Laminated Furniture Pieces

Laminates are the addition of a fake wood surface to the surface of furniture, and are made from thin slices of wood or other non-wood materials and held together with glues and polymers. Special care must be taken with laminated furniture. Water, moisture, solvents, glues and nail polish removers must be kept away from your laminated furniture as they can cause the surfaces to de-laminate resulting in a melting or scarring of the appearance.

Laminated furniture is quite serviceable as a cheap, temporary or disposable furniture solution. Laminates are not typically used for quality furniture and are generally found in furniture sold by retailers like K-Mart or other low-end furniture suppliers.

If you have low-quality laminated furniture, simply setting a glass of water on it for a short time is enough to ruin it, as the glass sweats moisture it will produce rings on the surface that cannot be corrected with polish or refinishing. Laminated furniture cannot be refinished, so in this example the furniture will remain unsightly until it is thrown away.

Low-end furniture manufacturers use many different laminate materials such as melamine-clad panels (MCP), high-pressure laminate (HPL), vinyl, and paper foils. Underlying material, called substrates, are particleboard (flake board), MDF, hardboard, and plywoods. Laminated furniture is often found in the type of furniture that a user puts together from a flat-box kit. Not exactly the type of materials heirloom furniture is made of, laminated furniture has a limited life span.