Is it safe to use solid wood as a box bottom?
bronstott
| Posted in General Discussion on
I’m making 14”x18” serving trays with slanted sides. The corners are mitered and will be reinforced with splines
Do I need to be concerned about expansion of the bottom of the tray if it’s made of 3/8” solid walnut? I can use 1/4” walnut plywood instead if that would be better.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Replies
I use solid wood for box bottoms all the time. You do have to allow for wood movement similar to what you would do with a raised panel door. A groove is cut into the sides and the bottom floats in the groove rather than being firmly attached to the sides. Actually I do this even for plywood as it does move differently than the sides.
As Bobr2 says, you can only use solid wood for the bottom if you have it floating in grooves in the sides. For a jewelry box, this is no problem. For a serving tray that could get food spilled on it (that could get in the grooves), cleaning it is virtually impossible. If you want the trays to be cleanable, you should use plywood for the bottoms, make the grooves a snug fit, and glue the bottoms in. Then your finish has a chance of sealing the junction between the sides and the bottom.
Thanks. I’ll use plywood.
I’ve used solid wood bottoms in serving trays with mitered corners and had no trouble. I cut a rabbet in the bottom edge of the tray sides and glued the bottom in to the rabbet. It’s been a couple of years and they’re still fine.