Hi Betsy,
It may not be that she would actually make more money just because the product
is more expensive. There is a limit to how much one can charge and maybe she
can assemble the laminate more quickly as well as more cheaply.
Laminate is generally more stable even in fairly high non-condensing humidity
but if wet most fall apart badly.
One problem is that you need to understand the laminate. If this is something
like coloured melamine film over particle board it is pretty and it is stable
and generally easy to keep clean but the film is so very thin and easily
damaged. If the laminate is something like Formica well fixed to plywood it
will be very durable, clean up well and so on.
Warping should not be a bigger problem, even if you live in a high humidity
area, the wood is acclimatized to that level of moisture. the problems arise
where there are large swings in humidity.
The finishes used on real wood kitchen cabinets can be a little more
problematic to keep clean but that is a relative thing and subjective and
personal. In the end it comes down to taste mostly, cheap though does end to
look cheap.
----- Original Message -----
From: Betsy Whitney
To: blindhandyman-yahoogroups.com
Sent: Monday, October 05, 2009 1:01 AM
Subject: [BlindHandyMan] Back to the kitchen cabinets
Aloha again,
We now know that the space that we thought was empty in the corner of
our kitchen is really empty. We'll have to remove part of the wall in
the corner to get access to it. This is no problem because it doesn't
go all the way to the ceiling.
I went to look at cabinet doors at my friends shop. She is
recommending that we have her make doors out of some sort of laminate
that has a plywood backing. She showed us some all wooden doors and
they had a piece of wood on the inside that was about 2 inches wide
and a half inch thick. I asked her why that was there and she said
that the doors can eventually warp. The wood doors were made of maple
or oak. She said that wood in Hilo warps worse than wood in
Seattle, Florida or Oregon.
I can't imagine that she would be trying to talk us into this
laminate if it weren't good because making the doors out of wood
would put more money in her pocket.
However, I just wonder what the list thinks?
TIA, Betsy
Teamwork: Together we achieve the extraordinary.
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