Which Timber for Kitchen?

[Caliban]

I'll soon building a new kitchen. Which timber is suitable for doors drawer fronts etc. Will probably be using black granite for the benchtops. Missus said white timbergrain melamine would be good:eek:
Is red cedar too soft?
Qld Maple is nice as is Blackwood.
Any ideas?

[RufflyRustic]

Hi Caliban,

What do you or SWMBO want from your kitchen? i.e.....

What's more important, eg Looks, durability, ease of cleaning, most stable wood, wood that matches or contrasts with the granite?

So so Very glad you are trying not to go with that white stuff:eek:

Rosewood? Greg and Mal's rosewood looks great and I think it's no where near as soft as the New Guinea Rosewood I can get here in Toowoomba.

Silver Ash??? We all know who got some late last year ;) Yeah, I think my vote would be for Silver Ash - keeps that white look for SWMBO and it's pretty stable/strong for drawer fronts.

cheers
Wendy

[renomart]

Hi Caliban,

Red Cedar is soft and lightweight (but it does repel moths and it smells nice!) though I wouldn't recommend it for kitchen doors.

Do you want traditional timber doors (frame with centre panel) or do you want a modern look using timber veneer (plain face)?

It really depends on your budget and lifestyle. If you have young kids you will want something that can take a beating i.e a hardwood.

Qld Maple is getting harder to get as it grows in heritage listed forests but Blackwood is OK and it is a hard timber. If your wife likes whitish wood you could use Tasmanian Oak (a hardwood, not an oak but a eucalpyt species) and you could lime it (like a whitewash effect). It would be a striking contrast with black granite tops.

[Arron]

Red cedar is way too soft. Kitchens get a lot of knocks and scratches and it'll look shabby fairly quickly.

I'm not a fan of wood kitchens. When I did the same thing in our home (dark brown granite) I used melamine coated mdf, cut and routed it into shape, and had it professionally polyurethane coated in the colour we wanted. It looked perfect when it was done and it looks perfect now, eight years later. There isnt a single run, scratch, dent, chip, stain or faded bit around the whole thing. We have another house with a real wood Tassie oak kitchen done about the same time and its showing the wear and tear - around the sink, around the dishwasher and on the corner where people bump into it when they walk past. Also, the cutlery drawers take a punishing where people are shoving knives etc into it. I've re-finished it twice but it is still got faults. I know this is a woodworking forum but your wife is right. I'm not sure about the white woodgran though - sounds a bit fake looking.

Arron

[Harry72]

Black granite... perfect match for the deep reds of jarrah with brushed stainless fittings and appliances.

[Caliban]

Thanks guys and girl
I mislead you. SWMBO doesn't like white wood she just liked the contrast.
The kitchen now has black gloss melamine stuff as a top and plain white gloss melamine doors. It looks old and shabby but still works and could look good if it didn't look so 60s.
I like the idea of a red timber like Jarrah or Rosewood.
Possibly Camphor Laurel would come up nicely. Mal Ward has some stunning Mackay Cedar but I think it is also too soft.
:confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:

[RufflyRustic]

Hi Caliban,
Camphor Laurel - highly figured - would look wonderful, but may be too soft for the punishment that a kitchen can get.

So have you had a chance to get some more wood samples to hold up next to the new benchtop?

Am following this thread with great interest for when I eventually do my kitchen.

cheers
Wendy

[Brisruss]

Hi Caliban,
I am just going through the excercise myself. We currently have Western Red Cedar doors and panelling on our kitchen which I did back in 1983. It looks great when new but is way too soft and gets damaged easily.

We got a quote for over $10,000 to rip the whole lot out and redo it. So we started looking at other options.

I am looking at new benchtops and doors now. The melamine carcasses are still in good shape. I think I will go with doors from Polytech. They will do doors to any size and I got a quote for just over $2000 to replace ours. For the benchtops I think a laminate with roll-formed edges is looking most likely.

I did the benchtops on another house I have with black box T&G and it looked fantastic but the surface does not wear well and you need to recoat it to keep it looking good.

Good luck and keep us posted.
Russ

[Paul B]

We've just finished our kitchen, black granite bench tops, stainless steel appliances, and cream coloured doors on the cupboards (which I don't like but didn't care enough to make a fuss about, and didn't have time to make timber ones). We also have a new Sydney blue gum floor put down, so we had some highlights in a very similar coloured woodgrain melamine added here and there. It really looks pretty stunning even with the puky doors. So my suggestion would be Sydney bluegum, certainly strong enough for doors.

[Sybarite]

Hi Brisruss,

Does that Polytech price include drilling for the doors? (and hinges?)

It is a pretty good price if you did. (Going by the original $10K remove and renew). Are you using the patterned vinyl timber to simulate solid timber? I would be interested in how you rate its look.
For a thermolaminate in a kitchen I thought they could look pretty effective.

We use Polytech doors and boards a fair bit and have always been very happy with their product. Higher quality and more durable than some other big names.

Respect, all.

[Exador]

Thanks guys and girl
I mislead you. SWMBO doesn't like white wood she just liked the contrast.
The kitchen now has black gloss melamine stuff as a top and plain white gloss melamine doors. It looks old and shabby but still works and could look good if it didn't look so 60s.
I like the idea of a red timber like Jarrah or Rosewood.
Possibly Camphor Laurel would come up nicely. Mal Ward has some stunning Mackay Cedar but I think it is also too soft.
:confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:

If you like the colour of camphor and want something more durable, try some cadaghi. Very stable, highly figured, rich bronze-gold colour, hard as hobnails, takes a finish beautifully. Or if you like the red look, some red mahogany (my favourite timber).

[RufflyRustic]

Hi Exador

Any chance of a photo of your cadaghi? I'm off to search for more on the net, have never heard of this wood before.

Thanks
RufflyRusitc

[Greg Ward]

Red river gum (Mal has) is used a lot as bar tops, so it will take the wear. deep red

Red Mahogany Good and hard. See Mal again here

Blue gum is cheaper, not quite so hard, more orange-red

Mackay cedar is used in all the Hogs Breath restaurants, so I don't think it would be too soft as it works there in a tought environment. If you like this, go for it, but watch the sapwood for borers

Seen some nice Kauri, hoop or norfolk pine bench tops, brown coloured, but may be too light coloured and a little soft

Mal has plenty of nice jarrah..... dark brown

Bloodwood can be good, watch the sap circles

Rosewood..... Hard, would be OK, but difficult to get without faults

Tas blackwood or camphor, both good Mal has both

Pink...... Sequia (Cal redwood)... may be too soft

Red cedar.... too soft


Deadora. Yellow, hard, may be too light coloured for you.

Talk to Mal.
Regards
Greg

[Exador]

Hi Exador

Any chance of a photo of your cadaghi? I'm off to search for more on the net, have never heard of this wood before.

Thanks
RufflyRusitc

Hi Ruffly,
Sorry I missed everyone on the weekend, but I'll make sure I get to the next one. The timber is Corymbia Torelliana, a photo is attached

[journeyman Mick]

Hi Exador

Any chance of a photo of your cadaghi? I'm off to search for more on the net, have never heard of this wood before.

Thanks
RufflyRusitc

Wendy,
it's very handsome tree also, looks like a "typical" gum tree (smooth bark that peels off) however the fresh bark is a strong green colour.

Mick

[RufflyRustic]

Thanks Exador,
yes it's a shame you couldn't make it on Sunday. Am already looking forward to the next one, groupie that I am :)


Re Corymbia Torelliana

If I hadn't known, I would have sworn that was camphor Laurel, but with a bit of doubt due to the flecking? in the grain as CL doesn't have as much of it.

Have you ever worked any JMMick?

cheers
Wendy

[RufflyRustic]

Sorry for hijacking your thread Caliban

Wendy

[Exador]

Thanks Exador,
yes it's a shame you couldn't make it on Sunday. Am already looking forward to the next one, groupie that I am :)


Re Corymbia Torelliana

If I hadn't known, I would have sworn that was camphor Laurel, but with a bit of doubt due to the flecking? in the grain as CL doesn't have as much of it.


cheers
Wendy

The colour in the photo is pretty true, Wendy. It's a much more honey-coloured timber than CL. I'l prep some camphor up the same way so you can see the difference. It's also about twice as dense as CL and about 100 times as hard. I've got it in slabs up to 850 x 2200 x 45/50. I have about 8 at that size - the log was virtually square :D. It's all pretty well seasoned now, but it's very stable even when worked a bit wet.

Cheers,
Craig

[Exador]

Wendy,
it's very handsome tree also, looks like a "typical" gum tree (smooth bark that peels off) however the fresh bark is a strong green colour.

Mick
It's also a pest tree down here in Brisvegas, as it's native up your way, Mick. I understand it's the only eucalypt to grow routinely in the rain forest. There are two reasons it's a pest: it apparently hybridises very well with spotted gums (I think it was spotties, but it could be something else) producing sterile hybrids and it also kills stingless native bees, which love the resin it produces.

http://www.uq.net.au/~zzrzabel/cadgai-tree.html

Oh yes, it also drops a horrible sticky resin, which is very difficult to remove from your paintwork.
Anyway, the council planted and gave away thousands of them throughout the 70s, 80s and into the 90s, so there'll be lots of it about. It's not worth milling at less than about 600 diam though, as it has quite thick, lyctid susceptible sapwood.

[journeyman Mick]

.............Have you ever worked any JMMick?.................

Framed a house in green cadagi once, years ago when working for someone else. Hard and heavy! The kitchen benchtops were done in it too, not spectacular, but quite attractive all the same. Tops were finished with Estapol 7008 (2 pack floor finish) and still look good 15 years later (was back recently to cut in some larger door openings)

Mick

[RufflyRustic]

Thanks Mick!

Good to know the kitchen bench is still going strong both wood and finish, after 15 years.
cheers
Wendy

[Brisruss]

Hi Brisruss,

Does that Polytech price include drilling for the doors? (and hinges?)

It is a pretty good price if you did. (Going by the original $10K remove and renew). Are you using the patterned vinyl timber to simulate solid timber? I would be interested in how you rate its look.
For a thermolaminate in a kitchen I thought they could look pretty effective.

We use Polytech doors and boards a fair bit and have always been very happy with their product. Higher quality and more durable than some other big names.

Respect, all.

No it does not include drilling or hinges. Just the doors.

We are not really trying to make it look like timber. I think an off-white colour is favourite at the moment.

Nice to get the feedback about Polytech.

Cheers,
Russ