ year old bedroom set with wooden drawer runners. Last spring, we rearranged the bedroom and I went thru my dresser with a fine toothed comb. That was the first time in at least 10 years and there was a pretty good buildup of dust in all of the drawers. Some quick work with a vac cleared it out, and I waxed the runners with an old candle. That should take care of it for my lifetime and the kids can deal with it then. - lol
I've always assumed that the dust came from the wooden drawer slides (bottom guides) that wear over time.
Sounds good on paper Ralph , but have you ever seen the dust?
d
Seen the dust? Yes. I have an old chest that my grandmother bought early on, circa 1910 or so. No dust panels, and the guides definitely "exfoliate".
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