# Melamnie



## Kelly Rittgers (Aug 6, 2010)

Can you glue two 1/2 inch sheets of melamine together?

Thank you.

KR


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## Rayl (Nov 15, 2010)

*Maybe.*

Most of the "glue" companies make a special glue for gluing up Melamine but I guess that I would be concerned about it's adhesive power. Am I guessing correctly that you want to double-up the two pieces to make a thick table top? Good old Formica contact cement might be a better choice.


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## Kelly Rittgers (Aug 6, 2010)

Yes, I was thinking of a router table top out of two 1/2 inch peices of melamine. You think they could be glued up with formica contact cement?

KR


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

Basically, yes. As Ray says the glue companies probably won't guarantee the joints..... If you use PVA (poly vinyl acetate)/yellow glue or PU (polyurethane) glue you will get a better mechanical bond if you scuff the surfaces to be glued with coarse sandpaper (P60 or P80 grit). If you try to glue two layest of melamine together with anything other than contact adhesive you may find that the sheets "squirm" about when you start to apply cramping pressure so it mmay be best to fix two guide strips to two of the edges to prevent this - always assuming that you have two raw particle board edges to play with.

Phil


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## Kelly Rittgers (Aug 6, 2010)

contact adhesive it will be then.

Thansk

KR


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Kelly Rittgers said:


> contact adhesive it will be then.
> 
> Thansk
> 
> KR


Why don't you just glue it to a piece of plywood? The melamine probably has particle board or MDF for a substrate, you would get more strength from the ply and still have the smooth melamine surface.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

I was at a woodworking show a few years back and came across a rep from Franklin Adhesives (Elmer's) who was selling melamine glue among others. I had a good talk about it and bought some. One of the most versatile glues I have ever used. It will glue melamine to just about anything else. The kicker is that one side must be porous so that the water base can "flash off" although it will glue small pieces of melamine to melamine because the water can eventually escape sideways. It is odd from other glues in that it is recommended that you do NOT clamp joints together. Brad nails are the best recommended practice, loose clamping next. I put some 1/2" birch sides on 5/8" melamine bottoms for sliding shelves and realized that I had made a measuring error and needed to take them apart. I split some of the birch doing it. It is a very rubbery bond. The biggest downside of using this glue is that NOTHING will take it off your hands. I've tried everything but toluene which I draw the line at.
If you are glueing the top sheet to plywood, etc., I recommend the melamine glue. If Melamine to melamine the contact cement might be better but you still have the same problem, the remaining solvent has to be able to escape through the gap between the sheets.


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## Kelly Rittgers (Aug 6, 2010)

I am going to glue the 1/2 inch melamine to 1/2 mdf (or maybe baltic birch). I don't know if I can find that melamine glue you are referring to. 

Will contact adhesive work for this?

KR


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Kelly Rittgers said:


> I am going to glue the 1/2 inch melamine to 1/2 mdf (or maybe baltic birch). I don't know if I can find that melamine glue you are referring to.
> 
> Will contact adhesive work for this?
> 
> KR


Hi Kelly - If you with contact cement, use the solvent based stuff if you can. I haven't had much luck with the waterbase. Maybe just me but I think not. If you are going plywood or MDF to Melamine, the porous side may need two coats of glue. The DAP Weldwood stuff has pretty good instructions. 
Careful of the solvent based though, not only smelling nasty, the fumes are very explosive. Good Luck


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## boogalee (Nov 24, 2010)

Kelly Rittgers said:


> Can you glue two 1/2 inch sheets of melamine together?
> 
> Thank you.
> 
> KR


My table is 2 pieces of 3/4 melamine. I brought the melamine to a cabinet shop and had them flat sand 1 side of each piece. I then used Titebond III and glued it together.

Al


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## bobbotron (Jan 7, 2010)

What you could also do, is after it's glued, on the underside, you could drill a number of holes 3/4's of the way through both sheets (with a brad point bit and depth stop) and then glue a bunch of dowels in there.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Kelly Rittgers said:


> I am going to glue the 1/2 inch melamine to 1/2 mdf (or maybe baltic birch). I don't know if I can find that melamine glue you are referring to.
> 
> Will contact adhesive work for this?
> 
> KR


It would but if you are glueing the melamine to mdf or ply I don't think it would be my first choice mostly because it stinks, it's flammable, and compared to other glues, it's a pain in the butt to use. Rough up the melamine with very coarse sandpaper and you should be able to use almost any glue. My 2 best choices would be polyurethane (like Gorilla Glue) or Weldbond. Weldbond can also be used to glue countertop laminate down, you just have to keep pressure on it until the glue is dry.
You may be right about finding melamine glue. The largest town I live near is only 7000 and I haven't come across it there yet. If you have a store that specializes in cabinet hardware there is a good chance they will have it.


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## Kelly Rittgers (Aug 6, 2010)

A friend of mine told me to use carpet tape to hold the melamine and mdf together. That seems a little different.


KR


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Cherryville Chuck said:


> It would but if you are glueing the melamine to mdf or ply I don't think it would be my first choice mostly because it stinks, it's flammable, and compared to other glues, it's a pain in the butt to use. Rough up the melamine with very coarse sandpaper and you should be able to use almost any glue. My 2 best choices would be polyurethane (like Gorilla Glue) or Weldbond. Weldbond can also be used to glue countertop laminate down, you just have to keep pressure on it until the glue is dry.
> You may be right about finding melamine glue. The largest town I live near is only 7000 and I haven't come across it there yet. If you have a store that specializes in cabinet hardware there is a good chance they will have it.


Hi Chuck - I'm a big fan of poly adhesives but doing the whole area of 1/2" MDF may give a "wavy" surface because of the way the stuff expands. Might be ok just doing 2-3" around the edges though. 
Is Weldbond a water base? I've used the DAP Weldwood water based stuff and that needs to be clamped a good 6 hours, preferably 24, to get a decent bond and even then I have been able to detect "bubbles".


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

jschaben said:


> Hi Chuck - I'm a big fan of poly adhesives but doing the whole area of 1/2" MDF may give a "wavy" surface because of the way the stuff expands. Might be ok just doing 2-3" around the edges though.
> Is Weldbond a water base? I've used the DAP Weldwood water based stuff and that needs to be clamped a good 6 hours, preferably 24, to get a decent bond and even then I have been able to detect "bubbles".


John,
If you were to use poly adhesive you would have to weight or clamp one piece to the other, same as Weldbond. I had good luck using Lepage's water based contact cement on my own countertops,; I had poor luck with it on my daughter's. I had very poor luck period with DAP Weldwood contact cement. I believe that Weldbond is a water base. It dries to a somewhat rubbery consistency, which seems to me to be the strongest possible bond. When a glue is stressed it either fractures or yawns. There is no one adhesive that fills every requirement. Titebond 3 is a very good adhesive for general woodworking. If you are trying to edge glue to particle board nothing is better than Melamine glue. Or to anything else that is very porous. For glueing sandpaper to dowels for sanding ogees, etc, nothing is better than fish glue. I also use it to blind nail (search Lee Valley) and glue sandpaper to countertop laminate for use as sandpaper files.


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## derek willis (Jan 21, 2009)

Pva glue will stick anything to anything providing one surface is absorbant, so melamine and ply would be very good, otherwise contact adhesive.
Derek.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Kelly Rittgers said:


> A friend of mine told me to use carpet tape to hold the melamine and mdf together. That seems a little different.
> 
> 
> KR


Sorry Kelly, I missed this yesterday. I don't consider carpet tape a permanent bond. I have tried using it to hold templates down and they will move sometimes. I would still go with a glue. Rough both surfaces up a little before you glue.


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## metrman (Jun 8, 2010)

I just ordered some rooglue. Haven't tried it yet.

rooglue.com


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## Tempest (Jan 7, 2011)

Roo glue is good for melamine. It will stick well. It is very thin and watery though so a little goes a long way. Spread it out on the surface first if you are using it on a large area.


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## Kelly Rittgers (Aug 6, 2010)

I used contact cement and it worked just fine. flat, appears that you could not pull it apart. it is smelly and blows up easily.

KR


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## Thi Nguyen (Jan 21, 2010)

This site www.thistothat.com/cgi-bin/glue.cgi?lang=en&this=this&that=that shows what glue can be used to glue This to That. Unfortunately, melamine is not one of the option. Still, it is a good reference site.

PS> I haven't posted 10 post yet to be able to include an URL. Please allow me just this one.


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Thi Nguyen said:


> This site This to That (Glue Advice) shows what glue can be used to glue This to That. Unfortunately, melamine is not one of the option. Still, it is a good reference site.
> 
> PS> I haven't posted 10 post yet to be able to include an URL. Please allow me just this one.


Hi Thi - this the URL YOU wanted to post?
This to That (Glue Advice)


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