Outdoor cabinets- painted or marine grade? (1 Viewer)

efil4stnias

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Location- under a patio so free from direct rain ( may get misted on days of rain w/ heavy winds ) and direct sun will start around 3 til sunset. ( rear faces west )

So i have priced out marine grade polymer cabinets and was taken aback by the cost. But was ready to order when a carpenter ( here for pricing out interior shelving/bookcase ) said i could use wood so long as its painted fully.

He said few places have fully painted cabinets for 1/4 the cost.

i guess my question...is this viable? I mean i plan on being here for at least 5 years and the cabinets will not be connected to the wall - close to it but not anchored. And with a counter top connecting the cabinets and mini fridge.

Looking for anyone who has exp either way. Im not opposed to the marine polymer, but at $800 a pop ( x 2 ) just was wondering if painted wood would give me 5 years.

thx.
 
Location- under a patio so free from direct rain ( may get misted on days of rain w/ heavy winds ) and direct sun will start around 3 til sunset. ( rear faces west )

So i have priced out marine grade polymer cabinets and was taken aback by the cost. But was ready to order when a carpenter ( here for pricing out interior shelving/bookcase ) said i could use wood so long as its painted fully.

He said few places have fully painted cabinets for 1/4 the cost.

i guess my question...is this viable? I mean i plan on being here for at least 5 years and the cabinets will not be connected to the wall - close to it but not anchored. And with a counter top connecting the cabinets and mini fridge.

Looking for anyone who has exp either way. Im not opposed to the marine polymer, but at $800 a pop ( x 2 ) just was wondering if painted wood would give me 5 years.

thx.
Have you thought about making them out of Cypress or Cedar? Thats what I elected for my outside cabinets that would experience the occasional mist from a storm.
 
Have you thought about making them out of Cypress or Cedar? Thats what I elected for my outside cabinets that would experience the occasional mist from a storm.

Painted? I really only knew of teak being proper for outdoor (takes moisture well) but expensive like marine poly and with poly, it comes painted ( so wouldn't have to paint or stain)
 
Ill look into cedar cabinets as I just realized my fence is cedar... Duh. Thanks!
 
Painted? I really only knew of teak being proper for outdoor (takes moisture well) but expensive like marine poly and with poly, it comes painted ( so wouldn't have to paint or stain)
No not painted, I left mine natural finish. The outdoor pre-fab cabinets, those arent made out of OSB are they? I would be worried the first sign of wear the wood would start buckling.
 
No not painted, I left mine natural finish. The outdoor pre-fab cabinets, those arent made out of OSB are they? I would be worried the first sign of wear the wood would start buckling.

No. Plywood -coming from a wood shop not HD or Lowes type store... not OSB, MDF or particle board, True plywood. But i was told to paint it to ensure no moisture can enter. Even if i buy them painted still 1/3 to 1/4 the cost of these marine poly cabinets.

Now the marine will last for 20 years lol. but i wouldnt take em with if i move, and i dont know that it would add anything of value other than to me.

i guess i could roll this year with the wood see how it works and if by next spring looking shabby just splurge on the marine at that time.
 
Yeah, I looked into buying marine plywood onetime and that stuff is super expensive. My grandfather built all of his board walks and porches with marine plywood, I always thought that must have felt like pulling teeth to buy that stuff, once I grew up and realized the price of marine plywood.
 
You can buy marine spar varnish and coat them yourself for a lot cheaper.

They still won’t last forever but you should get 7-10 years out of them. More if you recoat occasionally.
 
Painted? I really only knew of teak being proper for outdoor (takes moisture well) but expensive like marine poly and with poly, it comes painted ( so wouldn't have to paint or stain)
teak is literally nature's wood. that sheet is heavy because of the density. it is also highly water resistant, which is why it is great, but can be hard to work with. most of my furniture is made out of teak or a teak structure.

teak takes a beating. i love it.

i had an outside teak bench, though never used, it was at my house over two years. never absorbed enough water to where it couldn't dry out without minutes. huge fan of the teak i am.

simple clear coat and bam! good to go.
 
Your base is the biggest issue. So long as it doesn’t sit in water, any good high quality finish you put on should be good enough to keep high quality plywood ok. High quality paint or spar varnish. Also, if you are making the countertop, you can always add extra overhang to shield it somewhat also.
 
Location- under a patio so free from direct rain ( may get misted on days of rain w/ heavy winds ) and direct sun will start around 3 til sunset. ( rear faces west )

So i have priced out marine grade polymer cabinets and was taken aback by the cost. But was ready to order when a carpenter ( here for pricing out interior shelving/bookcase ) said i could use wood so long as its painted fully.

He said few places have fully painted cabinets for 1/4 the cost.

i guess my question...is this viable? I mean i plan on being here for at least 5 years and the cabinets will not be connected to the wall - close to it but not anchored. And with a counter top connecting the cabinets and mini fridge.

Looking for anyone who has exp either way. Im not opposed to the marine polymer, but at $800 a pop ( x 2 ) just was wondering if painted wood would give me 5 years.

thx.
Houses were sided with wood and painted with oil based paints for years, so I don't see why cabinets wouldn't last as well. If you're concerned, use marine grade plywood or lumber. I would think as long as every surface was painted, exposed or not the seal should be sufficient to keep moisture out.
 
Thanks all. Good enough for me.... Wood w spar should get me 5 years and that's enough for me. Yes well set back from direct rain or even standing water so the base wouldn't really be an issue.
 
Well, this happens to be something I know a little bit about.

1. If you like natural wood, cypress is your first choice. It should be cheap and plentiful over there and your cabinet maker could use it. It's grown in swamps and naturally suited to our wet, warm climate.

2. That polymer crap is too expensive. It also looks like plastic so i never use it. Ever.

3. If you want painted wood, then I'd build it out of KDAT and marine plywood.

Also, there are numerous types of wood that can handle that exposure. Cumaru comes to mind. Mahogany also, but all that stuff is bucks.

For my last outdoor kitchen I had a fabricator build me an aluminum frame and clad it in teak tongue and groove finished with 3 coats of spar varnish. It was built where the aluminum frame allowed me to inset the wood so it was aluminum with the teak panes inset. It was cool. We used 5/4 cumaru deck boards for the top and lasted 10 years before we moved and was no worse for wear.

I'm going about this totally differently at the new house. I've bought commercial stainless tables on urethane wheels with locks. Think commercial kitchen tables with shelves. The sides and backs are being trimmed out with 1x10 tongue and groove cypress siding and will be painted.

No matter what you do, if you go with wood you should buy yourself Smith's 2 part epoxy and treat all of your wood according to the instructions. It is a giant pita and it's expensive, but it's also the absolute bomb. It essentially plasticizes the wood and penetrates into the cellular structure and makes the wood impervious to rot as long as it's coated. You can stain and varnish it and the smith's works like a bonding primer. Or, you can paint it. Either way, you apply the smiths to the point of rejection and sand between coats. When it's ready to paint, you put a light hot coat on your material and then paint or varnish while it's still tacky.

I swear, you could use crummy white pine and smiths and it would last for years, but if you use cypress it'll last decades. We use this stuff on high dollar wood doors, windows and trim where it needs to last forever.

Amazon product ASIN B0721R963L
Here it is on some mahogany after about a year.
 

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