Knowledge Builders

is poplar good for painted cabinets

by Jett Runte Published 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago
image

Poplar and soft maple are popular for most parts of a cabinet—face frames
face frames
A face frame in cabinet making is the frame fixed to the front of a cabinet carcass which obscures the edges of the carcass and provides the fixing point for doors and other external hardware.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Face_frame
, end frames, and door panels—mostly due to cost and workability. However, some carpenters find that poplar dents easily. It can also absorb the first coat of paint quickly.
Sep 1, 2016

Is Poplar a good firewood?

Poplar is good for firewood because it lights quickly when dry and will warm your house well during the shoulder seasons. Poplar is a relatively quick burning firewood therefore it is also great for campfires because typically campers only want a fire that lasts a couple of hours.

Is Poplar considered a hard or soft wood?

Poplar. Poplar is a hardwood tree that produces soft wood when compared to other hardwood trees. The hardness of poplar is about on par with that of pine or cedar, but the cellular structure gives it a much finer grain and more pleasing appearance than the more coarsely grained softwoods.

Can I make Poplar look good?

Poplar is the most common wood I use, and you can make it look any way you want really. Takes stain well and turns out nice and paints easily. For lighter stains you don't want any green as that doesn't blend very well and looks terrible, lighter green turns out ok-ish.

Is Poplar harder than oak?

No, poplar wood is not stronger than oak; however, it is much more flexible, allowing the wood to bend when flexed. Should you paint oak wood? No, oak wood is okay with being varnished, stained, or waxed but will not look good when being painted. However, the wood will not absorb the paint and can be sanded clean to reveal the wood underneath.

What color is poplar wood?

What is poplar used for?

What is the easiest wood to cut?

What is the lowest paint grade wood?

Why is poplar tree so fast?

Is poplar wood a good wood for cabinets?

Is poplar wood affordable?

See 2 more

image

What kind of wood is best for painted cabinets?

The best woods for painted cabinetry:Soft Maple. Despite its name, Soft Maple is actually considered to be a hard wood when it comes to density (harder than both Poplar and Alder). ... Alder. ... Birch. ... Hard Maple. ... European Beech. ... Oak. ... Ash.

Is poplar a good choice for kitchen cabinets?

We suggest steering away from Poplar for kitchen projects altogether. It's too soft for a hard use environment like a kitchen. Go with a denser wood instead, or if you're choosing Poplar because of budget, HDF or MDF would be a better choice.

What is best material for painted cabinet doors?

Soft mapleSoft maple is harder than alder, African mahogany and poplar, and is a great choice for painted cabinet doors. Paint grade poplar is typically the least expensive paint-grade material option, with soft maple being the mid price point and hard maple being the highest.

Does poplar paint well?

For a refined, smooth finish, choose poplar or soft maple. These wood species are generally less expensive than other hardwoods, but are smooth and take paint well. Since poplar and maple are hardwoods, they will also resist warping and shrinking, and should stand up to wear and use better than a soft wood.

Does poplar dent easily?

Poplar is a great wood, but because it's relatively soft, it dents and tears easily.

Does poplar warp easily?

It has a close grain that resists warping and a color that varies from golden brown to almost purplish. Yellow poplar contains tannins that make it resistant to decay. It's a popular choice for siding because it doesn't shrink or warp much.

Is poplar a paint grade?

Poplar is the softest of the hardwoods and is used primarily as a paint grade wood, however this is a higher grade of poplar, and is designed for staining. Poplar has a green tint and will often have dark purple or black streaks.

What paint do professionals use for kitchen cabinets?

latex paint for kitchen cabinets. Oil-based paint is the traditional choice for painting kitchen cabinets. It offers a durable finish and can be used on both wood and laminate cabinet surfaces. However, it can be slow-drying and smelly, so it's not ideal for everyone.

What is the most common wood used for cabinets?

OakOak. Oak is the most common wood for kitchen cabinets. There are several reasons for this. Oak is easy to find, fairly cheap, durable, and it takes paints and stains well.

Does poplar wood bleed through paint?

Poplar is a great wood to paint. Has no tannins to bleed through or stain.

What is poplar wood best used for?

Poplar wood is a species of wood most commonly used in the making of furniture, cabinets, wooden toys, plywood, etc. It is considered a hardwood, but is just about as easy to work with as pine boards or other soft woods.

What is a good finish for poplar?

Gel stains are the best stain for Poplar. They do not penetrate inside or soak in deeply. Minwax gel stain is the popular stain for Poplar wood because it's not a penetrating stain. Poplar doesn't hold stain well and stain will soak it unevenly.

What is the best wood for kitchen cabinets?

The 5 best and most popular woods for kitchen cabinets are pine, oak, hickory, cherry, and maple. Pine, oak, and hickory are cheaper and easier to get. Cherry and maple look luxurious and cost more than the others. All 5 work well in the kitchen's hot and humid environment.

Is poplar better than maple?

The strength of maple exceeds that of poplar. Even the softer wood of silver maple and big-leaf maple perform better under stress than poplar. Poplar dents easier, breaks under load and compresses more easily than maple.

What is poplar wood good for?

Poplar wood is a species of wood most commonly used in the making of furniture, cabinets, wooden toys, plywood, etc. It is considered a hardwood, but is just about as easy to work with as pine boards or other soft woods.

What is the best wood for cabinet doors?

The Best Wood to Build Cabinet DoorsBirch Solid Wood. Birch is a fairly cheap, yet durable wood. ... Hickory Solid Wood. This is a beautiful, pale yellow wood that lends itself well to natural finishes. ... Maple Solid Wood. ... Quartersawn White Oak. ... Red Oak Solid Wood. ... Walnut Solid Wood.

Is Alder Wood Good for Cabinet Doors

Red Alder wood comes from the west coast of North America and is the largest of the alder species. Even though it is considered a hard wood it is one of the softest of all the hardwoods and is sometimes called a semi-hardwood.

What wood is best for kitchen cabinets? MDF or solid wood?

Watch this episode as we discuss which material you should use for cabinet doors in your new home: MDF (medium-density fiberboard) or wood. We explore what is MDF and compare with wood on costs, durability and staining. Finally, we talk about what are the best situations to use either.

Is maple wood good for paint grade doors?

Where I'm at, the lumber suppliers usually have quite a bit of hard maple with brown coloring (heartwood, I presume) that they sell for about a quarter the price of white maple. This is great stuff for paint grade doors. I personally don't like poplar because of the warping.

Is poplar good for wood?

Poplar is widely used for painted woodwork in general. It might be a good choice for you since you will be machining with router bits and poplar is on the softer side of the street. I have gotten it both warped and straight. That it true for most any species.

Can poplar be used for doors?

I've never had good luck with poplar and doors. They tend to warp. Poplar is not known for its stability. Lots of expansion due to humidity. I've seen a lot of problems with binding doors on inset face frames. Poplar also soaks up paint like a sponge. It's not a soft or hardwood, but somewhere in the dense weed category. We use miles of it for painted trim and mouldings. We exclusively use soft maple for painted casework. It paints really well. The milling is pretty good, but you can get some squirrelly stuff. We can get it for under $2.50 bd/ft so, it's pretty cost effective. Why paint hard maple when you can use soft? We use MDF for panels.

What wood to use for a kitchen?

A kitchen gets worked in, no getting around it. We use the most durable finish products we can so why not use a harder wood. Poplar is fine for some things but we are talking high end kitchen here. At least use soft maple. Or ask your supplier for hard in a mixed calico or natural grade it will have some boards with color and some white and part white perfect for paint grade at the cost or less then poplar. The integrity dent resistance and the way maple machines is superior then poplar the way it can get so fuzzy.

When did cabinetmakers discuss Maple or Cabinet?

Cabinetmakers discuss whether a high-end cabinet job should use Maple or Cabinet for doors. December 8, 2010

Is enameling hard wood?

Enameling is difficult to do well. It can look great, but often it does not. Depends on the look you want too. From contributor R: Poplar is a hard wood, but a soft hard wood. Soft maple mills a bit harder but easier to get a smooth painted finish. We use poplar mostly. I did on my kitchen cabinets.

Is soft maple harder than red maple?

Here is a technical comparison of HM, SM and YP. We like to use yellow poplar for the name so that it is not confused with aspen poplar. Soft maple can be red maple or silver maple; red is denser and harder; red number given first).

Is soft maple the same as poplar?

Soft maple is very close to poplar in my area, but even if it were double it's still a very small part of the cost . You have to figure less than $1k difference even for a really big kitchen. In a high end kitchen that's likely a small fraction of the price.

Is poplar more stable than maple?

From contributor J: Poplar is also less stable than maple, in addition to being very soft. You can dent the stuff with your fingernail easily. I'd be more worried about the finish being hand applied on site. Enameling is difficult to do well.

Is maple oil better than poplar?

We switched from poplar to maple a few years back and will never go back. Maple is much harder and takes paint much better - (smoother) and it simply holds up better. It's also more dimensionally stable, so over time it doesn't move as much and your joint lines don't show as much. A sight applied oil finish isn't even in the same category as a catalyzed lacquer or CV finish.

Is maple good for painting?

My daughter's friend's dad is a custom woodworker and i picked his brain when we were redoing our kitchen and he said the same thing about maple being good for painting as it absorbs paint evenly.

Does maple hold onto paint?

A cabinetmaker (who uses mostly poplar for painted cabinets) told me that maple does not "hold onto" paint as well, and must be carefully primed.

Can maple be too slick for paint to adhere to?

The comment about maple can be too slick for paint to adhere to...this can be true. In order for paint to adhere it has to have a mechanical bond to the wood. You can sand too fine and make it so slick there is no tooth for it to hold onto. Now I do not like poplar stained at all.

Is poplar good for painted cabinets?

Poplar is not an awful product for painted cabinets. We have been using it for years with no problems. We do use a soft or hard maple if they are going into an area that is going to get an above average use and abuse since it is harder but the fact is that any wood is going to ding if hit...so abuse will show on all.

Is maple harder than poplar?

MAPLE! Why is it that 99.9% (just a guess) of cabinet manufacturers use soft or hard maple? Even soft maple is harder than poplar and a less expensive choice to clear, hard maple. Check out the Janka Scale of wood hardness:

What color is poplar wood?

Poplar has a lot of color variation - it's white to yellow in color, and sometimes it can be slightly greenish. Because of this, we recommend not choosing Poplar if you're going to stain the wood.

What is poplar used for?

Poplar works best as a secondary wood - for hidden furniture parts, mouldings, face frames, and cabinet structure. But for cabinet doors? The focal-point of a kitchen that withstand a lot of use? Not so much.

What is the easiest wood to cut?

4. Requires more sanding and 'fuzzes' up. Though Poplar is one of the easiest woods to cut, it's a bit more labor intensive when it comes to sanding and finishing. Because of its soft nature, Poplar needs to be sanded with finer grits of sandpaper. More coarse grits leave sanding marks.

What is the lowest paint grade wood?

Here's the thing. Poplar's one of the most popular paint-grade woods. But when you refer to the scale, you can see it has the lowest rating. This means Poplar dents easily. Which doesn't make it a great choice for paint.

Why is poplar tree so fast?

The Poplar tree grows incredibly fast. Like a weed. It has wider, less dense annual rings which makes for a less stable wood. And because of this weed-like structure, it has a tendency to twist, warp, and swell with moisture and humidity.

Is poplar wood a good wood for cabinets?

Dents easily. Even though it's considered a hardwood by species, Poplar is one of the softest woods you can use for cabinets. It dents if you look at it the wrong way. In fact, it's the softest wood we offer. See hardness scale below. Here's the thing. Poplar's one of the most popular paint-grade woods.

Is poplar wood affordable?

Since Poplar grows so fast it's one of the most available and therefore affordable woods on the market (except right now, pricing and availability is a little crazy for all wood ).

image

1.Is Poplar Good For Cabinet Doors? 4 Disadvantages You …

Url:https://www.ruckdoors.com/is-poplar-good-for-cabinet-doors-4-disadvantages-you-need-to-know/

23 hours ago Poplar is widely used for painted woodwork in general. It might be a good choice for you since you will be machining with router bits and poplar is on the softer side of the street. I have …

2.Poplar for Paint-Grade Cabinet Doors? - WOODWEB

Url:https://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Poplar_for_PaintGrade.html

25 hours ago Is poplar a good choice for painted cabinets? Soft maple is more difficult than alder, African mahogany, and poplar, and it’s a great color for painted cabinet doors. Soft maple is the middle …

3.Poplar Versus Maple for Hand-Painted Cabinetry

Url:https://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Poplar_Versus_Maple_for_HandPainted_Cabinetry.html

27 hours ago Poplar is fine for some things but we are talking high end kitchen here. At least use soft maple. Or ask your supplier for hard in a mixed calico or natural grade it will have some boards with color …

4.Poplar or Maple: which is Best for Painted Cabinets?

Url:https://www.houzz.com/discussions/2705449/poplar-or-maple-which-is-best-for-painted-cabinets

13 hours ago Poplar is not an awful product for painted cabinets. We have been using it for years with no problems. We do use a soft or hard maple if they are going into an area that is going to get an …

5.What is the Best Wood for Painted Cabinets?

Url:https://www.cabinetdoors.com/pages/best-wood-painted-cabinets.html

32 hours ago This is one of the most popular woods for painting, mostly because it’s inexpensive but produces a lovely smooth finish when prepared right. If you use poplar, make sure the surface is well …

6.Is Poplar better than Maple for painted kitchen cabinets?

Url:https://www.houzz.com/discussions/4598203/is-poplar-better-than-maple-for-painted-kitchen-cabinets

13 hours ago It has Soft Maple as a competitor because Poplar tends to be more labor intensive to sand and finish, but Soft Maple is more expensive. Poplar has a tendency to “fuzz-up” during sanding, …

7.Best Wood for Painted Cabinets (+Painting Plywood vs.

Url:https://www.woodworkingtrade.com/best-wood-for-painted-cabinets/

25 hours ago Poplar is a good choice for cabinet doors. It is a hardwood that is relatively lightweight, making it easy to work with. It is also inexpensive, which is important when working on a budget. Poplar …

8.The Best Woods To Use For Painted Cabinets - Ruck …

Url:https://www.ruckdoors.com/the-best-woods-to-use-for-painted-cabinets/

11 hours ago

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9