It is important that it works for the function designed. A name is just a name. Plywood is not automatically better. Just look at the complete garbage that Lowes, Home Depot, etc. call plywood. It is getting harder and harder to find good materials because people just want to think everything is simple and they can figure out what something is by the name or brand or whatever.

If you think you can determine if something is good or not by information that you collect on the internet, think again.

True.

True, but european or not, plywood or particle board, you need to look to see if the cabinets you are interested in are good quality. There used to be a euro cabinet place by me, the stuff was particle board and looked great but the veneers fell off at the first sign of water (which is why they are no longer in business).

My cabinets are from Candlelight Cabinetry, and the boxes & shelves are particleboard. My builder told me that he had a client whose second floor bathroom sprung a leak while they were on vacation and leaked into the kitchen below. He said the wood portion of the cabinets was destroyed, but the particleboard boxes held up fine.

My question would be what type of finish is being put over the particleboard. My cabinets have a beautiful front and drawers, but the interior of the bottom area is a "wood look" vinyl over particleboard. To my eye, it cheapens the look of otherwise beautiful & very expensive cabinets. I would have been much happier if they had covered it with a veneer.

I have no problem with particleboard construction, I just don't want to see it.

I believe this has been discussed before and the KD pros (Sophie above, LWO, etc) all pick particle board.

If the pros are picking it, we should listen.

Plywood is an upcharge for an inferior product. I almost made the same mistake myself. I'm glad I didn't waste money.

Thank you @Texas_Gem. I searched quite a bit before starting the thread and couldn't find any good solid info. If you can find a link to a related thread I'd love to read it. Most of the responses here are a little light on substance.

Here is an older thread, before the merger so Pros aren't designated but if you were on the boards then, you might recognize them.

jakuvall, live_wire_oak and kompy are all KD pros.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

That is a great thread and very informative. Exactly the information I needed.

Which Italian Manuf. are you considering?

Boffi, Varenna / Poliform, Snaidero, Valcucine and DADA are all top notch.

The manufacturer is Astra.

Not to be confused with Aster which my designer tells me often happens, Aster is a lower end entry level manufacturer.

Would you mind sharing the price point for Astra? If I remember correctly, they a low to mid tier manufacturer in Italy. The brands listed by Xedos are more in the mid to high end. My personal favorite is Valcucine!!! Just a small lottery winning separates me from them:-)

There are some great options on the german side too: Eggersman, Bulthaup, etc.

I'm not sure how to answer the question about price point. Isn't every kitchen different? They are definitely not the most expensive. The price is more in the lower to mid point but the quality is better so the value is high.

This of course is largely based on the information provided by the dealer. It is very hard to compare one Euro brand to another. There are so many manufacturers but most people are only familiar with the handful of super high end brands. To be honest, it is very frustrating, if you search online for info about Astra you won't find much.

At the end of the day it was a judgment call because I liked and trusted the people. I took my interior designer to meet with several kitchen designers and of all the ones she met she thought Astra was head and shoulders above everyone else.

If anyone has additional information about Astra please share.

Did you end up going with Astra?

True! And some are much better brands than others too.

So what did you end up ordering ?

As things stand I am planning to use a local builder.

Plywood is a terrible material to make kitchens out of - it bends and warps - which is what you don't want in a humid kitchen environment with big temperature swings. What is it with America and the love of plywood? We've moved on from Plywood a long time ago....

All ikea kitchens (with their 25 year guarantees) construct from particle board.

I wonder how many Plywood kitchen cabinet shops will happily hand out 25 year warranties.

Think of it another way - Ikea is high volume and high volume has to drive high quality - you have to test everything to destruction - because if you don't you'll be facing a litany of returns and complaints that you just won't be able to deal with.... This why your average Toyota corolla spends less time in the shop than your average Maserati

PLYWOOD

- Thin layers of wood veneer glued together alternating the grain of the wood for strength.

- Plywood possesses a cross-grain pattern and much stronger and more durable than particleboard.

- Plywood is more water resistant than particle board.

- Holds nails and screws well.

- Physically lighter than particle board.

- More expensive than particle board.

- Environmentally friendly.

PARTICLE BOARD & MDF

(MDF - Medium Density Fibreboard is made from smaller particles and particle board larger.)

- Wood fibers glued and pressed together.

- Gives a smoother surface allowing laminates to be added easily and giving a better finish.

- Can swell when exposed to moisture.

- Brittle and may not hold nails and screws well.

- Physically heavier than plywood.

- Cheaper than plywood.

- Even more environmentally friendly than plywood.

I've found plywood to be less stable than particle board - if you prop some 8x4 sheets up in a garage at an angle for a couple of weeks i think you'll find that the plywood is more likely to cup then the particle board is. MDF - very stable and paints beautifully (and yes, you can prep the edge for paint so that it looks consistent with the face) but, as you say it is heavy and the dust from machining requires that you have decent dust control system.

i'd also add that provided you use the right type of screws (eg. Confirmat) or knockdown fittings then you can make very sturdy cabinets - but these fixings require more work than ply wood where you can glue and nail/screw. Bottom line - Pretty much all European Kitchen cabinets are constructed of man-made boards (MDF or Particle Board) and they hold up just fine.

I believe this discussion is about the boxes for kitchen cabinetry. How about doors that are laminated or coated particleboard or thermofoil particleboard. How do they stand up compared to wood doors and drawer fronts?

I am on my third ikea kitchen - (because i have moved countries several times) - They are guaranteed for 25 years - They are very stable, do not warp. The really good coatings are Laminate or Melamine - try to keep clear of thermofoil - it's the cheap alternative. OK for low traffic areas but i would rather not use it on a kitchen which takes a lot of abuse.

MDF as a base material for doors has been used in furniture for over 70 years. New methods and materials are even better. Nothing stands up to abuse. People who are super hard on things need to take that into account when choosing surfaces.

Honestly solid wood is always better. My 100 year old kitchen has only needed refinishing & stain just like hardwood floors.

If your planning to be there 20yrs or don't care of cost do the cheapest for regular replacement.