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Ecological Kitchen Cabinets (cont'd)
We use locally produced lumber when we can, and can make a special effort to do so for your kitchen.
I'm not ready to give up plywood. It's too practical a material for cabinet boxes and drawer bottoms. But we are looking for ways to minimize it's use. It's possible to build cabinets with no plywood at all, using traditional woodworking techniques dating from before the age of plywood. This is basically to use floating wood panels (like in a panel door) where plywood would often be used, even for drawer bottoms. It's expensive, though.
We're experimenting with grid systems which use the drawer hardware itself as part of the cabinet structure. If this system works out, plywood use would be greatly reduced. In general, we're working on new designs which address ecological issues more completely, including designs which avoid plywood and mechanical drawer hardware.
Perhaps the best way to minimize the use of materials in cabinetry is to build cabinets in place. Since the structure of the building provides stability for the cabinets, cabinet backs and sometimes sides can be eliminated. This works fine for door cabinets, but may not work so well for cabinets with lots of drawers. My book "The Motion-Minded Kitchen" describes a simple way to build cabinets in place, using simple tools. Some of our kitchens have been "hybrid", in that the drawer bases are shop-built in the conventional way, but the rest is built in place with minimal materials.
We are constantly experimenting with finishes. Though we haven't found finishes which protect the wood as well as hard varnishes and polyurethanes, which give off VOCs as they dry, there are a variety of natural finishes, both new and traditional, which are on the market. Usually these require more care and maintenance than poly. We'll work with you to find a finish that meets your criteria, or provide the cabinets unfinished for you to finish as you wish.
IBW
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