Lightweight, Non-Toxic, Good Looking and Relatively Inexpensive Panels?

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Chotu

I do enjoy IKEA actually. It’s a good thing. I agree with you. I just need extra extra light weight cabinetry that is built into the curvature of the hull. Square things don’t actually work at all. I have to use a tick stick and cut to the hull curvature and install fixed to the hulls

That wouldn’t be a problem, you just assemble the carcass of the cabinet and scribe the hull curvature onto it, then cut.

I am guessing this is mainly about galley cabinets. I recommend you look at the kits I bought for these at RTA cabinets and specifically Euro style and I believe you said glossy: https://www.thertastore.com/kitchen-...oss-white.html

This is very good quality, but too heavy so you have to make it lighter. You can do that by cutting away pieces of the carcass so that a skeleton is left. Where visible, you can add a skin to that.
Or you can replace panels with custom foam core panels, but I don’t think you will get the required strength that way. The doors and drawer fronts are the big deal and I would keep them as they come.
RTA stands for Ready To Assemble.

[Chotu]

OK, I just did some research. I’m sharing it

ikea makes just fronts:

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/cat/nicke...fronts-700372/

The back part, a carcass with some shelves, it’s not very difficult.

however I just did the weights to see which is better.

Ikea fronts: 2.4lbs sqft

Formica/Foam/Formica: 1.14lbs sqft

Stick frame with 5mm ply and 5 (qty) 8ft long 1x2s used for framing per sheet: .61lbs sqft

Putting some formica on the face of the stick frame to make it look extra nice in some areas: 1.11lbs sqft

Making hollow faces out of 2 Sheets of 5mm bonded to a frame of 1x2 (or smaller): .63 lbs sqft

Putting a sheet of formica on the hollow self constructed faces: 1.13lbs sqft

it looks like we might have a winner here. I think it is stick framing with occasional formica facing.

*lightest (every pound counts on my boat)
*absolutely non toxic
*easy to work with wood
*inexpensive

Could also vinyl wrap faces to save weight over formica putting faces at around .65 lbs sqft

[Kd9truck]

I like those ikea fronts, the RTA looks nice also.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Kd9truck

I like those ikea fronts, the RTA looks nice also.

I think for around 1/3 the weight I could make something that is identical to the IKEA fronts. Using a rectangular frame of 1x2, a 5mm recess/rabbet good n front and back faces of the frame to accept plywood on both sides of the frame and using vinyl wrap so the face and edges come out perfect and liquid wet glossy looking.

this is what I love about these threads. they always seem to arrive at the best solution. I don’t care how many people say it’s not a good idea to listen to people on the forum and brainstorm and come up with ideas about boat construction. It’s a fantastic idea. Every time better ideas are found. There is no replacement for the resonances of an idea throughout a group.

now the only big problem is my damn tablesaw. I used it as a base to temporarily attach all of my diesel heaters for the winter to while I don’t have outdoor cabinets yet to put them in. Lol. So it’s not currently usable. ha ha ha

[s/v Jedi]

I recommend you go to an Ikea and look at those fronts in person. It was why I diverted to RTA cabinets.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

I recommend you go to an Ikea and look at those fronts in person. It was why I diverted to RTA cabinets.

i’m not getting them. They are too heavy.

however they can be a model for what to create, aesthetically.

I think I have a very good plan for making the front myself at 1/4 the weight of IKEA

I was wrong in the above post when I said 1/3 the weight. it’s 1/4 the weight.

It will be also nice to make them myself because I can choose different shapes and sizes. I’m not confined to just what they make.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Chotu

i’m not getting them. They are too heavy.

however they can be a model for what to create, aesthetically.

I think I have a very good plan for making the front myself at 1/3 the weight of IKEA

So how will you attach the handles to a hollow construction?

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

So how will you attach the handles to a hollow construction?

Hinges at the 1x2 frames.

There are no handles on euro (Nordic/Scandanavian) fronts. If any, they are a tiny piece of metal on the edge. but none is better.

With my boat it’s better to have none of as many things as you can. it’s why it’s a performance boat

[rslifkin]

Here's an example of some of my cabinets (above the fridge). It's all plywood paneling and shelves, plus pieces of wood in the corner for it to all be screwed together. Exterior finish is glued and staples on vinyl to hide the screws, seams, etc. The doors are lightweight sliding doors in a lightweight plastic track. They could use a latch, but other than that they work well.

Nothing in my interior is particularly light, but something similar could definitely be built lighter especially if you skip the rounded corners and anything else that requires extra material to work well.

[Madehn]

I used FRP panels from Lowe’s glued to birch plywood that I had sealed for the panels in my salon. I used construction adhesive glue to secure the ply to the panels. Did 4x8 sheets spreading the construction adhesive with a notched trowel Left the sheets weighted and clamped for a couple of days then cut my parts out. Turned out really strong and 5 years in no problems. I think I glued the ply on unfinished then sealed the outside with 2 coats of stai/sealer. Finished product was super strong but a bit heavy. Looks good. Key was planning and judicious use of moldings to cover my carpentry shortcomings. Good luck Chotu.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by wholybee

What about elmers white glue or a basic wood glue like titebond? It takes a long time to dry, but that is what the minimal mechanical fasteners are for, just to hold it until the glue dries. And/or clamps. It works with most materials, including foam.

I don't think anything is less toxic than white glue, preschool kids have been eating white glue for decades

Indeed.
Excluding resins, I suspect you may be limited to a Polyvinyl Acetate [PVA] White or Yellow wood glue.
Depending on ambient temp and humidity levels, white gluee generally take about 30 minutes to set, and an hour to dry, with a complete cure in 24 hours.
PVA glues water-based, non-toxic, nonflammable, and don’t produce fumes, making them perfect for indoor use.
To bond, PVA glues must penetrate the surface, so they are ideal for working with porous materials like paper, wood, and plywood. PVA is ineffective on surfaces that don’t have texture or are smooth, such as plastic, metal, or glass.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by rslifkin

Here's an example of some of my cabinets (above the fridge). It's all plywood paneling and shelves, plus pieces of wood in the corner for it to all be screwed together. Exterior finish is glued and staples on vinyl to hide the screws, seams, etc. The doors are lightweight sliding doors in a lightweight plastic track. They could use a latch, but other than that they work well.

Nothing in my interior is particularly light, but something similar could definitely be built lighter especially if you skip the rounded corners and anything else that requires extra material to work well.

Yes I think this will work really well. I’m probably going to glue the faces together because that makes a lot of sense and there is a huge bonding area. Frames can be glued and screwed with very few screws.

[s/v Jedi]

From everything I read I think your best option is to build frames glued on top of the 5mm ply, then fill the center with the foam you have, glued on with construction glue, then cover the too with another layer of the 5mm ply.

There are thinner plywoods but they go more expensive. You could use veneer but that may not be strong enough.

You need more solid core than just the frame though. The hinges require a lot more space (and you need the European style hinges), but you can simply add more framing material there instead of foam.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

From everything I read I think your best option is to build frames glued on top of the 5mm ply, then fill the center with the foam you have, glued on with construction glue, then cover the too with another layer of the 5mm ply.

There are thinner plywoods but they go more expensive. You could use veneer but that may not be strong enough.

You need more solid core than just the frame though. The hinges require a lot more space (and you need the European style hinges), but you can simply add more framing material there instead of foam.

I agree.

this is the plan. I just have to take my time and make everything look really nice. It is possible, but I think I rushed it the last time so it didn’t look as good as it should have.

following that general idea I will leave out as much material as I can in every place I can so that it’s as light weight as possible.

and as much as it pains me to add all of the extra weight, I guess I will do the fronts. No open style cabinets. no bad curtain ideas.

someday I will have to eventually sell the boat (or my heirs will) and people won’t like a boat that doesn’t have cabinet fronts.

looks like the first place I will start is the vanity in the head.

this will require painting the walls, building the vanity, installing the plumbing, and I still have to figure out what to do with the floor. there are a couple of different cabin sole installation techniques that have been done on the boat.

one, i had floating cabin sole.

the other, the cabin sole was glassed in where it meets the hull and large access hatches cut out to get under the soles.

the latter method is in the head area. will be very tricky to get any kind of flooring in over the bumpy sole installation and to get it to look good where it meets the hull.

i need a very thin/lightweight flooring with a little bit of a pad behind it to take up the bumps.

May have to custom fabricate this too.

Could be:

1) same 5mm ply
2) thin foam backer
3) floor vinyl stickers on the face to look good

[MicHughV]

This may be a shot in the dark....

I've " glued" two pieces of 1/8" plywood together using the expandable foam you can buy at any Home Depot store and just squished the two pieces together. Once dry, it was nearly impossible to remove.

Why did I try this....I wanted a piece of 1/4" plywood with two finished veneer sides and my past experience with the foam led me to believe it would work.