Framed Door Style Options (May 19, 2009)

Recessed Flat Panel
A recessed flat panel door, starts as a flat piece of wood, then the frame is made to go around it.

The visible difference between the recessed panel and the raised panel is very noticeable, and can give a slightly more contemporary feel to a kitchen or bath.

This style also allows for a center stile down the middle of the door, creating a look that is hard to duplicate with raised panel doors. The panels can be smooth, grooved, or decorated.

A recessed center panel to a door or drawer design conveys Transitional, Shaker, or Arts & Crafts styling.

Raised Panel - Solid
Even though the panel is called solid, it is not usually made of a single piece of wood. Wood expands and contracts with changes in humidity, and this can cause the door to split and crack.

To counteract the problems of natural movement in a solid wood center panel, the panel is usually constructed using several pieces of solid stock lumber glued together. The wood strips used to construct the panel may not all match in graining and color. As in the case of the slab door, the door's strength comes from the manner in which the pieces of solid wood are reversed as they are glued.

The panel is then cut on all four sides, so the center is higher than the edges. The face of the panel is usually flush with the front surface of the stiles and rails, with the edges forming a tongue which fits a corresponding groove cut into the door frame.

The groove is slightly larger than the panel's edge to allow the panel to float in the frame. This simply means that the panel has room to expand and contract during humidity changes, reducing the risk of the panel cracking or splitting.

Raised Panel - Veneer
Veneer is simply a thin slice of wood taken from a log, rather than a heavy board.

Instead of solid wood strips, the core (substrate) of the veneered panel is particleboard , or in some cases plywood, which gives the door much more stability than wood. The veneer slices (leaves) are edge-glued into a face. This face is made to fit the size of the panel. The method of matching the veneer edges determines the final appearance of the door panel.

A veneered center panel has a continuous graining, which some people prefer to the variety of the solid wood panel. While the final assembly into the frame is the same as for solid panel doors, veneered panel doors are less expensive than solid wood.

The Square, Cathedral, and Arched doors are usually available in stock, semi-custom and custom cabinets. Combinations (shown in bottom row) are available in some stock and semi-custom cabinets. Custom cabinets can be made using any combination. The actual cut of the door will vary by manufacturer.

Square	Cathedral		Arched

Raised Solid Panel with Laminate Surface

In this door, a single slab of MDF (medium density fiberboard) is routed to give the appearance of a center panel, and frame. Flexible vinyl is laminated to this substrate, using industrial adhesives applied with heat and pressure. The stability of MDF makes this door type especially resistant to cupping and warping. These doors are an inexpensive option to the raised panel wood door, and offer wide variety of color options .

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