Real Wood, Solid Wood what is the difference? In order not to misrepresent what we sell we distinguish between Real Wood doors and Solid Wood doors in the following way. Solid Wood is exactly as described, all parts of the door and drawer front are constructed from solid timber. Real Wood doors have relatively thin flat panels (rather than the thicker raised panels of the solid wood styles). Due to the characteristics of timber it is not practically feasible to make large thin panels from single pieces of solid timber. Apart from it's tendency to warp and twist in differing ambient conditions timber in thin section is not particularly strong. These problems are overcome by making flat panels from a very thin veneer of real wood glued to a stable material such as MDF. Although our Real Wood flat panel door range is of equivalent quality we are unable to claim that these are made from Solid Wood, even so, drawer fronts up to 220mmH in this range, are made from solid timber.
Timber has been used for centuries in making the finest doors of all types, adding quality and class to any setting. Doors constructed from timber possess unique properties entirely different from doors which are made entirely from lower cost synthetic materials such as Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF). For many customers this makes the prospect of owning Wooden Doors extremely enticing.
At the risk of stating the obvious, timber actually does grow on trees and consequently it shares the properties of the tree from which it is cut. Trees are not perfectly formed but have random branches projecting at various angles. Trunks may be bent and twisted by events which can occur in the trees life, such as periods of drought and flood, extremes of temperature, wind etc. All of this results in an extremely pleasing product but one where every piece is different in appearance and properties from every other. If you are seeking doors which are precisely uniform in appearance perhaps you should re consider purchasing timber doors and opt for one of the excellent wood effect doors based on MDF.
To minimise any potential problems with warping and twisting, which can occur with timber if incorrectly used in large single pieces, our Solid Wood Doors are made from multiple pieces. The construction is 'Frame & Panel' where the frame comprises four individual pieces and the panel makes five. However to further minimise the possibility of warping, the raised centre panel of the door and often the drawer front is itself made up of a number of individual pieces which are glued together to produce a larger piece.
Elsewhere on this site we have drawn attention to the fact that timber is a natural product and as such each piece of a door will be different in appearance and also in some characteristics from every other piece. The differences are often in grain pattern or of timber density which can result in markedly differing colours between pieces of the same door and sometimes these differences are apparent within a single piece of timber.
Another factor to consider is that all timbers will darken on prolonged exposure to light. This may be particularly noticeable if for instance timber doors are purchased together with synthetic accessories such as Cornice, Pelmet, Plinth etc. Initially the colour of both items may appear close but as the darkening process continues, the synthetic items will remain unchanged therefore a colour disparity will become increasingly obvious. The addition of a stain to the natural timber doors may help to mask this effect but another consideration is that because the door comprises many individual pieces, each with the potential for absorbing the stain in differing ways, it is possible that the timber colour variations may be accentuated by the addition of stain.
Although it may appear we are presenting a convincing case for not purchasing timber doors this is certainly not our intention. Timber doors have always been and will remain at the very top end of our range of products. For the committed customer who demands high quality, and who expects to see the properties we have highlighted as being natural features of Timber, these are highly desirable doors.
Bespoke Door Styles - Matching existing doors. Our door matching service is available for Real and Solid timber doors. Initially a photograph of your existing door styles Emailed to us will enable us to report back an indication of how close a match we feel we can get
Kitchen Refurbs from Doors Direct :- Unit 9 Harrier Park, Didcot, Oxon, OX11 7PL Tel : 0800 781 4798, Fax : 01235 819988, Email : enquiries@kitchenrefurbs.co.uk
