How to make a to size TV cabinet from MDF
A TV cabinet made of MDF is a contemporary addition to your interior. MDF looks sleek and the material is very strong, ensuring a long life of the furniture. With this step-by-step plan you will make your designer TV cabinet, floating or on legs, in 5 steps. It starts with a construction drawing!
Use MDF
Before you start making a TV cabinet from MDF, we'll tell you more about the material. MDF is a popular board material that can be used for countless indoor projects. A door, an enclosure for pipework, a bookshelf and a TV cabinet are some examples of the uses of MDF.
What exactly is MDF?
MDF belongs to the family of fiberboards. The board consists of wood fibers compressed under high pressure. This makes the material easy to work with: when milling and sawing, the material does not splinter. The fibers are held together by resin. It is suitable only for indoor applications and in dry conditions.
Machining MDF
MDF natural has an absorbent effect, so it is important to pre-treat the material with a primer before painting. The end edges require some extra attention. To counteract the absorbent effect of the end edges, there are several options: use diluted wood glue with some water, filler or a special edge sealer.
Different types of MDF
MDF natural is strong and has high abrasion resistance. This makes it a very popular material when making furniture. Do you want to paint the material? Then it might be a good idea to consider the MDF Paint Carrier variant. This saves a lot of work as it will not need to be primed. MDF Black Water-resistant is what you choose when you want to paint an indoor project in a dark colour or transparent. This can be a particularly nice choice for a TV furniture made of MDF.
Mounting a floating TV unit
A floating TV cabinet made of MDF gives a spatial effect and a modern look. Many people find mounting the furniture to the wall a challenging job, so that's why we tell you how to attach your floating TV furniture. We will show you two methods. The choice depends on the size and weight of the TV unit. Always check whether the wall can support the weight of the floating TV unit at all.
Keeplat
A keeplat is a mitered batten on which another batten is laid and this creates a solid joint. Attach a pine batten cut with a mitre to the back of the TV unit. On the wall, attach a similar batten, but with the mitred edge in the opposite direction. This makes it possible to slide the mitered edge of the TV furniture over the mitered edge on the wall and make a solid connection. With this construction, a small gap appears between the furniture and the wall. If you make the stop lath lying in, at the back of the TV cabinet, you can fix the cabinet directly against the wall. This is a very precise job!
Keil bolt
If you have designed a large and heavy piece of furniture, go for safe and choose to attach wedge bolts. A wedge bolt is a special bolt that is very suitable for hanging heavy objects on the wall. The final weight that can be hung on a wedge bolt depends on the type of wall it is drilled into. Wedge bolts are mainly suitable for concrete and stone walls. For fastening, make a wooden frame from pine beams and place the TV unit made of MDF around it. At both the top and bottom, place a number of jack screws through the pine beams and then fix them to the wall.
DIY: Make a bespoke TV cabinet from MDF
Are your hands starting to itch now that you know more about the material and what to look out for? Making your own TV furniture is certainly not an impossible task, even for a novice handyman. We will gladly help you on your way! In 5 steps, you can make your own TV cabinet from MDF.
Step 1 | Make a construction drawing
Do you already have a clear design in mind? Whatever the design looks like, it helps to make a simple working drawing of your idea. This will help you think carefully about the feasibility of your design. Will you make the MDF TV furniture floating or will you attach wheels underneath? Have you thought about the construction and which accessories you will need for it? And how will you divide the TV cabinet conveniently?
If you are looking for inspiration to find a suitable construction drawing or beautiful examples, Pinterest is your greatest friend. This is where you will gather all your inspiration online to come up with a beautiful design. TOSIZE.ie also has a few ready-made designs available for you. We will come back to these later in the article.
Step 2 | Determine the colour
A TV cabinet made of MDF in white or black? Good news, because whatever your preference: it's possible! At TOSIZE.ie you can order MDF in many types, including MDF Black V313 and MDF lacquer wear. Then paint the TV cabinet in the colour that suits your interior! DIY stores have endless colour inspiration to find the right colour for your interior.
Step 3 | Collect your material as a kit in the shopping basket
Based on your drawing and the MDF of your choice, you can easily compile a cutting list. This is a list of the required planks in the right format; your own kit for the MDF TV cabinet. At TOSIZE.ie we cut the shelves to the mm, so you can start building your TV furniture right away. You can enter the dimensions directly online at TOSIZE.ie and give each shelf its own characteristic. If you write this down on your working drawing, you won't have to search for which part of the TV furniture it is during your job. That's handy!
Step 4 | Add accessories
You cannot assemble a TV cabinet with MDF alone. Accessories such as screws, wood glue, hinges and handles are also indispensable for this job. Did you know you can also order these accessories directly from our webshop?
Step 5 | Order your kit and receive it at home in no time
Once you have fully thought out the TV furniture, calculated the materials needed and filled the shopping basket, you have suddenly put together your own construction kit. And without too much effort! Want to double-check your design? Then take a look at our checklist for making TV furniture and adjust your order if necessary.
As soon as you have ordered the MDF for your TV furniture, our sawing specialists will be happy to get to work. In no time at all, you will receive the kit at home and you can easily assemble your TV furniture yourself.
Thought of everything? Do the check!
A TV cabinet has a specific function, namely to make watching TV as comfortable as possible and it should also be an attractive addition to your interior. A major annoyance with a TV cabinet is the mess of wiring in sight! To avoid this and other design flaws, we have drawn up this checklist:
- Can you get rid of the cords?
- Is there a cabinet wide and deep enough to store the TV receiver?
- Is the function of the remaining cabinets appropriate for the current dimensions?
- Is the function of the other cupboards appropriate to the current dimensions?Is the height for placing the TV adjusted to your desired 'viewing height'? For relaxed TV viewing, it is advisable to determine the viewing height according to your height, the height of the sofa and the desired viewing position. If you don't do this, you may experience neck or back pain.
- Have you thought about invisible joints on the front of the TV cabinet?
Can you answer all the questions with YES? Kudos to you! You have thought of everything. You can order the MDF for your TV cabinet.
Construction drawing for TV cabinet
Assembling a TV cabinet from MDF can be a challenge if you are not an experienced handyman. Good news! At TOSIZE.ie, we also have a number of TV cabinets available in MDF that you can order as kits. You can choose from an bestaand ontwerp from our range or create your own design. You can see the price directly via our order module.
Easy mounting
Your TV furniture is delivered as a handy kit. The parts are carefully packed and delivered on a pallet. Assembly is easy, even without a carpenter's eye and technical knowledge. With the manual and the installation kit, you can get started right away: all necessary parts such as hinges, screws and plugs are included.
