(chipboard) the edges of parts without processing have an unsightly appearance. To put them in order, furniture edges and profiles are used. It’s more convenient to work with them using special equipment, but you can also achieve good results with your own hands at home.

Types of furniture edges

One of the most popular materials for making furniture is chipboard. Its disadvantage is the unsightly edges that remain when cutting the part. These edges are masked by the furniture edge. They make it out of different materials Accordingly, it has different properties and prices.

Paper or melamine edges

Most cheap option— edges made of paper with melamine impregnation. The paper is taken of high density, impregnated with melamine to increase strength and glued to papyrus paper. Papyrus can be single-layer (cheaper) or double-layer. To prevent the melamine coating from wearing off, everything is covered with a layer of varnish. To make it more convenient to edge the parts, an adhesive composition is applied to the back side of the melamine furniture edge. When working, you just need to slightly warm up this composition and press it well against the end.

Paper or melamine edge is the cheapest, but also the most short-lived option for finishing the ends of furniture

The thickness of paper edge tapes is small - 0.2 mm and 0.4 mm are the most common. There is no point in making it thicker, and it will be expensive.

This type of edges is distinguished by the fact that it bends very well and does not break when bent. But its mechanical strength is very low - the edge quickly wears out. Therefore, if it is used, it is only on those surfaces that are not subject to load. For example, on the back of shelves, tabletops, etc.

PVC

Received in lately Polyvinyl chloride is also widely used in the production of edges for furniture. A ribbon of a certain width and thickness is formed from a mass painted in a certain color. Its front surface can be smooth, monochromatic, or it can be textured - with imitation of wood fibers. The number of colors is large, so it’s easy to choose the right one.

Furniture edge PVC is the most popular material used by both home craftsmen and professionals. This is due to the relatively low price and good performance properties:

PVC furniture edging is available in different thicknesses and widths. Thickness - from 0.4 mm to 4 mm, width from 19 mm to 54 mm. The thickness is chosen depending on the expected mechanical load or external appearance, and the width is slightly larger (at least 2-3 mm) than the thickness of the workpiece. There is a furniture PVC edge with applied adhesive composition, yes - without. Both can be glued at home (more on that below).

This type of edging material also has disadvantages: not very wide temperature regime: -5°C to +45°C. For this reason, furniture cannot be left outside in winter, and when pasting with heat, you must be careful so as not to melt the polymer.

Made from ABS plastic

This polymer does not contain heavy metals and is highly durable and durable. The disadvantage can be considered the high price, therefore it is used extremely rarely, although it has excellent properties:

This type of edge can be matte, glossy or semi-gloss. There are also options that imitate various types of wood. In general, this material is more convenient to use and more durable to use.

Veneer edge

Veneer is a thin section of wood, colored and shaped into a strip. This furniture edge is used in production for gluing sections of veneered products. Working with this material requires certain skills, and the material is expensive.

Veneer is not the most popular material for edging

Acrylic edge or 3D

Made from transparent acrylic. On back side stripes are applied. The layer of polymer on top gives it volume, which is why it is called a 3D edge. Used in the production of unusual furniture.

Profiles for processing furniture edges

You can trim the edge of furniture not only with edge tape. There are also furniture profiles that are attached mechanically. They are available in two sections - T-shaped or U-shaped (also called C-shaped).

For T-shaped furniture profiles, a groove is milled in the edge being processed. The profile is hammered into it with a furniture (rubber) mallet. The edges are cut at 45° to make the angle look attractive. To perfect condition finished with fine sandpaper. This type of profiles is produced from PVC and aluminum; with the same installation method, they look very different, and the differences are significant.

In width they are available for laminated chipboards of 16 mm and 18 mm. There are also wide ones, but they are much less common, since they work less with such material.

C- or U-shaped profiles are most often mounted with glue. They coat the edge with it, then put it on plastic profile, press and fix well. These PVC profiles there are soft and hard. Hard ones are harder to bend and it’s difficult to paste them over curved edges. But they have great strength.

If you still need to “plant” a hard C-shaped furniture profile bending, it is heated with a hair dryer, then given the desired shape and secured masking tape until the glue dries.

We glue furniture edges with our own hands

There are two technologies for gluing furniture edge tape. The first is for those that have glue applied to the back. In this case, an iron or construction hair dryer. The second is for gluing tapes without glue. In this case, you need a good universal glue that can glue plastics and wood products and a furniture roller, a piece of felt or a soft rag so that you can press the edge well against the cut.

A little about what thickness of edge to glue on which parts. Those edges that are not visible, according to GOST, do not need to be glued at all, but basically they try to treat them so that less moisture is absorbed into the chipboard, and also to reduce the evaporation of formaldehyde. Melamine tape or 0.4 mm PVC is glued to these edges. The edges are also processed drawers(not facades).

It is better to use 2 mm PVC on the front ends of the facade and drawers, and 1 mm PVC on the visible sections of the shelves. The color is chosen either to match the main surface or “in contrast”.

How to glue edging yourself with glue

The adhesive composition is applied to the melamine edge; it can be applied to PVC. If you choose PVC, it’s easier to start with thin ones - they are easier to process, any melamine is easy to glue.

We take an iron and a fluoroplastic nozzle on it. If there is no nozzle, thick cotton fabric will do - so as not to overheat the tape, but to melt the glue. A hair dryer is also suitable for this purpose. We set the iron to about “two”, while it is heating up we cut off a piece of tape. The length is a couple of centimeters longer than the workpiece.

We apply the edge to the part, level it, smooth it out. There should be small pieces hanging off both sides. We take an iron and, using a nozzle or a rag, iron the edge, heating it until the glue melts. It is necessary to heat evenly over the entire surface. After the entire edge is glued, let it cool. Then we start processing the edges.

The edge can be cut with a knife, both with the sharp and blunt sides. Some people use a regular metal ruler, while others find it more convenient to use a stainless steel spatula.

So, take the tool you have chosen and cut off the hanging edges of the edge. They are cut close to the material. Then cut off the excess along the part. Melamine and thin plastic are easily cut with a knife. If the PVC edge is thicker - 0.5-0.6 mm or more, difficulties may arise. Such edges are possible if there is one. This guarantees good result in a short time. The processing will take longer if you use sandpaper, but the result may not be worse.

One important point: when gluing thin edges, the cut of the part should be smooth, without protrusions and depressions. The material is plastic, which is why all defects are visible. Therefore, first go over the cuts with sandpaper, then thoroughly remove dust and degrease. Only after this can you glue.

Edging with PVC tape (no glue on the back side)

With this method self-gluing PVC edges need universal glue and a piece of felt or rag. We read the instructions for the glue and carry out all the steps as recommended. For example, for Moment glue, you need to apply the composition to the surface and distribute it, wait 15 minutes, and firmly press the surfaces to be glued.

Apply glue and wait - no problem. To press the edge tightly to the cut, you can use wooden block wrapped in felt. Instead of a block, you can take a construction float and also attach felt to its sole. As a last resort, you can collapse thick fabric in several layers and press the tape to the surface.

The selected tool is pressed against the laid edge, pressed with all its weight, pressing it against chipboard surfaces. The movements are stroking. This is how they iron the entire edge, achieving a very tight fit. The part is left in this form for some time - so that the glue “seizes.” Then you can start processing the edges.

Here we describe the process of gluing the ends of laminated chipboard with regular paper edge using a regular iron.

Most suitable for pasting regular iron Soviet made in the temperature regulator.

In most cases and for most edges, the optimal temperature regime is set just short of the third division.

On short parts, up to 40 cm long, the entire length at once.

In long sections of 40-45 cm.

An indicator of a well-heated edge is the edge sagging under the iron, because the adhesive layer melts.

An insufficiently heated edge will not stick well to the end and subsequently, if not immediately, will begin to peel off.

However, overheating the edge is also not desirable. because the glue simply burns out and the edge will not stick.

Immediately after warming up the edge section, smooth it to the end using a cloth (felt, etc.). The edge cools down quite quickly, so you shouldn’t spend too much time smoothing it. It is better to immediately move to another section of it, thereby avoiding the trace of the transition. For the same reasons, when warming up the edge, we “carry” the iron along the edge without holding it in one place for too long. That is, we simply perform the same actions as when ironing clothes. The principle is the same.

Now we move on to cutting off the excess edge. First we cut at the ends.

Then along the plane.

We hold the knife as shown in the photo. It is advisable to direct the cutting movements towards the part, and not outwards. Because not all edges are of the same level of moisture and quality, therefore, on drier edges, when moving the knife “outward,” unsightly scuffs of the face layer may form, which will be difficult to remove even with subsequent sanding.

You can also remove the previously glued edge using an iron.

1. heat a section of the edge, pry it up and separate it from the part....

Melamine edged chipboard end it looks no worse, and sometimes even better, compared to pasting on an inexpensive machine. Today we will figure out how to glue melamine edge. Look detailed instructions step by step.

This furniture end tape is made of papyrus paper impregnated with melamine resins to protect against external influences. The thickness of the furniture edge depends on the number of layers of paper used and is no more than 0.4 - 0.6 mm.

Edge width from 15 mm to 45 mm. The most popular sizes are 19/0.4 (mm) and 40/0.4 (mm).

On what parts should I glue?

The sides of cabinets, cabinets, tables, as well as the internal shelves of any home and office furniture are trimmed with melamine tape.

• On parts that have contact with the floor, but are not subject to wet cleaning,
• Internal parts (shelves, internal parts of drawers),
• Elements that will not be subject to direct physical and mechanical stress.

Required tool:

• Coil with end tape,
• Iron,
• Knife cutter,
• A damp cloth or piece of felt
• Sandpaper coated block,
• Part holder.

Preparation

In order for the melamine end edge to stick efficiently and evenly, you need an iron with a flat and thick sole. The best option There will be a Teflon coated iron. Also, its surface must be clean and smooth.

For comfortable work It’s better to take a sharp knife with a thin handle or find an old knife blade and make a cutter out of it. You can use a spatula.

An ordinary chipboard piece with sandpaper glued to one side (grit size P120) is suitable as a block.

The melamine end edge comes with a pre-applied layer of adhesive. If it suddenly turns out that it does not have an adhesive layer, then it must be applied to the part.

For this operation, we will also need a part holder, which can be made from the remains of chipboard. It looks like this:

Let's start pasting

Unwinding edge tape from the coil (it’s more convenient to unwind from the inside) and apply it to the end of the chipboard, first leaving a margin for trimming.

Its standard width is 21 mm, and the chipboard is 16 or 18, leaving a margin for trimming and rubbing. In order to avoid the need to cut on both sides, it is better to immediately align it on one side, and on the other side it will overlap.

After we have applied it, we begin to heat it right along the end and iron it with an iron. You need to iron the edges of the ends especially carefully.

Short parts can be ironed entirely, and if the part is long, we warm up 40 cm sections one by one. After that, cool the end with a slightly damp cloth.

The temperature of the iron is adjusted depending on the quality of our tape. It should glide quickly, easily and without friction, without scratching the surface or resisting movement.

High-quality heating will be indicated by uniform spreading of the glue under the edge. If it overheats, bubbles will appear and it will deteriorate, therefore, monitor the temperature and do not overexpose the iron in one place.

If you suddenly damage the edge, it will need to be replaced. Using heat with an iron and a knife, remove the old one, clean the end of any remaining glue and start all over again.

The edge will stick well only after it has completely cooled. ONLY after the end has completely cooled can you begin trimming and finishing the edges.

In order to cut off the excess efficiently and evenly, you must first bend the edge with your finger, tap along the edge and rub it several times with a block until you see a white chamfer (this is the paper backing). And you can start cutting off the excess.

Video: how to glue furniture edges to chipboard

Another video from home handyman- pasting furniture edges with your own hands:

An easy way to stick PVC edge

The easiest way to glue a PVC edge is to order hot melt adhesive to be rolled onto the edge from a furniture shop. Then glue it, heating it with an iron or hairdryer (naturally, not an ordinary hairdryer, but a technical one, which gives an output of 500-600 degrees). I myself have not used this method, so I negative aspects I can only tell it tentatively, based on my experience with the material.

I glue the PVC edge with regular rubber glue, which we sell on tap. “Moment” is best, “88” will do as well.

Knife and other hand tools cutting tools They are not suitable for processing PVC. Even if you manage to cut the edge with a knife, then, I assure you, neither the effort nor the time spent on this thankless task will pay off.

To process such an edge, you will need a router. Actually, a special edge router is used for these purposes:

But if you are not going to open your own production, then there is no need to buy such a machine. It is better to buy a normal, large router. In addition to processing PVC, it is useful for finishing the ends and for grooving - both at the ends of panels and on the layer. And if you work with wood, then you simply need a router!

It is not necessary to buy cool and expensive, quite good milling cutters from Phiolent - a reliable semi-professional

ABS edge cutter

To process PVC edges, the following cutter is used:

Therefore, the first thing we will need to do is slightly modernize our router by adding a step to the platform . It can be made from textolite, plywood, at worst, from fiberboard - in a word, from any sheet material 4-5 mm thick. You can secure it with screws, screws, etc., the main thing is to recess the caps or glue them!

Now you need to adjust the cutter height. This should not be done on the panel being processed. It is unlikely that you will be able to accurately adjust the height the first time. Take some scrap (but not very narrow, so that the router platform does not wobble), cover it with an edge, and adjust on it.

Usually, no matter how you set it up, there will be a small protrusion left after processing. It's not scary, just try to keep this protrusion to a minimum so that it can be easily cut off with a knife. When you finish setting up, don't throw away this scrap - you will need it next time. When it becomes necessary to adjust the height of the cutter again, simply turn it with the cutting part perpendicular to the end and lower the platform so that the cutter rests firmly on the machined edge.

The cutter is set, you can start processing the panels. You need to process in two passes. After the first pass, the cut will probably be uneven; with the second pass we level out all the protrusions and depressions:

Exactly in that order! If you change the order of passage, the cutter will knock out and chip the edge. From time to time, clean the cutter bearing and edge from adhering chips - the bearing can bounce on it and the cut will turn out uneven.

So, your panel has been processed with a router, but this is only a small part of the work. Now you have to do a lot of manual processing, which takes two to three times longer. First you need to trim off the overhanging ends of the edge. It can be done big scissors or simply break it off, after cutting it with a knife. When breaking off, do not forget to firmly press the edge at the edge of the end so that it does not come off. Do not cut to the very root, but by stepping back by about 0.5 mm. It is better to spend time sanding or belt sanding than to cut off more than necessary.

No router processes PVC perfectly. In any case, there will be irregularities that will be clearly visible in the light. In most companies that make furniture for sale, no one bothers further processing- cut off the remaining protrusion with a knife, scratch it a couple of times along the cut with the back of the knife and that’s it.

But you do it for yourself, right? Therefore, get ready to spend the same amount of time bringing the cut to perfect condition. First of all, use a knife to cut off the protrusion left by the router (if the height of the router is set correctly, you will have to cut a thin thread).

If you glued PVC to contact glue, then most likely there will be drips and smears of glue on the panel. Be careful when cutting them. It’s better to first remove them with a cloth moistened with solvent or gasoline. After this, go over the cut with fine sandpaper, smoothing out all the “waviness”, then polish it with felt.

Now you have a finished panel that is not inferior in quality to that manufactured furniture factory, and maybe even surpassing it!

It is very rarely possible to cover the entire required surface with one sheet of drywall, and then joints appear that need to be sealed.

If you take a whole sheet of drywall, then it already has ready-made chamfers and you don’t need to do anything additional. During the installation process, it becomes necessary to cut the sheets and then it becomes necessary to chamfer them.

What is a chamfer and why is it needed?

Many home craftsmen neglect such a stage of work as cutting the ends of gypsum boards, as they consider it unnecessary and unimportant. Experts recommend that you always trim the edge, and why you need to do this, we’ll try to figure it out in this article.

First, let's figure out what a chamfer is. If you look in the dictionary, a chamfer is an edge of drywall or any other material that is cut at an angle of 45-60 degrees.

Appearance of chamfer

If a bevel is made on a sheet of drywall, the seam becomes wider, and this allows it to be filled well with putty, this will prevent cracks from appearing later.

If you do not chamfer, then a small gap will remain between the straight ends of the drywall sheets, it will be difficult for the primer to get there, and during the process of sealing it, little putty will get into the gap, which will lead to the fact that after some time a crack may appear in this place.

It becomes clear that it is necessary to trim the edge of the drywall. If there is no chamfer on the edge of the drywall, even the presence of sickle tape on the seam does not guarantee that a crack will not appear in this place.

In order to avoid the appearance of cracks in the future, it is enough for the chamfer to be 8-10 mm, so it will be well filled with primer and putty, and the joint will be strong and reliable.

How to make a chamfer?

To perform the above work you will need the following list of tools:

• ruler;
• pencil;
• stationery knife.

Drywall must be laid on flat surface, it is necessary to ensure its reliable fixation so that it does not move during the work.

At the next stage, use a pencil and a ruler to mark a line on the drywall, approximately 8-10 mm from its edge.

Drawing a line

Now, using a knife, which is positioned at an angle to the sheet, we begin to cut off the edge of the sheet with a smooth movement.

This should be done no more than 2/3 of the sheet thickness, the work is done sharp knife and smooth movement. Do not make jerking or saw-tooth movements, as this will result in an uneven edge.

If you do everything smoothly, then during work the chips will curl and you will get a smooth, inclined surface.

Cut off the edge of the leaf with a knife

After you make the edge, you need to trim it, this can be done using fine sandpaper or using a special plane for drywall.

Edge processing

The same sequence of work will be carried out with the remaining faces of the gypsum board on which it is necessary to make an edge.

After you have made the edges and installed the plasterboard sheets, you need to properly seal all the joints. Before starting work, you must thoroughly clean the walls, seams from dust and debris, and check the tightness of the installation of the sheets.

To seal the seams you will need spatulas with a width of 80 and 250 mm, a container for putty, a grater or a fine sandpaper and a brush for applying primer.

To seal seams, it is necessary to use a special reinforcing tape called serpyanka.

First the seam is filled ready-made mixture, for which a spatula is used, the seam is completely filled and allowed to dry a little.

At the next stage, reinforcing tape is applied and again, using a spatula, it is pressed into the putty. Now all that remains is to apply another layer on top of the tape, level it and wait for everything to dry.

In order for the putty to hold onto the joint more firmly, it is recommended to soak it with a primer before doing this, after which it must be allowed to dry completely and only then can you continue to carry out further work.

If you don’t have serpyanka, you can use regular fiberglass, but before starting work, cut a strip of the required size and knead it well with your hands so that it becomes soft.

You cannot immediately stick the tape onto the joint and then fill it with putty. First you need to fill the joint with putty, which takes approximately 60%, then lay down the tape and apply the rest of the putty.

Below is a table of the cost of tools and materials needed to work with drywall.

If you correctly make the edges on the plasterboard sheets and seal the seams well, you don’t have to worry about cracks appearing in these places.