VENEER, LAMINATE AND MELAMINE

What is Wood veneer?

In woodworking, veneer refers to thin slices of natural wood or peeling the trunks of the tree with a thickness of 0.5mm or more. All the characteristics of natural wood are preserved on the veneer sheet such as color, wood grain, unique natural grain...

Veneer is often used to stick on the surface of industrial woods such as Particleboard, Plywood or MDF (Medium density fiberboard). The common types of wood used to make veneer are Oak, Ash, Walnut, Pine....

Not only using ordinary tree trunks, people also using the roots and branches to create very impressive textured veneer panels, applied in high-class interiors such as luxury car covers, musical instruments...

Photo: bird's eye figures- often used in car interiors

What is Laminate?

Laminate, also known as Formica, is a man-made material, consisting of many layers with different functions that are pressed under great pressure and heat to bind the layers together, so it is also known as High Pressure Laminate, HPL.

The structure of laminate consists of 3 layers:

• Over lay layer: The top layer. This is a transparent Melamine glue layer used to protect the surface of Laminate, anti-scratch, waterproof, heat-resistant, fireproof, easy to clean and sanitize.

• Decorative paper layer: Decorative paper, used to create colors and textures for Laminate surfaces. People use modern printing techniques, choose colors and simulate the shape of wood grain and then print on this layer of paper.

• The bottom layer is Kraft paper, also known as cement paper, consisting of 6-8 layers of Kraft paper that are tightly glued together with Melamine glue (melamine resin) during pressing at high pressure and temperature.

What is Melamine?

Melamine can be considered as Low Pressure Laminate, LPL as It is produced at a pressure lower than 300-500psi. The price of melamine is usually lower than price of Laminate because of its lower impact and scratch resistance, and also the surface thickness is lower.

Considering other factors, Melamine is similar to Laminate, it also has a very diverse design. Melamine is often used in less upscale interiors.

Choosing the right materials for your interior

According to the information mentioned above, hope you have better understanding on the characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of the currently popular materials in interior decoration: Veneer, Laminate, Melamine.

• Good quality veneer, completely natural color and texture. However, the heat resistance is not too high because it is natural wood.

• Laminate: diverse models, designs, colors, good heat resistance. However, the structural components contain a lot of plastic, melamine...and many chemicals must be used to achieve the required durability and fire and scratch resistance.

• Melamine: often used to create furniture effects for areas or furniture that are not important, do not have great value and do not require high durability (some people love to change furniture after 1- 2 years of usage, then using melamine in this case is quite appropriate)

Besides, 3 types of materials mentioned above are only decorative surface layers, if you want durable and safe furniture, you also need to consider the wood core layer below. The article helps to refer to more about the wood core layer HERE

Please leave information at the contact section or contact us directly to receive the latest price list at:

• Hotline: 0969389068
• Email: info@bmtveneer.com
• Website: veneerbmt.com