What is the best type of material for paint grade doors, jambs and mouldings?
There are an ever increasing number of paint grade materials being made available in the millwork industry today. With the improvement in the manufacturing of composite material, MDF, or “medium-density fiberboard”, is more and more becoming the standard for paint grade doors and mouldings because of its superior paintability and low cost. Be aware though, there are some drawbacks to using this material in certain applications. Finger-joint pine is another attractive option because of its ease of installation, fairly low cost and wide selection of available material. Poplar is a modestly priced hardwood that is excellent for use as paint grade material, especially on high-end custom work. As regards exterior doors, Maple / MDF doors (that is Maple stiles and rails with MDF panels) are about the finest in wood. Vertical Grain Douglas Fir doors continue to be popular in paint grade applications because of their wide selection and reasonable cost. Fiberglass and Steel doors have also come
