Vennered MDF inside boats .

Yes, I've been wondering about this. I've used MDF lipped with hardwood and finished with Rustin's plastic coating for several 'high wetting' domestic bits and they've stood up very well - and I thought a bit of bendy MDF similarly finished might be OK for a small job inside the boat as an alternative to kerfing a piece of marine ply to get the same radius.
 
What is used for kitchen worktop these days? Round the sink is going to get wet now and again. If that is MDF it seems that it could be OK internally on a boat. May be rebuilding the galley this winter so quite relevant from my pov. Weight on the galley side would be acceptable.

Jason: still an oak table I hope:-)
 
'fess up time....

Jason and I have been discussing via pm the making of a folding saloon table top, and wondering whether veneered MDF might be a better option than either a solid, or a veneered ply....

It'll be a folding top, with those stainless legs that are removable.....

Can't at this stage see many reasons not to do it, especially as if it fails, it'll be after a number of years, and then can simply be replaced with a different material with absolutely no issues....
 
The best answer to your question is the advice I first recieved as a baby boatbuilder. "If you can't leave it out in the rain for a month is has no place on a boat". MDF is hydroscopic, dimensionally unstable, and bloody heavy. Forget it.
 
Waterproof MDF is used for furniture on many luxury yachts with a decorative veneer on the working side & a balancing veneer on the back & the sides & ends sealed.It has in my experience proved up to the job.You can tell if is the waterproof variety as it has from memory a greenish tinge.
 
we had mdf on boat when we bought it -- for the galley work tops. Yjey had been recently fitted looked great. 6 months later they had turned into something resmembling weetabix where water from sink has got it.

Ripped it all out and replaced with teak strips over marine ply, oil on the teak and expoxy over the wood especially the ply edges
 
Re: Veneered MDF inside boats .

The green MDF is moisture resistant , Exterior MDF ( Medite ) Has a darker brown core . With regards to the earlier comment about ply only letting water wick one way it also provides a great place for dry rot to start and thrive .
When i first got into boating and went aboard a nice big boat i was quite shocked to discover they used veneer rather than solid timber and moored next to a Colvic i saw a veneered deck lifting , again i couldnt understand why solid timber wasnt used .


Dont worry Andrew i havnt forgotten about your folding table ive just been using mine (the template) every weekend and not had chance to get it home to copy.
 
jaso

I like yourself am in the trade and we use veneered mdf for conservatory cills - what a great finish you get but if we get a leak its knackered. there is moisture resistant veneered MDF available but not yet tried it (. I have got a sheet of vennered blockboard to experiment with)
"venereed ply" - almost unavailable - can only be done with decent veneer to special order
 
Try Silvermans , they are one of the major board suppliers . I think a veneer is going to get knackered when it gets wet no matter what material it is glued to . But its used on boats all the time /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
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