The arrangement of their home begins in different ways for everyone. We skip the early stages of finishing work and imagine the kitchen of an apartment or house unfurnished. Many have faced this stage in their lives. At this time, any information on the arrangement is very well absorbed. Of the two options - “buy” or “do it yourself” - we decisively choose the latter. What should be done immediately, and then what, and what materials and tools will become assistants? The answers to these and other similar questions will be given by this article.
The advantages of hand-made furniture
In order to make furniture yourself, it is not necessary to be an experienced carpenter or carpenter. It is enough to have a good desire, time and, of course, tools. When you make kitchen furniture with your own hands:
- you receive individual products of exclusive quality;
- save money;
- you earn invaluable experience;
- you get incomparable pleasure from manual production.
The kitchen, created by specific standards, fits perfectly into individual sizes and complex bends, which in any other case can not be avoided.
As for the time spent, you should not regret it. All efforts will subsequently pay off. It is like a long-term contribution to your future.
First steps
In order to start any business, you need to prepare. The more important the process, the more thorough the preparation should be. In our case, the following should be done:
- determine the type and composition of furniture for the kitchen;
- choose the material and accessories according to the plan;
- prepare the necessary tools, buy the missing ones, if necessary.
In principle, the implementation of these points will lead to a complete readiness for a start. It’s worth approaching the process, having well thought out everything. Some little things left without attention can subsequently take a lot of time.
DIY kitchen furniture panel: design
The first thing that is necessary in any business is a plan or project. Kitchen furniture is no exception. At this stage, they are determined with the number of tables, cabinets, bedside tables, wall corners and shelves. Each element of the kitchen interior is detailed. It is necessary to present the geometric dimensions in the diagrams along the length, height and depth. You should also calculate the number of shelves and various accessories. These are all kinds of handles, hinges, fasteners for drawers, magnetic fasteners if necessary.
It is worth considering whether a sink, stove or hob, oven or even a washing machine will be built in your kitchen. Here, a decision is made about the facades, which are quite difficult to make from the first time, qualitatively and beautifully. In many cases, they are easier to buy. You should also think about glass doors and shelves. If the plan requires it, they need to be purchased.
Based on the design results, materials are purchased and furniture panels are cut. In the case of competent preparation, it remains only to collect everything cooked and purchased.
Furniture panel, materials
As the main material, we dwell on a tree. Today, the best wood samples are supplied as furniture panels. What it is? From the name you can guess that we are talking about a wooden product in the form of a shield. This is the shield, most often glued from several parts to certain typical sizes.
As the material can be used:
- oak;
- Birch;
- Pine;
- larch;
- aspen;
- beech;
- spruce;
- cedar.
A kitchen made of a furniture panel, made with your own hands, is all the more convenient because there are a large number of sizes. The width of the shield ranges from 200 mm to 600 mm in increments of 100 mm. Occasionally there are 250 mm options. The length is selected from a number: 600, 800, 1000, 1200, 2000, 2400 and 2700 mm. Therefore, the furniture panel sizes are from 200x600 mm to 600x2700 mm. It can be made independently.
DIY furniture panel
An array of shields can be made with your own hands. Since basically there are only two options: glued and assembled, it is necessary to have either certain tools or high-quality glue, or better, both. In any case, it is important to pay special attention to the choice of material. First of all, it should be uniform in composition, with a minimum of knots, well-dried and without deformation. Ideally, this material can be obtained from dried logs by sawing at an angle of 45 degrees.
Of the tools required:
- plane;
- saw, and ideally a planer;
- sanding machine with sandpaper of different grain sizes;
- level;
- device for gluing.
Furniture panel, the dimensions of which are small, at home will turn out better. First, bars of the same size are cut on the machine. Then, on a flat surface, the bars are laid out so that a beautiful pattern is obtained. After this, glue on the wood (PVA) glue the ends of the bars gently. The whole structure for gluing with wedges is clamped. It is important that the bars on top also pressed, at least transverse bars. This is necessary to prevent deformation at the time of drying.
Gluing the furniture board is the most crucial stage. After it, it remains only to polish the resulting version, first with coarse-grained sandpaper, and then fine. That's the whole technology. The furniture panel is ready for use for its intended purpose.
Features of the kitchen made of furniture panels
A self-made kitchen from a furniture panel will provide not only material savings and improvement of manual production skills. In addition, there are a number of reasons to use just such material:
1. Aesthetic look. Products look almost the same as from a solid wood. Moreover, they have a more attractive cost. For example, the most expensive grade of pine furniture panel A-A class can be purchased for 1200 p., And class A-B - for only 750 p. per square meter.
2. Practicality and durability. Products from furniture panels have a long service life. At the same time, there are practically no defects such as warping, deformation and cracks.
3. High environmental friendliness. Only simple PVA glue is used to make material from non-natural components. It is not released into the environment and does not cause harm. And since the basis of the furniture board is pure wood, objects from it also regulate the humidity in the room where they are installed.
4. Large range of size range. This makes it easy to design and produce furniture of any size and shape.
Essential Tools
So, there is a plan and the right material is selected. It remains to prepare the tools. Most often, they are already at hand. This of course:
- hacksaw for wood, jigsaw;
- a planer;
- grinding machine (grinder);
- electric drill;
- a chisel;
- screwdriver or screwdriver;
- furniture stapler.
There are various variations, but this is the easiest and most convenient list to start with. Everyone can optionally remove or add something, depending on the planned kitchen. It is imperative to use the tool, and especially the electric one, taking into account safety regulations.
Kitchen Furniture Instructions
Having figured out the selection of materials and tools, you can proceed to the specific manufacture of furniture. Each set you like usually consists of such simple elements as:
- cupboard;
- table;
- cabinet;
- a chair or stool;
- shelves.
In this case, the cabinet from the furniture panel can be either wall or floor. For the first option, it is very often combined with a cutting table, which, in turn, harmoniously fits into the overall composition. The simplest item from the list is shelves. They are rarely used separately in modern kitchens. Usually, if there are wall cabinets, there is no need for a simple shelf. In this case, there are uncomfortable niches or small corners where the shelf looks with a bang.
You can start a set with products such as kitchen stools. They will help reveal the talents of the joiner and furniture collector. After your hands get used to the instrument, you should go to the dining table. Consider the sequence of actions in detail.
Kitchen table
A table from a furniture board is a very practical product for the kitchen. A simple rectangular version is easy to make from a one-piece shield. For the maximum typical size, this is 2700 by 600 mm. In the case of a smaller countertop, simply cut off the extra millimeters with the help of a milling cutter from the furniture board.
If you want to make a round table, you should take two shields according to the size of the radius of the planned product. Half is cut from each. Then, using the transverse bars, the halves are fixed in one piece. The joint is best glued with PVA, dried, and then polished the front surface with a grinder. If you want, you can perform the option of spreading the halves and lengthening the countertops due to the rectangular insert. Its length is determined by the diameter of the circle of the table, and the width is such as it is necessary to extend the product.
The rectangular version of the countertops can also be done with rounded corners for beauty and convenience. Then reinforce the bottom with stiffeners in the form of bars.
When the countertop takes on a finished look, the legs fastening elements are screwed to it with the help of a screwdriver. If necessary, holes are drilled in advance for them. And then the legs themselves complete the look of the kitchen table. At the end, the product is finally ground and coated with several layers of varnish. After drying, the furniture can be admired and used.
Kitchen cabinet
A cabinet, like other furniture that you create with your own hands, at first may seem like a complicated product, but each time it turns out easier and faster. The drawing of any cabinet is a box. The frontal plane is a facade and is often simply bought because of the difficulty in making decorative elements at home. The rear plane to facilitate the design is made of fiberboard. 4 remaining planes, perpendicular to the front and back, are made of furniture board.
Total for the assembly of the cabinet will need:
- furniture board;
- fiberboard;
- material for shelves (wood, plywood, glass);
- handles, hinges, Euroscrews, self-tapping screws and shelf mounts;
- varnish.
A self-made kitchen cabinet in the sequence of actions will look like this:
- the dimensions of the selected shield are cut out the side, upper and lower walls, as well as shelves, if they are in plan of the same material;
- using clamps (for convenience), the individual parts are rigidly joined, and then fixing holes for Euroscrews are drilled into them;
- the cabinet walls are tightened with screws, and the back of the fiberboard or plywood is fastened with brackets or nailed with small cloves;
- with the help of hinges, the facade is attached to the cabinet, and then handles are attached to it;
- shelves are being installed;
- the product is varnished, and this can be done both on the assembled cabinet, and on individual parts (depending on convenience).
Kitchen attachments
A kitchen set may have a different number of attachments. This is determined by ease of use and competent filling of the living space. For example, a corner wall cabinet will simultaneously ergonomically close a corner and perform the main function of storing numerous kitchen utensils.
The main difference between the mounted elements in their mounting on the walls. At the same time, the weight of cabinets or shelves should be correctly calculated along with the contents and fasteners. Most often, the hinge is made for special loops that are mounted in the upper corners of the rear walls of the cabinets.
It should be noted that while for the floor cabinets the lower part of the lower shelf was not visible, for the hinged, on the contrary, it is in the most visible place. This should be considered when finishing.
Corners and furniture in the kitchen
Corner kitchen furniture is often just as necessary as a table and a wall cabinet. It can be a corner sofa, a cupboard or a simple hinged shelf. The main difference between corner objects is the ability to smooth out the irregularities of the walls. a kitchen corner with shelves can be without a back wall, and the facade will have an angle with a side wall that is different from a straight one.
All this affects the appearance and labor costs. Visually tidy corner objects require increased care in assembly and design.
Instead of a conclusion
As practice shows, a kitchen made of a furniture panel, created with your own hands, is a materially profitable business and brings both pleasant moments and practical skills in working with tools. The products have a heightened personality and exclusive design suitable for a particular kitchen.
As for the tips and instructions for assembling furniture, in most cases a sketchy drawing with dimensions is enough. Further, having ascertained the principles of fastening and assembling the component parts, everything is assembled without any special difficulties. Having designed and assembled the stool, it is clear how the table is assembled. And after you assemble the simplest cabinet, you can take on the design of any cabinets. Accuracy and attentiveness are the key to successful assembly work.
Sometimes, instead of separate cabinets, it’s easier to assemble an integral structure along one of the walls of the kitchen. It can accommodate an oven, a sink, and even a washing machine. There really are no boundaries for creativity. It is enough just to want and start doing. Everything else will follow.