AIBU to think mdf built furniture may look great on social media but looks cheap in real life

[Anewyearnewname]

Recently spent lots of money on built in wardrobes made from mdf. I had them professionally painted and I’m so disappointed with the finish it’s nothing like the glossy finish you get with ikea / other pre made furniture.

I tried a different carpenter and painter for a new job but again the finish is no way near perfect and looks really ‘DIY’ and chips easily.

Trying to work out if it’s the work I had done or if that’s quite normal. Everywhere on social media mdf seems to be recommended for cupboards etc

AIBU to think that mdf furniture may look great in photos with mood lighting but in real life and real day light or spotlights it usually looks quite poor?

If im completely wrong then tips to improve are appreciated. The painters were experienced and did lots of rubbing down and filling etc but you can see all groves and screw holes and the edges are rough

I haven’t shared a photo as it looks fine on photos 😀

I keep seeing Ikea hacks where people paint Ikea furniture but this has put me off trying that.

Well duh, you get what you pay for.

Engineered board carcasses will never look like solid wood, however most of Ikea and most fitted furniture is MDF. The price varies depending on the quality of the finish (top layer)

You can get them professionally sprayed with a paint that contains an added hardener – that will give them that solidly coated feel and not just painted MDF. We had a bathroom cabinet made with MDF and the paint + hardener finish, and it was just as good as store-bought furniture.

I spray paint MDF for a living. Spray painting will always give you a better, flatter finish. I know it’s hard to show defects in paint via a photo. They either don’t show are if you go in really close then expand it a tiny defect can look like the Grand Canyon. I won’t slate other people’s work for the sake of it, but if you can put some phots on I’ll be happy to give you my opinion.

How do you know she has got what she paid for?

We use MDF but we do all our own work (DIY - we are not in any way professionals). It doesn't have a perfect finish but we don't expect it to because we have done it ourselves. For us, it is entirely a cost-saving measure and it looks good enough that we are happy with it. I don't see the point in hiring professionals and then asking them to use MDF - either pay for proper fitted furniture made by a carpenter (£££) or DIY using MDF and then accept it's less good quality but for usually a quarter of the price.

I made some custom cabinets for our kitchen and to get the exact sizes it was all custom cut and spray painted from the place below. The quality of the finish is absolutely exceptional!

All ordered from these folks: www.londonfurniturespraying.co.uk/

Thanks everyone it sounds like maybe I should have had them spray painted so I will look into whether it can be done after painting

I didnt request mdf, it’s what all the carpenters said they would use. A search on social media suggested the finished product should look great so I went with it.

@Slawit thankyou. Its the edges that look poor and where the screws went in. I’ve attached a few pictures but it’s not that clear.

@nonbinaryfinery not sure the point of your post. The cost wasn’t cheap. The time and materials for a proper carpenter and painter cost way more than an ikea unit would have. I chose people who were recommended by multiple people not just the cheapest I could find, hence my disappointment.

That is because you have raw MDF rather than a veneered finished and so it looks rough. There is nothing you can do to change that it would have been better to have bought veneered sheets then primed and painted them.

Could you please show me a view of a full door or even a couple of doors as I want to get a ‘fuller picture’. I want to be absolutely sure about what I’m looking at.

Sorry but this is just not correct, if you want a ‘flat’ finish then MDF is the perfect medium to use. Yes you can paint veneered sheets but you will get a grained finish (unless you fill the grain with more than just a coat of primer, in which case you have wasted you’re money buying a veneer.)

But you can practically see the chipboard in OP's photos?

I don't think YABU to be dissatisfied, but I don't think it's the case that IKEA furniture would necessarily look better. It's smoother, but has a plasticky feel and they often just give you little stickers to put over the screw heads, or leave them exposed. Looking at my (admittedly ancient) kallaxes, you can see the joins at the edges of the white veneer coating round the doors and at the corners, and they can get grubby.

By contrast, I've just had some windowsills, shelves, cupboard doors and bench seating built out of MDF and it's looking good now it's painted. You wouldn't be able to tell it's not made of wood like the sills in the older part of the house. The joiner has not put screws where you'd see a bump in visible external surfaces.

If picture 3 is the door edge against wardrobe carcass then I can tell you they haven't sanded the edge properly. It should be done with an electric sander, not by hand before painting.

This video shows you the difference, I have started it at the right spot to show unsanded and sanded. The sanding needs to be done between coats too as the paint will again raise the "grain".

Just because people recommended someone doesn't mean it is the same standard as yours. I have a plasterer who doesn't look like he plasters anything because he is that good at it. His clothes are pristine after a day's work. Other people have recommended plasterers in the past and they were messy as hell.

That’s a great video. I painted MDF and used Charley Diyte’s tips too. He’s my go to for DIY.

Thanks everyone I think I’m disappointed as I was trying to be good and support local businesses rather than ‘chains’ but the care is really lacking. It’s probably made worse by being under spotlights.
I might ask the painter to pop back and see if any improvements could be made. Thanks @HandlerOfGoo wish I’d seen that before, ‘if’ I do this again I will definitely make sure these steps are followed

@Anewyearnewname definitely get him to come back and ask about sanding and sanding the edges specifically. Really good prep always gets good results, skimp on prep and this is what you end up with sadly. It is about knowledge too and you can get knowledge for free.

I think going forward know that there is a wealth of information on youtube from some really informative people, Charlie DIYte is one and also shows his mistakes too which I appreciate. Also Proper DIY, The DIY Guy, Plumber Parts, Ultimate Handyman, How 2 D2, Gosforth Handyman, Pouse around the House to name a few. Even ones like On The Trowel (plasterer) who will show you how things should look or builders too.

We also try to support local businesses but anything I want doing I research first so I have some knowledge when talking to any trades people. Sometimes it means I can show them visually what I am looking from my laptop so there is an understanding of what I expect. Ikea is great but they use thermofoil wrapped doors again you can find how these things are made on Youtube, their painted products will all be sprayed. You can get a decent finish on MDF rather than the dimpled orange peel you seem to have.

This is a lady I follow on instagram, she is a professional decorator and this is her painting bare MDF panelling in a bathroom. I have also used Little Green Intelligent paint but in matt (not a bathroom) it is sublime to work with.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_gOtkPq00Q/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

How rude are you?

@HandlerOfGoo thankyou so much for the detailed reply. I will definitely look at the links and do some more googling before I get the painter back

@Anewyearnewname it is something I learned the hard way when I had shitty work done previously by a so called professional. I wish it was a one off but I think it has happened to me at about 5 times in 25 years of home owning. Now I research and get everything in writing so I know what I asked for in the quote and have it to refer back to.

Charlie DIYte and Charlotte the Decorator would be my first two things to watch as they are specific to mdf especially Charlie with the end grain situation.