I'm thinking about making my own cabinet doors from MDF, and I think it Can handle it, but I want to finish them with a good paint.
By good I mean something like polyurethane paint, which dries up with a high gloss and is extremely durable and doesn't fade or get sticky over time.
My worry is that from what I hear it shrinks when drying and can warp the doors.
What are people's experiences with this – or are there better alternatives?
Best Answer
Application quality is probably more important than a specific paint. MDF sucks up paint better than most wet and dry vacs. Sealing it well (especially any edges/routed elements) is absolutely key.
This is a good example of the issue and a possible solution
You would have to get MDF pretty soggy with paint for it to significantly warp the doors. A much more likely issue is gonna be the paint cracking as it shrinks rather than 1 mm of drying polyurethane paint warping a 20 mm MDF door.
If I'm being honest solid wood or birch plywood is probably easier to get a good looking result out of. That way you can go for paint, stain or naked and finish it off with some clear polyurethane for protection.