Following new trends, quality and environmental friendliness, all furniture produced by our company is made from high-quality materials that meet all standards.

Furniture facades

Laminated particle board - (laminated chipboard, laminated chipboard)- the most common material for the production of cabinet furniture. Wardrobes, kitchen sets and other cabinet furniture made from laminated chipboard are easy to use and presentable in appearance. A large number of colors, durability and environmental friendliness and an affordable price make laminated chipboard an indispensable option for those who are interested in economy class furniture.

Fiberboard - MDF- environmentally friendly and practical material has gained great popularity among buyers. Having the same properties, MDF is significantly cheaper natural wood and is widely used for making furniture fronts. Kitchen facades made from this material are resistant to dirt and are much more durable in use compared to laminated chipboard.

Plastic facades- a leader in consumer recognition in the production of furniture facades for cabinet furniture. Heat resistance, moisture resistance, abrasion resistance - all these properties distinguish this finishing option from all others. The variety of colors, appearance and environmental safety leave no doubt about the correct choice.

Solid wood facades- the most expensive option for finishing furniture, but if you are not short on funds and are a fan of exclusively natural materials, then your choice is obvious. Natural wood facades are timeless classics and have a number of valuable advantages. Antibacterial impregnation and several layers of varnish will preserve the original appearance of the furniture for many years.

High gloss MDF facades- a new product on the furniture market, becoming increasingly popular among our customers. Modern unique technologies have made it possible to create an extremely durable coating. We recommend!

Kitchen countertops

When creating a comfortable and cozy atmosphere in the kitchen, it is important to choose the color and material of the countertop. It should not only be harmoniously combined with furniture facades and the rest of the kitchen furniture, but also meet all the needs of the housewife. It is the kitchen countertop that must withstand the brunt of the cooking process: different temperature from hot pots to icy frozen foods, water, mechanical force...

Our every day is unthinkable without these items. They make our life more comfortable. They are always with us. This pieces of furniture.

What are these constant companions of ours made of?
Let's leave the scope of attention to accessories, glue and upholstery, as well as glass, metal, fabric, plastic, wicker. In this article I want to introduce you to the materials from which most furniture is made.
Chipboard, chipboard, MDF, laminate, melamine, postforming, solid wood, veneer and other terms can confuse an unprepared buyer when choosing furniture. The materials seem to be similar, but still have differences. We read everything carefully and go “savvy” to the furniture store!

Wood boards

Let's start with furniture made from wood panels.
MDF, chipboard, laminated chipboard, fibreboard- these are materials based on wood. It's just a small tree. In the form of shavings, fibers, sawdust.

MDF- a type of wood-fiber board made from small shavings (practically from wood flour) by hot pressing. Wood fibers are treated with special binders before pressing. For this purpose, natural products lignin and paraffin are used, which do not emit harmful substances. Moreover, its gluing requires much less adhesive than chipboard; the environmental friendliness and safety of the MDF material ultimately depends on this.
Also distinctive feature MDF is its density, which almost matches the density of natural wood.
MDF is an environmentally friendly, dense and flexible board (despite its decent thickness), which allows you to create curved surfaces, for example, the facade.
It is a material that can be easily processed, which is very valuable in the manufacture of furniture that requires grace and fine lines. MDF does not crumble during milling - this allows you to make cutouts for fittings, create drawings and carvings on the surface. Carved cabinets and headboards are all made of MDF.
MDF holds screws and other fasteners well.
Due to paraffin impregnation, the MDF board has water-repellent properties, which allows you to expand the scope of its application.
Due to the fact that technology MDF manufacturing is not cheap, often in the production of furniture only facades are made from MDF, and walls and internal parts are made from chipboard. Furniture made entirely from MDF is quite expensive.
MDF is also immune to various types of fungi.
But this material reacts very painfully to temperatures above 70 degrees Celsius. It swells, warps, loses its shape, and the decorative coating bubbles and peels off. That is why it is recommended to protect MDF furniture from heat and not place it near a working stove, oven or other heating devices.

Chipboard- chipboard - consists of pressed and glued by high-temperature pressing with the addition of binding resins (phenol and formaldehyde) wood waste, which includes sawdust, large shavings, etc.. On the outside, these pressed sawdust can be covered with decorative layers: laminate, melamine, veneer.
Based on quality characteristics, chipboards are divided into 3 grades:
1st grade The slabs are made from selected sawdust, usually from one type of wood. Its surface is perfectly smooth, without chips. The board is decorated on both sides by applying laminated film or veneer.
2nd grade characterized by minor defects on the surface in the form of chips and scratches. It can be with or without cladding.
3rd grade- these are slabs with significant defects on the surface. They do not require cladding and are used only for construction and auxiliary purposes.
Chipboard is afraid of water. Therefore, in conditions of high and constant humidity, the chipboard will begin to crumble.
It is also worth noting the fragility of such a plate. Chipboard does not tolerate fine processing; it is difficult to make shaped parts from it.

laminated chipboard is the abbreviated name for laminated particle board, the surface of which is treated with a special film based on thermosetting polymers (this is a type of paper-resin film). I think everyone has seen laminated paper. The board is laminated in the same way. Only the slab is thicker than paper, and its ends remain open.
Often such a slab is simply called “laminate”. This applies to both the name of the popular flooring and the furniture “made of laminate”. However, laminated chipboard and laminate are not the same thing, they are two different coatings.

Laminating film is made in a variety of ways. The surface of laminated chipboard can be smooth, embossed, wood-like, or shagreen. Color palette has no boundaries, because the film can be painted in any color.
Laminated chipboards are divided into several groups:

• smooth solid colors (e.g. white, yellow, blue);
• textured solid colors (e.g. textured white, aluminum);
• standard wood tones (e.g. beech, alder, cherry);
• imitation of rare wood species (for example, Winchester oak, Merano, Cordoba);
• glossy decors;
• veneered decors;
• fantasy tones with drawings and patterns.

Laminated chipboard is present in almost every home, because most often it is used in the manufacture of various furniture, both economy class and more expensive furniture.
Products made from laminated chipboard are resistant to moisture due to the lamination coating, unlike ordinary wood. Therefore, furniture made from laminated chipboard is well suited for the kitchen, where it will not dry out or crack. It can often be found even in bathrooms. Moisture-resistant laminated chipboard undergoes a special treatment with paraffin emulsion, and also contains wood fibers with a special impregnation that prevents the composition from swelling under the influence of moisture. However, you should not leave moisture on the surface of the furniture for a long time, as it can flow into the cracks between the slab and the edging, and water entering directly under the decor layer (laminating film) will cause swelling and softening inside the slab.
If you buy furniture made from laminated chipboard, you can easily later purchase the necessary elements, and they will be exactly the same color, unlike wood, where the shade may differ from batch to batch.

Chipboard has disadvantages, like any other material.
The main negative characteristic of particle boards is the presence of formaldehyde resins in the composition, which, at high concentrations, have negative impact on human health. That is why it is necessary to ensure that the ends of the finished product are carefully closed with an edge.
Another significant drawback is the susceptibility of chipboard to swelling (with the exception of moisture-resistant categories). This problem is eliminated in the same way as the previous one - an edge is applied to all visible ends, protecting the internal composition from moisture penetration.
The laminated surface itself, if there are no cuts or chips on it, is moisture resistant.

Wood chip boards are very popular among furniture manufacturers.
Firstly, they have a low cost compared to high-quality arrays.
Secondly, they are easy to process. Chipboard is a ready-made material that only needs to be cut in accordance with the cutting chart and an edge applied to the ends.
Thirdly, wood boards are quite strong and durable; they are not subject to drying out or curling, like natural wood, which requires a long drying time.
Fourthly, laminated chipboards have a wide palette of decors. The colors are so varied that they will fit perfectly into the restrained interior of a study or into a bright children's room.
Fifthly, furniture made from chipboard is easy to care for. But this is more important to us, furniture buyers.

Care of laminated chipboard furniture

When cleaning, furniture made from chipboard can be wiped with a damp cloth, but it is not recommended to use too active detergents, since their chemical composition can damage the protective layer applied to the chipboard. The laminated surface also does not like abrasive substances.
It is also not recommended to use the load for a long time if it is more than 10 -15 kg. If the load on the shelves exceeds this mass, then deformation of the shelves is possible. If you follow these rules, then furniture made from chipboard will serve you for a very long time.

Fiberboard(also known as hardboard) is also a material made from wood shavings, wood dust and wood chips. It is produced in two ways: when dry, resins are added during hot pressing, when wet, nothing is added. Popularly, this material is sometimes called “pressed cardboard”. The material is cheap and durable, but it is impossible to create furniture from it, primarily due to difficulties with fastening. Therefore, it is used for making the back walls of cabinets and drawer bottoms.
The thickness of fiberboard slabs, as a rule, does not exceed 4 mm.

As mentioned above, often in the production of furniture only facades are made from MDF, and walls and internal parts are made from laminated chipboard. Furniture made entirely from MDF is quite expensive.
Thus, a classic furniture set is considered:
the front part is made of MDF,
body - made of laminated chipboard,
the back wall is made of fiberboard.

Is furniture made from wood panels dangerous?

The production technology of board materials implies that MDF contains less harmful substances than chipboard.

MDF - with strict adherence to technology and high-quality surface cladding, structures made from it are considered the least dangerous in terms of the release of harmful substances into the surrounding air. High-quality MDF is environmentally friendly.

Chipboard class E1 - ranks second in safety for human body(but also only with appropriate surface finishing).
In high-quality chipboard, the adhesive components do not contain phenols, and the proportion of toxic substances is negligible. But it is still not recommended to use a slab without edging. This is due to the safety of the material, which without end protection will quickly absorb moisture from environment and will swell.

Class E2 chipboard - emits the largest amount of harmful substances, is prohibited for production in foreign countries, and in Russia - prohibited for the production of furniture and products used inside public and residential premises (GOST 10632-2007).

MDF and chipboard (chipboard) of class E1 are allowed for furniture production (with mandatory surface cladding).

MDF is environmentally friendly material and has no restrictions on use, laminated chipboard is not recommended for use in children's and medical institutions.

Unfortunately, not all manufacturers adhere to norms and standards, and then under the usual outer shell there may be illiquid goods that may be unsuitable for use in the furniture industry.
It is almost impossible to distinguish high-quality chipboard from low-quality chipboard by eye, because... decorative coating interferes. Chipboard with a high content of formaldehyde gives off a characteristic odor that intensifies when doors and drawers are opened. Also, the seller or furniture manufacturer must have certificates for chipboard, which indicate the class of the product.
Remember that quality does not come cheap.
If at the moment it is possible to purchase only very inexpensive furniture, be sure to pay attention to the ends. The ends must be properly closed with an edge!

Decorative coatings for wood panels

We looked at the slabs from which furniture is most often made.
Now let's turn to the decorative coatings of wood boards.

Laminating

Let's start with the simplest type of furniture covering - with laminating technology, when ordinary textured paper is used. It is enough to apply a paper sheet to the surface of chipboard or MDF panels, and the furniture structure will already receive its protective coating. Often the paper is varnished or subjected to an embossing procedure. Despite this, the paper coating is very vulnerable to moisture, quickly scratches and is susceptible to shock loads.
Furniture with laminated technology is widely represented in the budget segment. Such furniture sets are quite suitable for bedrooms and living rooms, provided they are handled with care. When decorating a kitchen, using laminated paper to cover furniture is unlikely to be suitable, since the operating conditions there are quite harsh and intense, which is why the delicate coating simply will not withstand the load and will quickly deteriorate. Or you must initially count on a short service life in “decent” form. Perhaps this furniture is suitable for a children's room. The child will grow up by the time the coating wears out, and it can be replaced with a more durable one.

Melamine coating

It consists of several layers of paper impregnated with melamine-formaldehyde resins at a temperature of about 180°.
It is mainly applied to chipboard or MDF, a process called lamination. The result is a smooth, water- and mechanical-damage-resistant laminated surface. Melamine-based panels are used as kitchen countertops, cabinet and drawer fronts, as well as for the manufacture of other cabinet furniture elements. This material is also called artificial veneer.
Edges for the ends of slabs are also made from melamine.

Advantages of melamine-based coating:

• Low price.
• Resistant to minor mechanical damage.
• Easy to care for.
• Resistant to hot dishes.
• The ability to create a surface of any color: plain, with a pattern and even with a photograph.
• Imitation of various textures.

Disadvantages of melamine-based coating:

• Instability to some aggressive household chemicals and solvents.
• The surface can be easily scratched with a sharp object.
• The coating technology does not allow the entire slab to be hermetically sealed, so when using it in a humid environment, all seams and joints must be treated with sealant.

To care for melamine-coated furniture, you should use sprays or any liquids other than those containing abrasive particles. If you don’t have such products on hand, you can wipe the surface first with a damp cloth and then with a dry one.
It is important to protect the surface of melamine products from sharp objects. Although melamine flooring is hard, strong impacts with metal objects can damage it.

Laminate

Laminate- an impact-resistant, pressure- and physical-impact-resistant film based on thermosetting polymers (melamine resin) with a thickness of 0.5-1.3 mm, which is used to cover chipboard and fiberboard boards.

And although the structure of the laminate also contains melamine paper, as mentioned above, laminated chipboard and laminate are not the same thing, they are two different coatings. Laminate is distinguished by a layered plastic structure, which has unique quality characteristics and performance properties.

At the same time, the finished coating has a class differentiation, depending on the production technology used. There is a CPL class laminate, when the technological process is continuous and its surface is smooth.
There is HPL class laminate produced under high pressure. Its surface is more grooved, which is due to the use of pressing pads, which allow you to create a stone or wood texture on the surface. High-pressure laminate is considered more wear-resistant, but its price criterion is much higher.
The front surface of the laminate can be very diverse: with a single color or with a textured pattern that imitates wood texture, stone structure, or repeats various patterns.
The characteristics of the laminate also depend on the thickness of the material.
For the manufacture of countertops, it is recommended to use HPL plastic, the minimum thickness of which is 0.6 millimeters. Also, high pressure laminate is excellent for the production of furniture facades and decorative panels.

Postforming

Also in furniture production there is such an interesting coating as postforming.

Its other name is duroplast. This is a paper-based plastic, the structure of which is enriched with chemical additives - plasticizers, which give the material flexibility when heated. As it cools, it hardens, maintaining its curved shape.
This quality of duroplast allows you to quickly and efficiently bend the ends, gluing their fabric to a horizontal furniture surface. That is, with postforming technology there is no gap between the top work surface and the end.

Postforming technology for the formation of a protective coating is widely used in the manufacture of countertops, window sills, and furniture facades. The use of postforming allows the formation of one or two bending radii, depending on the design of the furniture structure.

Using postforming technology, you can “wrap” a furniture slab both from one end (90 degrees, for table tops) and from both sides (completely wrapped 180 degrees, suitable for facades).
To protect, for example, the edges of a kitchen countertop, it is necessary to use a special sizing or groove with protective and water-repellent properties, otherwise the material will absorb moisture, causing top coating It will simply peel off and fall off the furniture.

Softforming

An alternative postforming technology is softforming, the essence of which is to process the ends of parts with a ready-made protective coating. To do this, the ends are milled and pasted using a thin film, which ensures high-quality roundings.
Softforming technology is excellent, for example, for the production of furniture panels that serve as the basis for tabletops. Softforming also finds its application in the production of sliding wardrobes.
Disadvantages of this method:

• Not very aesthetically pleasing, because it is not possible to completely hide the joint between the film at the end. Because of this, differences are visible between the colors of the decorated surface and the protective film.
• The film used during softforming is much weaker in strength compared to laminate and laminated chipboard.

PVC film

The main advantage of such furniture covering is its plasticity, excellent adhesiveness, moisture resistance, and high wear resistance. It is used, in particular, for processing MDF panels, countertops, and any horizontal surfaces. Also, PVC film is often used as a basis for softforming to process the ends of parts, and also as a protective layer for steel and aluminum products and individual structural parts.

Veneer

The next type of coating is veneer.

Veneer is a thin layer of natural wood obtained by planing or peeling wood. In German, der Spon means "sliver", "lining".
Veneering is the gluing of thin plates of wood with a beautiful structure (actually, veneer) onto a wooden base - be it a table, wall or door - of lower decorative qualities. It turns out that veneering furniture means dressing it in beautiful clothes. It would be more correct to call veneering “veneering”. But it just so happens that the word “veneer” is more familiar to the average person’s ear than “veneer.” Veneer plates are selected according to color and texture.

Veneer can be sawn, peeled and planed.

Sliced ​​veneer with a thickness of 0.2 to 5 mm, they are made from valuable wood with a beautiful texture: oak, beech, walnut, mahogany, Karelian birch, ash, elm, acacia, yew and others.

Sawn veneer with a thickness of 1 to 10 mm, they are made from coniferous wood: fir, cedar, spruce. The production of bent-laminated furniture parts is unthinkable without sawn veneer.

For production peeled veneer with a thickness of 0.1-10 mm, alder, birch, pine, aspen, beech, oak and other types of wood are used. Peeling is carried out by cutting a thin layer from a rotating cylinder-block. The quality of peeled veneer is slightly lower than that of sawn veneer, but it is also widely used for veneering furniture parts.
There are several main types of veneering.

• Hot veneering. With this method, the veneer is glued to the base using adhesives. The simplest method. Moreover, PVA-based glue can be used to join MDF, chipboard and veneer; it is more environmentally friendly than synthetic resin-based glue. One-sided gluing of valuable wood veneer is accompanied by lamination of the other side of MDF and chipboard.
• Cold veneering. Here the veneer is pressed onto the base. We are talking about pressing machines.
• Membrane veneering. Industrial method, used for veneering complex surfaces. Membrane veneering is based on vacuum joining veneer and boards - both smooth and textured.

Why veneer furniture?

Wood is considered the most expensive and noble material for making furniture. However, along with its advantages, wood has a number of disadvantages.

1. Firstly, this is the relatively high cost inherent in high-quality wood, well-dried and coated with protective and decorative compounds.
2. Secondly, exposure high humidity, which limits the use of this material, for example, in bathrooms.
3. Thirdly, over time, if not carefully cared for, wood can warp, dry out, and change its shape and size.

Using veneer you can give furniture a more expensive, noble look wooden furniture. Unlike solid wood, veneer does not dry out, does not deform, and is not affected by moisture and temperature. That is, as a result of veneering, a material is obtained that is outwardly indistinguishable from natural wood, and at the same time strong, durable, and quite easy to maintain. Furniture made from decorative panels for living rooms, hallways, and dining rooms is not inferior in appearance to the same furniture made from natural wood. At the same time, its service life and resistance to climatic influences will be significantly higher, and reasonable prices will make furniture for home and office accessible to a wide range of consumers.

What affects the price of furniture?

• production technology (MDF is more expensive than chipboard),
• country of origin (board materials from foreign European companies will cost more than their Russian counterparts),
• the presence of additional properties imparted to materials during the production process (fire resistance, biostability, water resistance),
• availability, quality and durability of decorative coating on MDF or chipboard (everything that makes a structure made from these materials more safe and durable costs more),
• the number of intermediaries between the manufacturing company and the buyer (the more there are, the more expensive the material will end up being).

Remember that miracles happen in our lives, but this is unlikely to apply to furniture pricing. The cheaper, the lower the quality of the materials (discarding the cost of the brand, the price of active advertising, etc.).
You can save money on buying furniture for the living room or hallway, where you don’t spend much time. But as for the bedroom, nursery or kitchen - be careful.

What should you pay attention to when choosing furniture?

Unfortunately, often the qualifications of furniture showroom managers leave much to be desired. They can get confused with terminologies. Therefore, do not hesitate to extract as much information from them as possible. If the consultant finds it difficult to answer some question, ask him to call the technologist (if this is production) or the manager (senior salesperson, manager), ask how long the person has been working in this salon.
And we try to help ourselves.

Particular attention should be paid to the quality of the edges and seams between them and the face (surface of the slab). If the seams are not made well enough, then water will get into them over time (for example, during wet cleaning of premises) and the MDF (like chipboard) will “swell.” At the same time, chipboard is much less moisture resistant.

But MDF reacts more strongly to high temperatures. Furniture made from MDF should not be placed too close to heating devices - it may warp.

But, even if all the furniture elements are made of high quality, we should not forget that MDF and chipboard are mass-produced materials, which to one degree or another (according to various characteristics) are inferior to furniture made from properly dried and treated wood. In other words, even the best furniture made from slab materials usually lasts no more than 10-25 years (depending on the quality of the source materials and careful handling).

Feel free to smell the furniture. Yes, yes, just smell it. Materials produced in violation of the technological process smell. We are not talking about the smell of wood. We are talking about specific odors of impregnations. Moreover, the smell of furniture on display should “dissipate.” If the chemical smell remains, consider whether it’s worth the risk. Ask the salon consultant for a certificate, ask him to show what class of chipboard is indicated.

Click on the picture to open in larger size.

Brief conclusions

• MDF is moisture resistant, but is afraid of high temperatures.
• Laminated chipboard is moisture resistant provided that the surface is intact and the edges are of high quality.
• If you decide to purchase a set with straight fronts, you can buy furniture made of laminated chipboard, which does not bend, and you will save money. And if you like curved and rounded facades, you need MDF.
• Laminated furniture will last less than a laminated board.
• A kitchen countertop with postforming treatment will last longer.
• Veneer will give an ordinary wood panel the noble look of natural wood and will be easier to maintain.

The most important thing is, whatever furniture you choose, take care of it correctly, and it will serve you for a long time!

14.06.16,
Riorda,
Novosibirsk

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Suitable material for furniture is selected based on its functionality and the conditions in which it is used. Despite the conservatism of this market segment, more modern and practical types appear every year. Therefore, craftsmen who make furniture themselves must constantly monitor new trends and the emergence of wear-resistant materials.

Technologies for the production of furniture materials are constantly being improved and developed. More functional new products are appearing on the market. These include MDF boards, waterproof plywood, and composite materials. Let's take a closer look at what materials furniture is made from.

Wood boards

The most popular variety is chipboard, or chipboard. For its manufacture, sawdust and shavings are used, impregnated with formaldehyde resin, which acts as a binder. This is the most practical material for the manufacture of cabinet furniture. Chipboard materials used in the kitchen and bathroom have increased moisture resistance.

With all the advantages, this type of plate has a significant drawback - the presence of harmful formaldehydes. Their secretions, especially in high concentrations, are hazardous to health.

Disadvantages also include its poor moisture resistance. If water gets under the laminated surface layer, the entire slab will swell and crumble. It should be taken into account that even furniture made from natural materials can suffer from conditions of excessive humidity and lose their appearance.

Fiberboard

When making fiberboard, wood fibers are used in production. They are compressed by hot pressing of the mass. In addition to cellulose fibers, the composition includes water and synthetic polymers. Thanks to this technology, one side of the slab has a mesh texture. The other side is the front side, covered with a melamine film, creating a smooth surface. Fiberboards are much thinner than chipboard and more flexible.

Rough fiber board is also used to make furniture. Its difference is in the front side, the surface of which is not covered with a film, but simply polished. The choice of material is influenced by its cost. In this case, money is saved, because this version of the board is cheaper than its laminated counterpart. The thickness of the plate ranges from 3 to 5 mm. Although it is believed that the thicker it is, the better, in this case everything is different. Fiberboard is used to make the base of pull-out cabinets and cabinet walls, for which the ideal thickness is considered to be 3 mm. Therefore, this is the most common thickness of fiberboard.

The reasons why you should choose fiberboard for making furniture are: low price material, good thermal insulation qualities and long service life. Disadvantages include fear of moisture and a narrow scope of application.

MDF

Furniture materials made from MDF are safe and environmentally friendly, since they contain only natural components, such as sawdust. Instead of binder resins, MDF boards contain natural paraffin and lignin. MDF board materials, due to their environmental friendliness, are used in the manufacture of children's and kitchen furniture. That is, they are suitable for use in premises where increased environmental safety requirements are required.

Another advantage of this material is its density and uniformity, which allows it to be used as facing material for furniture. Facades are made from it and decorative finishing for furniture. Significant disadvantage slabs is their weight. They are quite heavy, so solid furniture is not made from MDF. The cost of the material, although lower than natural wood, is slightly higher than chipboard.

Plywood

Plywood is more expensive than chipboard and fiberboard and is inferior to them in the variety of surface textures. For these reasons, the material is rarely used in furniture making.

Features of plywood:

• Sheet thickness from 4 to 21 mm;
• They are made from different types of wood, which at the moment does not really matter. You can equally use birch or pine plywood;
• The material is difficult to process. Plain plywood is cut with a jigsaw, but plastic-coated material requires special equipment.

This material is sensitive to humidity. Therefore, exposed parts of plywood furniture should be additionally processed.

Plastic

Considering that furniture made from natural wood is quite expensive due to the cost of raw materials, artificial types of materials that imitate natural ones are increasingly being used in its production. One of them is furniture plastic. This one is layered decorative material made by pressing several types of special paper.

Furniture finishing materials such as plastic, especially post-formed plastic, are used to create furniture facades, cladding window sills and tabletops. Plastic is excellent for making bathroom furniture where conditions of high humidity and temperature fluctuations exist. A new trend on the market is furniture made from composite material. Its production is based on two elements – polymer and wood.

Glass

Glass can be used to create different types of furniture for different purposes. For example, a table with a glass top will look stylish in any interior.

Thanks to the ability of glass to refract and reflect light, this material is a good decorative element in home design. With the right selection of light, glass furniture facades enliven the room. Finishing materials for furniture such as glass are reliable, practical and look good in the interior of the rooms of the house. Even chairs, stools and armchairs of various fancy shapes are made from glass.

Stone

Materials for making furniture made of stone look quite attractive. The main advantage is its pleasant energy, texture and unique pattern.

Benefits of use:

• Natural colors and textures do not require additional decoration;
• Indisputable environmental safety, because the stone is one hundred percent natural material;
• Doesn't need special care, it’s enough just to wipe off dust regularly;
• Resistant to high humidity and temperature changes.

Used for making kitchen countertops and window sills, as well as garden benches and armchairs. Prominent representatives of this type of material are marble and granite. To make sitting on the stone comfortable, it is equipped with pillows made of soft fabrics such as velor, corduroy, microfur and others.

Natural wood

Thanks to its natural qualities, it best material for furniture production. First of all, it is environmentally friendly and does not emit toxins. Natural wood is a durable material. Products made from it have a long service life. Wood is easy to process and can be used to make furniture of any shape. This property allows you to create original designer headsets. The main tree species used: pine, birch, oak. In addition to these familiar species, rarer ones are also used: sandalwood and mahogany.

Metal

Metal is mainly used for the manufacture of garden furniture sets. Three types of metals are mainly used. These are cast iron, steel and aluminum. Cast iron has a beautiful appearance, is strong and durable. Since it is very heavy, furniture made from it is difficult to move. This metal is subject to corrosion and therefore requires additional treatment with a special coating.

Made from steel garden tables, gazebos and sun loungers. Products can be made in large sizes because they are easy to move. To protect against corrosion, use primer and paint.

Aluminum is a very light material. Therefore it is suitable for making chairs and armchairs. Resistant to corrosion and does not require additional processing.

Decorative coating of wood boards

Decorative coating of wood boards includes veneering, lamination and lamination of chipboards, as well as the production of postforming and softforming facades.

Laminated chipboard is created by covering the surface with a sheet of rolled material using glue. The canvas is rolled with a roller at temperatures from 20 to 150°C and pressure up to 7 MPa.

The advantages of laminated chipboard include its low cost, ease of manufacture, and beautiful appearance. The disadvantages of using this material are its short service life, low wear resistance, and the original appearance is lost after 1-2 years.

Melamine coating

Melamine edge is used for covering furniture. It is made from decorative paper impregnated with resins. Used for finishing the inside of products or internal parts. The material is easy to use. You don't need any special equipment to apply it. The edge thickness is 0.3 mm, and it comes in one or two layers. Reverse side treated with a special adhesive solution.

Laminate

The surface of the laminated chipboard is covered with a special finishing film. It is paper impregnated with resins. It is attached to the surface through a chemical reaction involving resins that are present in the film. There are two types of lamination:

• Cold
• Hot.

The process itself takes place in four stages. Namely:

• Preparing the base;
• Preparation of paper for coating;
• Applying this finishing coating to the slab;
• Forming slabs into pallets.

Postforming

This is the name of a simple chipboard with rounded corners. Used for the manufacture of furniture facades and kitchen countertops. Postforming facades are made without internal milling, which is why they are cheaper than their analogues.

For the manufacture of postforming facades, a standard chipboard sheet 2.44 meters long is used. It is sawn into pieces of various widths. Then, on special equipment - an edge banding machine, the ends of the facade are glued using a plastic edge. The ends can only be covered with melamine edges, but it is less durable and not practical.

On the finished product, the junction of the edge and the canvas should be smooth and free of glue residues. It is better to pack each part separately to avoid scratches and dents.

Softforming

The basis of softforming is chipboard. Its edges are milled and covered with plastic protective film different color. Scope of application: furniture facades. The main difference from postforming is the internal milling of the edges of the blade.

The manufacturing process of softforming facades is no different from the production of postforming facades. Also façade canvas standard sizes sawed into separate products and pasted over the ends of the parts using special equipment. The only difference is that you can additionally make a groove on the inside of the parts for installing glass. Its width is 4 mm.

There is so much furniture on sale now that it’s hard to say right off the bat which one is really good quality, and which one is better not to buy. Classic and English style coexist in stores with furniture in the style of Art Nouveau, Baroque, minimalism, hi-tech, etc. Furniture can be cabinet and upholstered, exclusive and serial; it is produced in the form of standard sets (sets) and modules or sections (ready-made elements that allow you to create non-standard designs ). And finally, you can simply buy furniture, or you can order it, not only from samples and catalogs, but also from your own design. But in the end, this is not the main thing. The main thing is that the furniture is of high quality. What does this mean from a consumer point of view? First of all, it is beautiful, comfortable, durable (reliable and durable) and environmentally friendly. What does it take for a product to have all these features? Artistic taste and professionalism of the developers? Certainly. The art of masters and perfect technology? Undoubtedly. But even if all these conditions are met, nothing worthwhile will come of it without good materials.

What do we know about them? Almost nothing. Meanwhile, in order to correctly assess the quality of furniture, you just need to know what it is made of. We decided to turn to production workers for help. But, looking ahead, we note that there is so much information that you can’t get by with just one article. Therefore, first let's talk about materials for cabinet furniture.

Tree

In the furniture industry, wood is used for the manufacture of frames and facades of cabinet furniture, as well as for their finishing.

Solid natural wood does not need any special recommendations. True, an impartial approach unexpectedly reveals more disadvantages than advantages. Wood is afraid of water and fire, it is easily damaged mechanically, it needs constant care. On the other hand, wood has incomparable beauty, literally radiates heat, does not threaten health, and, finally, this material can be “reanimated” many times. But all this, of course, only if the wood from which the furniture is made is of high quality - well dried, without knots, cracks, etc.

Unfortunately, when buying furniture, we are not able to assess whether the wood has gone through all the necessary preparatory stages. So whether you like it or not, you have to rely on the integrity of the manufacturer. But the type of wood, on which the reliability and durability of the furniture also largely depends, is chosen by the buyer. Therefore, I think it would be useful to learn something about the properties of wood.
In furniture production, valuable types of wood have long been used - oak, walnut, birch, beech, maple, ash, cherry, mahogany. Their “value” lies primarily in strength. But if you want to buy furniture, for example, made of walnut or cherry, you will see only imported products in stores. Domestic furniture makers offer mainly oak, less often - beech and very rarely - birch. The lion's share Russian furniture today they are made from pine.

Our advice: when buying pine products, remember that they require careful handling. Pine is not a valuable species, and products made from it are “soft”. The most appropriate place for pine furniture - bedroom: cute and healthy. But for a nursery, hallway or dining room it is better to choose something “stronger”.

Modern furniture is the most unexpected combinations of wood, metal, glass and plastic

Wood board is another material consisting entirely of natural wood. The structure resembles a “sandwich”, in which a pine core is sandwiched between two layers of plywood. Wood board is used for the manufacture of furniture facades and frames, “decorating” and protecting the outside with finishing material. As experts said, this “sandwich” is still little known in our country, but it seems to have good prospects. For example, I was introduced to this material at the company Lumi, which has been manufacturing modular sectional furniture based on individual projects for five years. Almost all the materials the company uses are imported. One of the few exceptions is the blockboard produced by the Russian company Alan-89. By the way, Lumi also uses another interesting and still rarely found natural material in the furniture business, which looks like blinds.

“Wooden blinds” are a canvas made of multi-layer wooden plates glued to a soft base. The thing itself is not new, but the rich possibilities of its application in furniture production surprised me. It turns out that wooden blinds can equally well serve as a cabinet door and a movable lid of a cabinet or drawer. We remembered this material very opportunely, since now “furniture fashion” gives preference to curved shapes, and wooden blinds here are just a godsend. I think that over time they will take their rightful place among finishing materials made from natural wood, but for now veneer dominates in this “kingdom”.

Wooden blinds can equally well serve as a cabinet door or a movable lid for a cabinet or drawer.

Veneer is a thin section of wood that is glued to a base (for example, a chipboard) and coated with several layers of furniture varnish. It seems that the furniture is made entirely of solid wood, but at the same time it costs much less. True, to achieve this effect, the veneer must be carefully selected in color and texture. Perhaps this is the main requirement for him.
As for varnishes, today furniture makers give preference to Swedish and German heat-resistant varnishes. Although, along with this, natural materials are increasingly being used, for example, varnishes based on beeswax.

Conclusion:

When purchasing solid wood furniture, remember the “character” of the wood from which it is made. Pine is a soft tree, but oak, walnut, beech, cherry, etc. are harder species. Therefore, pine furniture is quite suitable for a quiet bedroom, but for the kitchen, dining room or children's room you will have to choose something stronger. Keep in mind: natural wood products require careful care, so be patient and have care products. Find out where you can restore “natural” furniture if necessary.

Wood boards

Here the undisputed leader is chipboard (chipboard). However, recently it has been “caught up” by MDF (Middle Density Fiberboard, which translated from English means “medium-density fiber coating”). Chipboard and MDF are made using approximately the same technology, but chipboard is made from shavings and small chips, and MDF is made from sawdust, crushed to a powdery state.

Both types of wood panels are used for the manufacture of facades and furniture frames. Moreover, MDF turned out to be excellent material for parts with curved surfaces. An MDF sheet with deep parallel grooves becomes flexible. But if you bend it and, aligning the grooves, glue it with another similar sheet, the structure will lose its elasticity and retain the desired shape. So, for example, the new material Topan, which is produced by the German company Glutz and which is used in Lumi, “works”, creating original samples of modular sectional furniture.
For furniture chipboard production and MDF usually arrive already covered with laminate or veneer. Laminate is a protective and decorative coating, which is a layer of special paper with a pattern, impregnated with synthetic resin (most often melamine). The laminated board is not afraid of friction, scratches, stains, water, heat, ultraviolet, household chemicals. The decorative layer successfully imitates the color and texture of various types of wood, so products made from laminated chipboard or MDF look quite “natural”. But still, they still “fall short” of furniture veneered with natural veneer, which can often be distinguished from solid wood products only by professionals. But in terms of protection from mechanical and other external influences, “veneered” chipboard and MDF are inferior to laminate.

Furniture from Italian factories made from chipboard, finished with veneer, is in no way inferior to “natural”

Knowing that phenol-formaldehyde resins are used in the production of wood-based panels, which decompose over time and emit formaldehyde, which is harmful to humans, I eagerly asked experts about the environmental performance of chipboard and MDF. It turned out that this factor is really very important and must be taken into account in the production of furniture. Fortunately, most furniture manufacturers try to use only chipboard and MDF with a minimum formaldehyde emission indicator - E1. The fact is that using materials with worse indicators is “more expensive”: problems may arise with obtaining certificates for finished products. And without them, not a single finished furniture product can be sold. This leads to a very important conclusion: if the furniture has a European quality certificate and (or) a Russian certificate of conformity, it will not harm our health.

A rich range of colors of laminated chipboard will satisfy the most demanding tastes

That is why, according to experts, there is no reason to treat furniture made from MDF or chipboard as a low-grade product. By the way, most famous Italian factories make expensive high class furniture from these materials. For example, the collections of modular sectional furniture and bedrooms from the famous MAR factory (they are presented in the Dom MAR brand store) give the impression of absolutely “natural” furniture. And in the prestigious Moscow salon “Ruslan-Furniture” (only high-quality exclusive furniture is sold here) they said that today manufacturers of this “piece” furniture use chipboard veneered for the manufacture of some parts. For example, the doors of handmade wooden cabinets are made from this material in order to “lighten” them and protect them from deformation. So it turns out that with proper use, chipboard and MDF can even improve the quality of wooden furniture.

Conclusion:

You should not treat furniture made from chipboard or MDF as “second-class” products. If the furniture has a certificate of quality (conformity), it is safe for health. When purchasing such furniture, ask what the covering is made of. If it is a laminate, then the products are reliably protected from mechanical and other damage. If the furniture is made of chipboard veneered, pay attention to whether the individual veneer plates are well matched in color and texture.

Metal

According to some experts, metal will be the main furniture material of the 21st century. Some “metalization” of furniture can already be noticed today, although for now it is more exclusive than mass production. Therefore, we will talk about ordinary furniture, which can be ordered or bought in any furniture showroom. It, of course, has metal parts: folding mechanisms, moving elements (tracks and suspensions for sliding doors, wheels, rotary mechanisms chairs and armchairs, etc.), some of the fittings (hinges, locks, handles) and some decorative details.

The main enemy of many metals is rust, and therefore the main requirement for metal elements furniture – protection from corrosion. For reasons of economy, they are most often made of steel - a durable and cheap metal, but, alas, not very resistant to rust. Therefore, steel furniture parts are either subjected to anti-corrosion treatment or chrome plated. But the most reliable way in the fight against metal corrosion - replacing steel with titanium or aluminum. True, titanium alloys are quite expensive; they are used only in the manufacture of exclusive furniture. But furniture makers are resorting to aluminum “services” more and more often.
Six years ago, the Komandor company began advertising sliding doors in an aluminum profile, although there were also ordinary ones in its arsenal steel structures. “Commander” still uses both metals today, giving the buyer the right to choose. And Lumi specialists, for example, decided in their new program to completely abandon steel elements, replacing them with parts made of extruded aluminum. In addition, they successfully use aluminum as a decorative material.

Conclusion:

If the furniture you are planning to purchase has metal parts, you need to find out what they are made of. If it’s made of aluminum, it’s good, if it’s made of chrome steel, it’s also not bad, and if it’s made of titanium alloy, it’s even better (though more expensive). In other cases, you should ask the seller (manufacturer) how metal parts are protected from corrosion.

Glass and mirror

In production modern furniture They use two types of glass and mirrors: regular and safety. The simplest option safety glass (mirror) - “sheet” material glued to a synthetic film. Like any glass, it breaks (though this requires more effort than usual), but even when broken, it does not shatter into small fragments. An even more reliable option is triplex (laminated glass in which a special film is located between the layers of material). Furniture makers began to use the safety of mirrors and glass relatively recently. If you do not take into account the “exotic” type of glass chair, then we can say with confidence that their main area of ​​application is modular sectional furniture. Let's say the same wardrobes. In them, unlike traditional furniture, large glass and mirror surfaces are often found.

Large glass and mirror surfaces are often found in modular sectional furniture. Therefore, glass and mirrors must be safe

Safety glass for furniture production can be transparent, tinted, colored or frosted. As for mirrors, in addition to silver, there are also bronze, gold, graphite and even blue and green. Additional decorations for such glass or mirrors can be “linings” made of metal or wood. As for traditional types of furniture, manufacturers continue to use ordinary glass and, as I understand it, they are not going to replace it with safe glass.

Conclusion:

If your choice falls on furniture designs with large glass or mirror surfaces, be sure to check with the sellers what type of glass (mirror) is used. It's better if it's safe.

Synthetic materials

To tell in one article about all the synthetic materials necessary for modern furniture production is an impossible task. Finishing plastics, furniture films, edges, profiles, varnishes, paints, adhesives, impregnations - these are far from full list products containing synthetic components. Therefore, this time we will only talk about finishing plastics and edge materials.

Finishing plastic is a sheet or roll material, which is used mainly to “dress” countertops and furniture facades. Of course, even a straight surface can be carefully “wrapped” only with plastic that can “soften” and take the desired shape, and then harden and retain it. So-called post-forming (post-forming) plastics have this property. They are produced by pressing several layers of synthetic resin and a decorative paper layer. Recently, clear preference has been given to materials based on acrylic resins. And this is good news, since this material is absolutely harmless to health. It’s not for nothing that acrylic resin is used in dentistry to make fillings!

Chipboard, “clad” with post-formed plastic

So from an environmental point of view everything is fine here. Surfaces covered with finishing plastic do not crack, they are difficult to scratch, plastics are not afraid of water and household chemicals. Caring for such furniture is extremely simple: just wipe with a damp cloth and regular detergent. And the variety of colors and patterns makes it possible to find interesting design solutions.

Artificial stone is a composite consisting of a fire-resistant mineral filler, pigments and the same acrylic resin. In appearance, artificial stone is in no way inferior to natural stone; moreover, this material has no disadvantages natural material. It is much lighter than natural stone, it is difficult to scratch or break, it is easy to process, hygienic, and can be easily restored using special glue; scratches can be removed with regular sandpaper. As for “environmental friendliness”, everything is in order here too: acrylic resin and natural minerals are absolutely harmless.

Artificial stone is suitable not only for the office, kitchen or bathroom. They can be used to decorate furniture in a living room or office.

The first sign was Corian (the brainchild of DuPont), a little later Gibraltar and SSV (Wilsonart) appeared. I have never been able to understand the difference in their chemical composition, since this is the companies' patented know-how. But even professionals have difficulty distinguishing them by appearance and properties. Latest news in this area there is a “sprayed” stone. It is remarkable in that, unlike its “sheet” predecessors, it makes it possible to finish “under a natural stone» surfaces of any shape with minimal material consumption. The material is transported in tanks and applied to the finished product by spray. “Sprayed” stone feels great even on metal and glass, not to mention plaster, chipboard and MDF.
But employees of the Komandor company, the exclusive distributor of the American company SAFAS, which produces these products, emphasized that it should not be confused with “liquid” stone, from which products are obtained by molding.

Edge materials. After “cutting” the base material on the part, the problem of sealing the ends arises. The operation is very important and responsible. Any professional knows that the “cleanliness” of the edge is one of the main signs of a quality product. It turns out that such a seemingly trifle as furniture edge, is actually a significant “figure” in the furniture industry.

The easiest way to seal the end is to process it with melamine edge. The part, the edges of which are “sealed” with melamine using special equipment, looks great. From the consumer's point of view, melamine edging has undoubted advantages: a rich range of colors, the shades of which perfectly match the color of the main coating, and a low price. The manufacturer is more likely to point out its drawback: being very thin and plastic, it perfectly follows the surface configuration, which means it reproduces the smallest defects.

Therefore, if there are even small chips at the cut site, an experienced furniture maker will use other, less “capricious” edge materials. For example, PVC or ABS edges (edgings). They are thicker (2 - 3 mm) and, therefore, less sensitive to flaws in the end surface. And one more plus: the edge will not peel off or wrinkle, because during processing it forms a monolith with the chipboard. PVC and ABS edgings come in various colors, including imitation wood, metallized and even fluorescent. As for the difference between PVC and ABS edges, experts consider the latter to be more environmentally friendly and resistant to mechanical stress.

Another common edging material is PVC profiles. To put them into action, you do not need any special equipment. They are quite rigid, such a profile can simply be “clicked” onto the end (“P”-shape) or fixed in the grooves of the workpiece (“T”-shape). But on the other hand, PVC profiles still bend, so they are widely used for finishing rounded corners. The PVC profile gives finished furniture a finished look.

PVC profile is a fairly common edging material.

Conclusion:

Furniture finished with plastic or artificial stone, has excellent performance characteristics.
When dealing with laminated furniture wood board, pay special attention to the edge material. The “cleanliness” of the edge is one of the main indicators of quality. The ends finished with a thin melamine edge need to be checked “by sight” and “by touch” to see if surface defects have appeared. The PVC profile is also worth checking for strength - whether it is securely fixed.
So we got acquainted with the main materials that are used in the production of cabinet furniture. Now you know what you need to know when choosing furniture. Pay attention not only to how it looks, but also what it is made of. Don't forget to ask the seller for a certificate of quality (conformity). If it is available, it means the furniture is safe from an environmental point of view. In the following publications we will continue this topic and talk about materials for upholstered furniture.

Greetings! The next step after this will be to compile a list of materials that will be required to assemble the furniture. So, we will need:

• laminated chipboard;
• Fiberboard;
• edge;
• overhead loops;
• pens;
• confirmations;
• self-tapping screw 3*16 and 3*30;
• nails 2 - 3.0

laminated chipboard- this is the main material from which we will make furniture. If you decipher it - laminated chipboard. As I said earlier it is released by different manufacturers, the main ones are Swisspan (Ukraine) and Egger (Austria). Both have a very large assortment color shades. And also thickness.

If we consider the quality, then basically Egger is better (more impact-resistant, more pleasant to the touch, etc.). Although Swispan doesn’t really lag behind its competitor. If someone wants to delve into all the intricacies of quality, then you can compare their characteristics and choose. I’ll say right away that Egger is more expensive.

Let me remind you that in the detailing we took into account the thickness of the chipboard at 16 mm.

Fiberboard- fibreboard. It is necessary to cover the back of the product. It is produced like chipboard in a wide range of color shades. But the most popular White color. So to speak, universal, suitable for any chipboard.

Edge- material for gluing the ends of chipboard. It comes in melamine (paper) and PVC (polyvinyl chloride). You can do it at home using a regular iron. But you need to glue the PVC on an edging machine.

An organization that cuts chipboard can help you glue the PVC edge. They usually have it there.

Certainly, PVC edge much better compared to melamine. It will last longer and is simply of better quality.

Confirmations- fittings for fastening chipboard parts together. In stores you can also find such a name as Euroscrew. In order to tighten or unscrew it, you will need a hexagon, and for a screwdriver, a hex bit.

Screws and nails- I hope everything is clear here too. We will use 3.0 self-tapping screws to attach the bedside table lid to the slats, and 1.6 to attach the hinges to the sides. We use nails to hammer the back wall to the body. If there are no nails, you can replace them with a furniture stapler as an alternative. Or immediately arm yourself with it.

Where can I buy all this?

You can purchase this material in specialized stores that sell it. It is best to find a wholesale base where you can purchase both chipboard and fittings. Since the prices will be lower and you can still save your budget.

Also in these organizations there is the possibility of cutting material. As they say, everything is in one place. And from a cost point of view, it’s more profitable to buy everything right away and send it for sawing than to look for sawing yourself and additionally pay for two-way delivery. Of course, if you have your own truck, you can do it yourself, but again - gas costs.

Therefore, before purchasing chipboard, check the cutting options in order to plan everything correctly. The main factor in sawing is quality. Therefore, choose the organization where these services are provided top level. By quality, I consider the minimum number of chips that may occur, which in turn will be reflected in the tool for assembling furniture - now is the time to do this.