MDF is a material that is widely used in the manufacturing process of cabinet furniture or wall cladding. The abbreviation of this material is a fiberboard made from wood processing products. MDF boards for wall cladding and furniture assembly are made by sintering under pressure. The starting material consists of finely dispersed wood chips and binders.
Production
The manufacture of the plate consists of several successive stages:
- Procurement process. At this stage, the procurement of the main raw materials for MDF boards - wood chips. To do this, take massive, peeled logs. They are placed in special cutting machines, and then washed and heated with steam.
- Fiber preparation. The material is crushed in a refiner, after which the resulting mass is combined with lignite and various resins, which have the highest binding properties. Synthetic substances are not used in the manufacture of MDF boards. After mixing, excess air is removed from the feed. Then it is sent for drying.
- Plate formation. Prepared components are loaded into forming equipment, which carries out its spreading into a kind of carpet and evenly cuts the edges. Thanks to this, sheets are formed. After this, preliminary pressing is carried out, the purpose of which is to squeeze out the remaining air, which improves the technical characteristics of the finished MDF panel.
- The final pressing. The tape obtained at the preliminary stage is sent under the main press, after which it is cut into sheets using a dividing saw and cooled for half an hour.
It should be noted that MDF is an almost ideal wood material in its segment.. The following properties are characteristic of it: a high level of density - about 800 kg / m3, moisture resistance, immunity to damage by various microorganisms and resistance to temperature extremes. Of particular note is the technical characteristics of the flexibility of the material. In order to break the plate, equipment is needed that can bend it at a pressure of about 15 MPa.
Fields of application
The excellent properties of the finished material contribute to the fact that MDF boards are used quite widely. Usually they are used for the manufacture of furniture, as well as wall cladding. In addition, thick boards can be used as a laminate flooring. At the same time, they demonstrate a high level of wear resistance during operation.
The homogeneity of the plates makes them an indispensable material not only for the manufacture of furniture, but also for speaker enclosures. The scope of MDF is diverse.
When assembling furniture, panels are used to produce a wide variety of products: cabinets, cabinets, chests of drawers, desks, etc. It should be noted that when working with MDF boards, you can use milling equipment.
Thanks to this, various pieces of furniture or even wall decoration can be equipped with beautiful decorative elements.
MDF sheet is often sold without any additional coverage.. A plastic ball is applied on the front sheet from one side. Double-sided boards are used in the manufacture of furniture. Basically, MDF panels have the following differences: weight, cost and size, depending on what kind of individual sheet belongs to.
Parameters of MDF panels
In the construction and manufacture of furniture, an MDF sheet with various parameters is required. It should be noted that the panels are manufactured according to various specifications and state standards, which determine the dimensions of the manufactured panels without additional coating. GOSTs govern only qualitative characteristics of products.
However, standard sizes still exist:
- Plates of foreign and domestic production with a size of 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 mm can have such length and width: 2070x2800 mm, 1830x2440 mm, 2070x2620 mm. A sheet with these parameters is the most commonly used.
- Plates with a thickness of 16, 18 and 24 mm usually have a size: 2070x2800 mm, 1830x2440 mm.
- Thick MDF sheet - 30, 32, 34, 36 and 38 mm can be in the size: 2070x2620 and 2700x2800 mm.
Special laminated panels will almost always have the same size equal to 2070x2800 mm. A moisture resistant sheet can be distinguished into a separate category, the production of which is somewhat complicated. Such panels are noticeably smaller in size than those described above. Regardless of the thickness, their dimensions are mainly - 1220x2440 mm.
The size of the slab should be selected depending on the task that will face the MDF panels. It is important to choose exactly the characteristics and dimensions of the material that will fully meet the purpose, whether it is wall cladding or even the arrangement of flooring.
It should be especially noted that the characteristics of MDF panels and the weight of the plate can vary precisely depending on the thickness of the material and dimensions. A separate place among MDF boards is occupied by decorative panels for walls. They have a really wide variety of sizes and colors that allow you to choose the material for arranging almost any interior.
Of the colors, you can often find MDF for walls with the equipment of the coating in the form of any kind of tree or stone. Either veneer or plastic can be used as such a decorative coating.
Veneer coating for MDF boards is divided into the following types: natural and “online”. They differ in the degree of processing. Natural veneer has maximum relief.
As for the forms, then there is not much diversity. On sale you can find the following plates:
- Rack and pinion. These are rather long wall strips of material with various dimensions. Depending on the manufacturer of MDF, they can be of such sizes: width - from 15 to 32.5 cm; thickness - from 0.6 to 1.4 cm; length - from 240 to 270 cm. They are characterized by a rather modest weight.
- Tiled. For these wall MDF panels, a square shape is characteristic. Their sizes are also quite diverse. On the domestic market of wood materials you can find a sheet with sizes - from 30x30 to 98x98 cm. Their main advantage is their low weight and ease of installation.
- Leafy. Such wall panels may not always be convenient for unprofessional installation, because they have the largest sizes. The following parameters are characteristic of decorative plates: width - about 122 cm, length - about 244 cm, thickness - from 0.3 to 0.6 cm. Despite their large dimensions, due to their maximum thickness of 6 mm, they have a very low weight.
Cost of plates
The various sizes and varieties of MDF panels do not allow a general analysis in the category - the price of the material. For a detailed description, it is necessary to divide all produced panels into several groups. It should be noted that domestic MDF sheets are much more expensive than chipboard.
Their cost indicators can be described by comparing species in order of increasing price:
- Unpolished boards. This stuff is the budget option. It is characterized by a slight increase in price by 1 mm of thickness. However, often unpolished boards cannot be small, their thickness starts from 14 mm, and for some manufacturers - from 16 mm.
- Sanding sheets. This is a more expensive option, which is used much more often than the type of material described above. Its price can be described as the average among the whole range of varieties of MDF panels.
- Single-sided laminated boards (white). These plates are often used for facades. Their price is only slightly different from polished counterparts.
Thus, according to the site leroymerlin.ru, prices on MDF panels range from 421 p. per panel 2440x910x3 mm, 2.24 m2 to 1760 p. for a panel with dimensions of 2440x1220x6 mm, 2.98 m2. Portal blizko.ru offers the following prices: from 100 r. per sq.m. up to 7545 p. for a decorative panel with dimensions of 2800x1000x10 mm.
It should be noted that decorated laminated plates for walls of domestic production are usually somewhat more expensive than standard white counterparts. Their price is approximately 20 percent higher. They have the following types: with single and double-sided laminated coating. In the second version, one side remains white, and the second is colored, which is considered the front.
The price of MDF boards for walls and furniture of foreign manufacture due to delivery rises to 40 percent for each position.