After reading that excellent tip a little while ago for shellacing with three thin layers, I’m wondering—would shellac be appropriate for fronting my kitchen cabinets?
I’m making the doors and drawer fronts from solid European Beech (found a deal). I know shellac isn’t as tough as some of the polyurethanes, but it sounds a lot easier to apply (and–more importantly!–fix if I screw up). I’m a hobby woodworker and don’t have a dedicated finishing shop, seems like shellac may be the way to go.
The doors and drawer fronts are planned as flat panels (i.e., rub-jointed panels with breadboard ends.). At the expansion line between the breadboard cap and the panel, should I expect the shellac to crack when the wood expands?
I’ve read Bob Flexner’s book (excellent, by the way) but would really appreciate your advice and opinions. I just started reading the Knots forum a couple weeks ago, and my search didn’t bring up anything specific–my apologies if this question has been posed a lot in the past.
Thanks in advance–Pete
Replies
Pete, As wonderful a finish as shellac is, it's not a good choice for a kitchen environment. The moisture and especially heat and moisture are not something shellac can handle over long periods. Lacquers and varnishes, especially the catalized versions are the mainstay of kitchen cabinet modern finishes. The Breaktime forum has lots of good discussions about this specialized area of finishing. Rich
In addition, shellac can not stand up to cleaning with normal household cleaning chemicals. Any ammonia based cleaner will dissolve shellac in short order.For kitchen cabinets you want something durable like oil based varnish or poly varnish or pre or post cat laquer.Howie.........
Rich and Howie,
Thank you very much for your advice, much appreciated. I was hoping to avoid an oil/poly blend since they're tougher to rub than shellac, but have to admit--I hadn't thought about household cleaners (yikes!). I'll try poly (thinned as needed) on a scrap.
I've read that some some varnishes can yellow quite a bit. Are there any name brand varnishes you could recommend that don't yellow very much? The kitchen doesn't get too much direct sunlight, I wasn't thinking that UV resistance would be required.
Thanks in advance,
Peter
Like you, I'm in the beginning stages of a new kitchen (mine will be Shaker-style cabinets with inset doors and drawers, made of cherry and butternut). I love using shellac but it does not stand up well to a harsh environment or frequent cleaning. I am going to try one of two things after using shellac as a base coat and sealer to bring out the color and grain: either a water-based crystal-clear polyurethane, or a lacquer finish. I prefer the water based poly. I have done this on some butternut and birch shelves in my home office, and the finish has held up fine with occasional cleaning for the past six years. The shelves were built in a hurry and only have one coat of shellac and one coat of poly on them. Worst thing I'll use on them is Windex, which is hard on shellac.
I just finished my kitchen, like yours sort of shaker style, cherry, inset drawers and doors. I used Waterlox, 2 coats original finish and three of high gloss, all put on with a rag. After several months, it looks nice and seems easy to clean with just a damp cloth. I used prefinished birch plywood for the cases and drawer bottoms.
I am about to do the same thing.
Can you tell us where you found your prefinished case plywood?
Mike D
I'm really sorry to hear that shelac just won't work for kitchen cabinets. The discussions had pretty well convinced me that that would be a good way to go as well - i.e., applies easily with beautiful results, much more hardy than "advertised", etc, etc.
Oh, well.
Mike D
Edited 1/16/2007 1:16 pm ET by Mike_D
Can you tell us where you found your prefinished case plywood?
Maine Coast lumber in York ME: http://www.mainecoastlumber.com
They stock a good selection of hardwood plywood and also sell hardwood, although I have only purchased plywood and some poplar from them. Free delivery with a minimum order (I think it's $300). Easy to deal with.
By the way, what a fun project it turned out to be. I had never attempted such a large scale undertaking. It took forever working only weekends and doing a lot of stuff for the first time, but I'm happy with the result and my wife is delighted as well.
Edited 1/16/2007 1:34 pm ET by smslaw
Pete,
Water-borne varnishes don't impart any color and don't yellow with age. I like Varathane's "Diamond" Poly varnish a lot. I spray it right out of the can. Level sand the first application which raises the grain and acts as the sanding sealer. Level sand each coat with 320 grit, applied about every 48 hours.
About 3-4 coats would be good for kitchens. Let the last coat harden for several weeks, a month is best. Level sand with 324, then 400 lubricated wet-or-dry, then 4-0 steel wool which will give a nice soft matte finish which is very nice for kitchen cabinets. Or you can rub out to a full gloss.
Rich
>> Water-borne varnishes don't impart any color and don't yellow with age.Nor are they recommended for applications where durability is required. Consumer grade waterborne finishes are damaged by cooking oils and are easily damaged by household cleaning products. While waterborne finishes are usable in a number of applications, bathrooms and kitchens are not a good places for waterbornes.Howie.........
Howie,
Thanks. I wasn't aware of those problems with those finishes. Do you know that to be the case with the varathane product?
>> Do you know that to be the case with the varathane product?"Varathane" is a brand name of Rustoleum that is a family of finishes. Varathane is used for both an oil based polyurethane varnish and for a waterborne acrylic. They are standard formulation finishs although Rustoleum would like you to believe they are something different.To answer your question, I would not use Varathane waterborne in a kitchen or bathroom. A much better choice would be a Varathane oil based poly varnish. I much prefer non-poly varnish normally, but a poly varnish has advantages where frequent cleaning is a requirement.Howie.........
As others have said, shellac will take a beating from cleansers but so will a lot of other finishes, particularly if bleach gets used. It sounds like the issue you would like to avoid is brushing on a finish. There are wiping varnishes and polyurethanes as well as all kinds of mixtures. About 30 yrs. ago, I restored a 1910 Hoosier cabinet. It sits close to the stove in my kitchen. I finished it with paste varnish, 4 coats? The paste varnish was breeze to apply and built quickly. It has held up very well and has a nice vintage look.
http://www.swingpaints.com/1805.htm
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
So would any of you recomend putting a poly finish over shellac, as protection layer? You would be able to have the shellac depth with that.
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