[Sathawaii]

I'm making a set of kitchen cabinets and worried about warpage on the cabinet doors. In Hawaii there are very humid areas and dry areas. The cabinet will be made in a relatively dry shop, then installed in a moist house. Still contemplating on making the fronts in solid wood or plywood...

I understand that finishing all sides in the same manner will reduce the chance of warping. Also to use cabinet grade plywood. I am doing both but want to know if there are other ways of avoiding the warp.

Any ideas?

The finish will be urethane or possibly just poly.

 

[Steve Neul]

If you can't provide the same humidity levels where you build the doors and where they are going there is really nothing else you can do. What kind of wood do you intend to build the doors out of? Some woods are more tolerant than others.

 

[Sathawaii]

Hi Steve! Thank you for your message! It will be made in hard maple. Customer wants a light shade of brown which is almost cream color. Can't think of an alternative wood...

If you can't provide the same humidity levels where you build the doors and where they are going there is really nothing else you can do. What kind of wood do you intend to build the doors out of? Some woods are more tolerant than others.

 

[cabinetman]

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I'm making a set of kitchen cabinets and worried about warpage on the cabinet doors. In Hawaii there are very humid areas and dry areas. The cabinet will be made in a relatively dry shop, then installed in a moist house. Still contemplating on making the fronts in solid wood or plywood...

I understand that finishing all sides in the same manner will reduce the chance of warping. Also to use cabinet grade plywood. I am doing both but want to know if there are other ways of avoiding the warp.

Any ideas?

The finish will be urethane or possibly just poly.

If you are making raised panel or flat panel doors with solid wood rails and stiles, I would start with kiln dried lumber. I would take the stiles, and the rails respectively from the same section of lumber. Where two stiles meet as in two doors meeting, or two doors on the hinged side meeting, the stiles be taken from the same section of lumber.

Even if you are using plywood for the doors, if you can't get to all the materials, practice good storage methods for lumber and plywood. During fabrication, you will likely have parts and pieces all over the shop. Try to keep it organized and with good storage methods.

.

 

[Steve Neul]

Maple should work alright. If for any reason you are delayed on the job put sticks or dowels between the wood or doors so air can circulate around them. A lot of people have a door warp because they just leave one sitting flat on a table. Because air can only get to one side, the side that is up absorbs more moisture from the air than the other and warps.