Surface veneering technology allows you to create textured imitations of valuable wood species, spending a minimum of investment on this. As a base, ordinary wood-shaving material can be used, however, due to lamellas with an original design, even the surface will change beyond recognition. At the same time, the question of how to glue veneer is not so simple. Despite the outwardly simple gluing technique, there are nuances, ignoring which will not be easy to achieve a good result.
What is veneer?
In the furniture industry, there are many ways to design things aesthetically. Only one group of paints and varnishes allows you to decorate surfaces in a wide variety of colors and shades, not to mention graphic possibilities with modern visual effects. However, as demand for eco-style, with its craving for natural naturalness, natural veneer has again become relevant as a means of design. What is it in practice? This is a wood processing product, which is thin wooden sheets (lamellas) with a thickness of 0.2 to 3 mm. At home, it can be used not only to decorate pieces of furniture, but also in the additional design of door panels, floor coverings and wall cladding. But how to glue veneer without special skills? Technology to a greater extent requires not professional training, but attention and the ability to perform precise physical manipulations. In terms of tools, it is also unpretentious - you can get by with a standard set of home craftsmen.
Preparing the veneer for gluing
The problem of preparing material for work events lies in the delicacy and fragility of its structure. According to the instructions, the veneer must have a dust-free and cleaned surface, that is, it should be very carefully wiped with napkins and, if necessary, treated with non-aggressive detergents. After that, the sheet is dried in natural conditions without the use of heaters and other devices that generate artificial heat fluxes. If the question is how to glue veneer on chipboard and other chipboard products with a rough and rough surface, then you will need to initially observe some of the nuances of choosing a lamella. Firstly, it is desirable to give preference to coniferous fleecy veneer, which will organically engage with the surface.basics. Secondly, it will be necessary to observe the indicators of humidity (approximately W=8 ± 2%) and stability in thickness. By the way, thin veneer in this case is not suitable. To eliminate the uneven chipboard effect, thick and dense sheets will be needed.
Preparing the base for gluing
The quality of gluing is directly affected by the surface of the base. Regardless of the type of target material, its working side must also be cleaned and leveled as far as possible. The only exceptions in a certain range are particle boards, which have a structurally complex surface, which has already been mentioned above. But even in such cases, it is important to make an external clearing and eliminate possible defects. How to glue veneer correctly in order to reduce the risk of defective zones at the joints in the future? The risks of swelling, delamination and deformation are largely prevented by the right choice of adhesive base. As for the base material, it is only possible to prevent the obvious threats associated with existing damage. It is very important to troubleshoot the entire structure, identifying chips, cracks (even small ones), bends and dents. If such defects are found, the operation with such material should, in principle, be abandoned, but in extreme cases, you can try to restore the problem area with special primers and seals for wood.
Glue preparation
First of all, you should decide what kind of glue can be used in this operation? The universal solution will beone-component composition, the basis of which is a dispersion based on PVA. It is desirable that there be no formaldehyde in the set of components, but modification as such should not be abandoned either. Much of the use of additives will depend on the characteristics of the veneer itself and the working substrate. For example, how to glue veneer on MDF with a rigid structure? If dense lamellas are used, then it will be necessary to maintain the optimal degree of thickening of the adhesive, adjusting this indicator with swelling fillers like wood flour and water as a thinner. In this way, sufficient viscosity must be maintained, otherwise the adhesive layer simply will not cope with its function between two materials with rough structures.
What tool do you need for the job?
As already mentioned, special consumables and devices will not be needed. You can limit yourself to carpentry equipment for performing the procedure, rags or napkins to eliminate excess glue and directly to working materials. Another thing is that, if desired, you can modify the technology in order to optimize labor costs. For example, how to glue veneer in a streaming mode to achieve high quality? In the workshops, artisans use special devices for spot application of glue, use heating devices and pressing equipment. If difficulties may arise with the latter in domestic conditions, then a glue applicator can be purchased on the market (such as the Gupfo-Leimer model), and an industrial heater is replaced by an iron.
Step by stepperforming a glue operation
When all the materials and necessary tools for laying veneer are prepared, you can start the workflow. So, how to glue veneer at home? The operation is performed in the following order:
- If it is possible and it is not a stationary structure, then the target product is additionally fixed physically. For example, workbench guides.
- Prepared and diluted glue is applied to the gluing base.
- The veneer is carefully applied to the treated surface, after which the lamella must be delicately smoothed over the entire area with a cloth. At this stage, as with wallpapering, it is important to avoid leaving bubbles in the joint area. Smoothing is carried out strictly in the direction of the fibers.
- At the final stage, the veneer can be slightly dampened with warm water, which will improve the process of adhesive bonding of structures.
Modifications of gluing technology
It is possible to improve the conventional technology of gluing veneer due to thermal effects and pressing. As already noted, in the first option, a home iron can also be used - but strictly with a thermally insulating lining and at a minimum temperature. As for the press, its use is justified if it is planned to form a multilayer structure from lamellas. For example, how to glue veneer on plywood in several layers? In the simplest scheme, you can use a clamp or a household hydraulic press. The main thing is to put paper or a lining in each layer, which will create a reinforcement effect. After clamping, the structure is kept in this position for several hours for the period of adhesive activity of the adhesive composition.
Features of gluing stone veneer
In fact, the same analogue of wood veneer, but in a stone or imitating stone structure base. These are mini-slabs with a thickness of 1-3 mm, which are used in the decoration of walls, facades and interior items. In the question of how to glue stone veneer, the following technological features are important:
- The reverse side is weakly reinforced with a cotton or thin cork backing.
- Special stone or wood sealants can be used as an adhesive.
- If laying is planned on the side of the facade, then the adhesive is selected taking into account external factors. At a minimum, it should be moisture resistant and have high mechanical resistance.
- Stone veneer is cut with a circular saw or a special electric jigsaw, followed by grinding.
Conclusion
Veneer is a fairly simple and effective solution for the design transformation of various surfaces. High-quality lamellas are quite expensive, but in practice, this material justifies itself. How to glue veneer so that it retains its qualities for a long time? Cases where there are problems with the bonding area are rare. Much more errors are allowed when lamellas are located withdeviations. Otherwise, everything will depend on the care of the updated surface. So, to maintain the optimal technical condition of the veneer, it must be regularly treated with special impregnations and protective paint primers.
