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MDF. Affordable alternative?

story

story

Changing the facts
So I need to build shelves. And fitted cupboards.

MDF is the obvious choice in terms of cost. But the question of safety with regards the formaldehyde off gassing is doing my head in

So many confusing factors to weigh up when looking at the online discussions.

I can’t be sure, and the debate seems really binary “yes it is, no it isn’t”.

I’m fed up with trying to work it out.

Bottom line is that I’m keen to keep my home as risk free as possible (health reasons)

I‘d prefer to err on the side of caution with this.

Birch ply is a pricey alternative.

Any other ideas?
 
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story said:
So I need to build shelves. And fitted cupboards.

MDF is the obvious choice in terms of cost. But the question of safety with regards the formaldehyde off gassing is doing my head in

So many confusing factors to weigh up when looking at the online discussions.

I can’t be sure, and the debate seems really binary “yes it is, no it isn’t”.

I’m fed up with trying to work it out.

Bottom line is that I‘ve had cancer, and it‘s the kind that could come back, so I’m keen to keep my home as risk free as possible.

I‘d prefer to err on the side of caution with this.

Ply is a pricey alternative.

Any other ideas?
Click to expand...

You're right, it's taken very seriously on a lot of building sites nowadays. Avoid.

Ply or timber? Is timber expensive?
 
spitfire said:
You're right, it's taken very seriously on a lot of building sites nowadays. Avoid.

Ply or timber? Is timber expensive?
Click to expand...

I haven’t checked but a chippy I was talking to the other day just kinda sailed past timber and went straight to birch ply.
 
platinumsage said:
Lots of second-hand steel shelving units from offices etc floating around. Cheaper than wood-without-glue e.g. hardwood, anyway.
Click to expand...

I‘m not DIY proficient myself so my builder mate would be helping me.

Can I build fitted shelves and wardrobes with recycled steel steel shelves…? Seems unlikely to me tbh
 
My flat is small. I don’t want units I want built in, to maximise floor space and avoid the cramped over-crowded thing that happens when you put in too many different units.
 
Have to say I'm no expert on low Formaldehyde MDF - it looks a bit more expensive and you might find it's not so easy to get hold of.

I'm also not much of an expert on how much of a a problem Formaldehyde (or more broadly VOCs) really is - there doesn't seem to be a lot of consistent opinion on it. But maybe I am out of date.

Plywood is an alternative; the birch faced stuff is what tends to be used for furniture etc because it has a smooth face. There are other cheaper types of plywood which could maybe be used (and OSB) but only if you are happy with the surface appearance (painted or otherwise). All of these you should also check for Formaldehyde content if you are worried about it ... there will be different types.

There's also bamboo board but I think it's pretty expensive.

MDF is popular because it's consistent, cheap, easy to machine and easy to paint. Although it's fairly horrible to work with if you haven't got proper dust extraction (which I think is more at the root of concerns about using it on building sites mentioned by spitfire , than the VOC content is, but I might be wrong).
 
story - whatever you chose is going to be [or seem] very expensive !

I would suggest timber as it can easily be shaved to fit non-square corners, and is more "green" than steel. Also, you don't need to paint it but steel work, especially second-hand will probably need painting.

We bought doors from B&Q / Wickes / Homebase to block off built in shelving ie to turn alcoves into cupboards etc when we worked on the house. We stained / varnished the doors, but not the internal slats. We also bought / made some self-assembly bookshelves, and mostv of those were varnished.

I wanted to avoid MDF / "conti-board" / "formica-covered" stuff : I prefer real wood, as in my experience, it has better stability when in areas that have variable humidity.

e2a - mdf dust is a potential / actual health hazard, as are tropical hardwoods. European softwoods much less so.
 
Yes you can also make stuff from relatively cheap softwood

fulhamtimber.co.uk

Redwood Pine TGV Tongue & Grooved Cladding 19mm x 100mm Per Meter

High quality machined Redwood Pine, Tongued & Grooved V Jointed Kiln Dried, Available in various random lengths
fulhamtimber.co.uk fulhamtimber.co.uk

I think if you work it out, that might actually be cheaper per m2 than MDF of the same thickness.

But a bit more skill/work involved in building stuff because you probably have to make up some kind of frame.

So probably unlikely to end up cheaper if you are asking someone to build for you.

www.regencybespoke.co.uk

Rural T-hinged wardrobes - Regency Bespoke

www.regencybespoke.co.uk
 
Yeah, I’ll be doing the basic labour (cleaning hefting holding) but none of the skilled stuff. I’m hoping to learn some skills by osmosis.

He‘s charging 120/day which seems more than fair to me.
 
All four of us in this household are fairly good at DIY+, which is why we chose timber.

[+we even fitted a quadrant shower recently, as a replacement but after being messed about by a) covid & b) various builders / bathroom fitters - including a couple suggested by the shower supplier !]
 
If there's someone specific who will be doing it - then I would say first port of call for suggestions should be that person. Because it'll depend on what they are comfortable with, have most experience working with, etc.

£120/day is not very much at all but of course it depends how many days it will take. I'd be cautious about going on the basis of a day rate with no estimate of the total amount of time needed. Unless it's someone you trust and are happy for the cost to be open ended.
 
The price of wood has gone up so much that I have been wondering if there is any mileage in recycling the wood from old furniture, particularly old wardrobes.
 
teuchter said:
If there's someone specific who will be doing it - then I would say first port of call for suggestions should be that person. Because it'll depend on what they are comfortable with, have most experience working with, etc.

£120/day is not very much at all but of course it depends how many days it will take. I'd be cautious about going on the basis of a day rate with no estimate of the total amount of time needed. Unless it's someone you trust and are happy for the cost to be open ended.
Click to expand...

Yeah, these things are bubbling about in my head.

His preferences will dictate mine to some extent, which is why I wanted to be properly genned up in prep for that conversation.

And I agree that day rate can be endlessly problematic. But I highly doubt he’ll take the piss and I‘m sure we can re-jig the arrangement if necessary. We got to start somewhere, so we’re starting with a job that has a clear end point.
 
Boudicca said:
The price of wood has gone up so much that I have been wondering if there is any mileage in recycling the wood from old furniture, particularly old wardrobes.
Click to expand...

Yes I’ve considered this too.

There‘s an overcrowded salvage yard on the way to Lewisham, I might go and have a mooch around there at some point. But transport and storage is the question there. I don’t want to end up with my own yard being all Steptoe & Son. Or even more than it is already…


ETA
Oh. Just checked. Looks like Aladdins Cave may have closed down…. but unclear about that so more checking needed.
 
2 main problems with recycling wood from old furniture

- all the work removing screws/filling holes/scraping off glue/old varnish

- doesn't usually give you a stock of stuff with consistent dimensions or finish or appearance. This actually makes it a right pain to make stuff with.

Both of these things can easily outweigh the lower material cost with massively increased amount of time/labour involved.
 
teuchter said:
2 main problems with recycling wood from old furniture

- all the work removing screws/filling holes/scraping off glue/old varnish

- doesn't usually give you a stock of stuff with consistent dimensions or finish or appearance. This actually makes it a right pain to make stuff with.

Both of these things can easily outweigh the lower material cost with massively increased amount of time/labour involved.
Click to expand...

I was idly thinking about whether it might be possible to cobble together a kind of patchwork quilt of wardrobes. Strip them back individually and somehow connect them together /to the wall. In my early morning reverie I imagined having sufficient skills tools time and luck for this to result in a cool clever quirky eclectic wall of wardrobe.

Reality made me make this thread instead.
 
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Ikea prices have stayed relatively static (for now), while basic material costs like timber or MDF sheets have skyrocketed. If Ikea furniture doesn't fit, buy it anyway and make it fit; without a trade card the "Ikea hack" is currently the cheapest way of getting the raw materials.
 
Dystopiary said:
Don't know if this is any use to you, story. I've been wanting to make shelfage and other stuff out of pallets. Cos you can get pallets that aren't treated with nasties. This is five years old but given me some food for thought, need to check some of the info though.

Where to Find Cheap or Free Pallets - The Handy Mano
Click to expand...

Pallets is easy. They accumulate in heaps on my local street for some reason. But again, I think there’s a good deal of work to get them fit for use,
plus the stuff about chemicals.

But yes, I’ll be chatting with W about how much use we can make of pallets. I‘d doing the work of stripping them down.
 
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