What is ?

[boomer]

What would you class as a easy but nice looking kitchen unit door i could attempt to make ?We have a crappy looking kitchen & would love nothing more than be able to make and replace all the doors myself,i have most standard tools but taking into account i only make basic garden stuff im not the most experienced woodworker going.Any ideas & advice would be great thanks.

 

[Jorden]

Hello Boomer

You are probably looking at something like a brace and ledger door which consists of upright planks on the outside with a pair of horizontal boards plus diagonal brace on the inside. The are easy to make with minimal tools although the hinges may need changing.

Have you considered buying door blanks from one of the diy sheds?

Dennis

 

[nickson71]

I depends on what type of materials you want to use and what your personal tastes are like ..............

I personally would approach this by finding a few pictures of kitchen doors you like ......... then think How do I make these

If you have what I think as standard tools you should be able to make most things with a little time and thought

personaly I think a simple frame and panel doors would be easy to do once you've made a couple of jig for your router ........ if you've got a router table you could make them more ornate and faster

If you find some picture post them if you need ideas/tips on how to make them ......... Some of the guys here make a living out of doing kitchen and I'm sure they could help

Ian

 

[Pete W]

You are probably looking at something like a brace and ledger door which consists of upright planks on the outside with a pair of horizontal boards plus diagonal brace on the inside.

Hi Dennis, I think he's looking for doors for kitchen cupboards, not a door for the kitchen itself.

A flat-panel door is probably about the easiest - two rails (the straight bits at top and bottom), two stiles (the straight bits down the sides) and a squared-up rectangle of thin material in the middle. Run grooves down the middle of all the rails and stiles. By using veneered ply or MDF (about 6mm or 8mm) for the panel that fits within the grooves, you could do basic stock preparation and all the joinery with a table saw. Without a table saw, a circular saw and a router (probably mounted in a table) would do.

Or, do it the safer, quieter and more satisfying way with handsaws, planes and chisels

There's a good basic tutorial here:
http://www.knottyplans.com/index.php?page=20041&ref=kp32ap98f

 

[boomer]

Thank you for your replys,i recently had a go at one of these http://www.larkandlarks.co.uk/kitchen-doors/11 as SWMBO really likes it,i went to a diy store and had a look at how they were made,one piece routered out easy i thought,no totally made a pigs ear of it lol,thats what you guys are up against in me.Where i went wrong was as i was routering the middle out my router dropped down onto the lower section i'd just routered thus going deeper (if you understand what i mean).I will look into your suggestions take a deep breath & have a go.

 

[Adam]

I'm sure the kitchen gurus will be along shortly but I wouldn't use a router at all. I'd make a thinner central section then strap the four (thicker) outer edge batons around it. You could do it all MDF and biscuit it together and it won't move dut to moisture etc.

Adam

 

[wizer]

personally i don't like frame and panel doors in kitchens. I think that dirt and grease easily builds up in the corners and is a chore to keep clean. I much prefer just simple plain doors either in natural wood, veneer or painted mdf.

 

[nickson71]

As I said ....... It's down to personal taste

I'm making couple of shaker style doors this weekend for refacing a bathroom cabinet ........... I'm using solid wood so I'll be doing the frame and panel way

I'll be using the router table for the groove cutting

router to do the mortises and tenons ........ I'll be using the woodrat but this can be done if you make a couple of jigs for the router or table saw (tenons) ....... or you could use hand tools

Ian

 

[Niki]

They say that designers do not have to live with their creation.

I'm with WIZeR, I made 3 kitchens, and lived with them (and had to clean them).
A kitchen is a place that you have to clean more often then other parts of the house.
When the doors are flat and one piece it's very easy to clean and it looks like new all the time.

I would go with MDF, round the edges and paint them (personally, I like white), easy to make and maintain

niki

 

[mailee]

Niki, the kitchen units look great and are very practical. Can I ask what finish you used and how was it applied? I assume the doors are all MDF what sealer did you use? This design would be perfect for our kitchen as m wife cooks a lot of Chinese food and you can imagine what it is like to clean! Thanks.

 

[wizer]

yep Niki that is exactly what I'd had in mind. I think there was a discussion on here once about having a high gloss laquer sprayed onto kitchen doors.

 

[Losos]

Hi Boomer,

As someone said, a lot depends on personal taste but as you see from Niki's photo, kitchen unit doors don't have to have complicated mouldings.

FWIW I would suggest:-
a) Familiarise yourself with the so called 'Euro hinge' they don't show & are quite easy to fit (My guess is that's what Niki used)
b) Choose some nice handles that you booth like (You'll probably have noted how the handles Niki choose help to improve the 'look')
c) Use MDF (It doesn't 'move' and can be painted, choose a colour that matches your appliances and floor / walls if possible))
d) If you really want a 'frame & panel' look add the frame around the panel as suggested by Adam. Use your router to get a nice shape and use that style throughout all the doors. I would suggest you pass on the raised panel idea at this stage.

Good luck

 

[Dave S]

Thank you for your replys,i recently had a go at one of these http://www.larkandlarks.co.uk/kitchen-doors/11 as SWMBO really likes it ..

Hi Boomer,

The first kitchen cupboard doors I ever made were basically the same as those, and I was very much a novice at that time. I didn't use a router at all, except for fitting the euro-style hinges. I cut a piece of 12mm MDF to the full size of the door, and some 6mm thick MDF strips, the width of the frame in your photo. I just stuck these on to the face of the large panel. Any gaps between rail and stile I filled with filler (car body filler works well) and sanded smooth.

Alternatively, instead of filling you could cut a shallow groove along the join to give the same effect as in the photo.

Painted, mine looked great and when I came to sell the house I received many good comments about the kitchen.

You will need to prepare the cut edges of the MDF before painting - if you search here you will find plenty of tips on both edge preparation and painting of MDF.

Hope this helps.
David

 

[George_N]

I've gone for MDF frame and panel doors for my kitchen refit. The frame components are 18 mm thick by 90 mm wide MDF. The stiles are grooved at the router table 1/4" bit 11 mm deep on the inside edge. the stiles are similarly grooves on the inside edges and also on the ends. The panels are 6 mm MDF cut to fit and the rails and stiles are glued with loose tenons, also made of 6 mm MDF. Once the glue has cured (waterproof PVA) I round over the edges with a 1/2" roundover bit at the router table. The routed edges are sanded to 240g wet N dry and spray painted with my recently acquired B&Q HVLP kit. So far I have used water-based MDF Primer and the edges have stayed very smooth. I intend to finish off with a top coat of acrylic floor varnish for an easy clean, tough surface. Not got to that stage yet but hopefully this weekend...

 

[Niki]

Hi Mailee

The doors are 18mm MDF, I did not use any sealer but sanded the edges with #400.
I painted with Enamel paint. What is written on the can is "High quality Enamel for wood and metal".
I applied with small foam roller as you can see on the picture, 2~3 layers are enough.
Ya, the Chinese are making a lot of "Fire works" while cocking. If you look at the kitchen picture, you will see some wooden boxes (above the dish-washer), we just finished to make Tofu.

Boomer
I used Euro hinges (why they are called Euro hinges in Europe), "Concealed hinges".
You can find technical information here
http://www.woodfit.com/index.php?sid=23 ... &cPath=221

niki

 

[Losos]

Hi Niki,

Why are 'Euro hinges' called that in Europe?...........well I don't know but it might have something to do with the fact that in America they usually like to use things invented in America, but when they do adopt ideas from overseas they are often pretty generous about giving due recognition to such.

Anyway Norm (Of New Yankee Workshop fame) always refers to them as 'Euro Hinges'

Can somebody confirm that were invented in Germany??

 

[boomer]

Thank you all for your advice,i'll be trying Niki's door & Dave S's idea & see how i go from there,again thanks for all your help.