Cabinet construction types

Framed - A carcass (or box) with a frame surrounding the front edges. Hinges attach to the door and the frame.

Frameless - carcass (or box) with no face frame. Hinges attach to doors and side (or end) panels of the carcass.
(This is the European way, as practiced by Aneka)

Door construction types

In general doors are often bought-in from firms such as Duratech Industries that specialises in Door manufacture and Vinyl wrapping.
Aneka Kitchen however, thanks to its automated equipment, custom designs and manufactures its own range of doors in any size and many optional profiles, with or without rebated panels, for the up-market polyurethane painted, high gloss, style; these compete favourably on price with the bought-in doors covered with good quality vinyl, and it does give us an edge.

1. Slab - Flat door styles with no raised or recessed profile.
Solid wood slab doors are usually constructed of several pieces of solid stock wood joined with adhesive, then cut to size. Laminated slab styles are made of a substrate material (without a routed shape), then covered with the manufacturer's choice of laminate. Slab door styles may have detailed or plain edge profiles.

2. Recessed Panel - A 'picture frame' is constructed, often with either miter or mortise and tenon joints. One or more flat panels is secured within the frame. Panels may be grooved or otherwise decorated. When 18mm - 25mm HMR particle board is used then the cut doors are profiled and recessed panels are formed using an automated Router.

3. Raised Panel - Frames are constructed with panels secured in place as above. The raised panel is usually constructed of several pieces of solid stock lumber joined with adhesive, cut dimensionally and then routed or shaped with the desired edge profile. Raised panels might also consist of wood veneers adhered to plywood or another substrate, but this is more prone to different aging then the door itself.

4. Routed - Moisture Resistant Medium Density fiberboard (MRMD) or other material is shaped to create the appearance of raised or recessed panel or panels then painted or covered with the manufacturer's choice of laminate. In its simpler form these could be made of just 16mm HMR particle board, then vinyl coated, or left plain. Aneka prefers to use a minimum of 18mm or 25mm depending on the rebating or profiling requirements.

Glass door styles constructed of pseudo or real lead-glass, or plain glass covering a open worked lattice, as shown in the picture.

The inside of cabinets are not just occupied by shelving - the modern kitchen cabinets hide a range of inside constructions, such as Sliding drawers, that are now very popular for storage of pots and pans, Spices racks, Kitchen tidiers, wire baskets, inbuilt Dishwashers etc.; these are shown on the Accessories page.

Polyurethane finished doors and matching sides provide a high quality and easily maintainable result for the medium to high budget kitchens - Aneka Kitchens specialises in the design, construction and delivery of cabinetry (and colour coordinated matching benchtops, kick boards, and splashbacks) finished in either textured, matt or high gloss polyurethane.

The cost of textured finish polyurethane doors is similar to Vinyl finishes; egg-shell (matt> and high-gloss finishes are a bit more expensive as we need to do end-panels and other matching boards also in high-gloss to provide a matching whole. This may add $2000 -$3000 to the cost of a kitchen.

On a particle board base a natural timber veneer can be applied to both sides, that is sealed with a clear coating for durability, or with a stain or lacquer. The colour range is limited to the availability of the timber species. Edges are square and in the same material or a matching strip so a tiny join could be showing. veneer is usually only applied to flat panel doors with square edges. If profiles or grooves are applied then the board material may show and so a liming or staining should be used before applying the final clear finish. Acids or oil stains must be removed immediately, cleaning is with a damp cloth.

Solid Timber- 

Oak

Poplar

Pine

Birch

Any timber species can be used. Solid doors are often build up of strips of timber and panels, inserted into a frame; clear coated with a lacquer or polyurethane finish.

	Any timber species can be used. Popular Australian hardwood species are: Blackwood Tasmanian Oak Sydney Blue Gum and imported species: Cedar European Beech Maple (softwood)

NOTE: Timber Benchtops are not recommended for the Canberra region as the large fluctuations in temperature and humidity could cause problems.

The timber used depends on current availability, (the Kitchen above is manufactured in cedar) and it is unlikely that all doors will have exactly the same colour and texture. Although unsurpassed in quality feel and look Timber doors may be subject to movements as they are affected by large changes in moisture and temperature. Also the softer timbers used are more susceptible to denting damage, even the hard wood doors can be permanently affected this way. (perhaps these types of cabinetry are not a good option for a household blessed with a number of kids in strollers etc.).
Cleaning is with a damp cloth, durability depends on the surface coating. Lacquer- two-packet is recommended, but natural timbers can also be oiled.

Contact Information

Telephone -  02 6241 7778 (Answering machine switched on at 4.00pm week days)

Fax -  02 6241 8068

Postal & Showroom Address - Aneka Kitchens, Unit 2 / 5 Tooth Street, Mitchell  ACT  2911 Canberra, Australia

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