Would a floating desk made made with an interior door be practical, or should i find a sturdier material?

I've been thinking about making a desk for my new room. The best place for it would be to put in a a corner. I'm looking at dimensions of 41x21". What i want to do is make it floating so that i wouldn't have leg posts in my way. I've seen elsewhere floating shelves made from interior doors and was thinking about incorporating that into my desk design.

What i want to do is cut an interior door to this 41x21" dimension. Then hang it up just like you would a floating shelf. Because it's in a corner i would have the advantage of being able to cleat not only the back but also one of the sides. Once i had it in place i planned to put a supporting bracket on the floating side for a little extra support.

I just wanted to know what other people thought of this idea. Would it make a sturdy enough desk, or should i use a different material than the door?

Comments

[tgferreira184]

depends on the door, becouse older doors are made on solid wood and most new doors are made from cardboard inside and a sheet f wood outside, beiing hard to cut them, becouse after the cut you have to put wood on the cut and they are very fragile

[ProRock]

Ok, from the feedback i've gotten from different people, i've decide that the interior door may not be the best choice.

My new idea is to use this idea http://www.hgtv.com/handmade/how-to-make-a-space-saving-floating-desk/index.html but make it not so thick. It would be supported on 2 sides, and instead of having the desk open from the top, i'd make it open from the front or side. If needed I would also add a support bracket underneath.

Feedback?!?

[canucksgirl]

Those plans would definitely work, but an 8" thickness is a bit much (unless you want a flip up desktop with the additional storage). Keep in mind though, that an interior door can work just as well, and they aren't all hollow core doors with cardboard. I know that some of them are so cheap that if you even look at them too hard you could dent them. Then there are more modern types (like we have), that are just as strong as an exterior door and are not hollow core. So if I were you, I would investigate the door you have first to figure out the kind you have. If yours is a cheap, thin hollow core door, then it may not be worth using; but if it's a good solid door, then it doesn't make much sense to spend the money for MDF. (Just my opinion). ;-)

[canucksgirl]

BTW, if you're not sure how to check the door you have, drill a hole through the bottom edge (or the top edge) to see if its solid, hollow or has a foam core. Either way, you'll know what you have and a small drill hole won't be any significant damage to the door (if you end up using it or not).

[Re-design]

You may have problems. A hollow core door gets most of it's strength from the lumber frame around the edge. The inside is just zig-zagged cardboard. If you add some lumber back around the cut edge where it's missing and glue it in you might replace the missing strength.

[ProRock]

Thats what i was planning on doing. i'm planning to make it similar to canucksgirl's link, but because it's in a corner it will have more than one side against a wall. The back and one side of the door will be against a wall. I'm also going to use supports for extra strength.

My back up option would be to take vyger's solid door idea and make a desk out of that.

[rickharris]

It works fine as long as you use it as a desk and not a chair! I use one for years over a couple of saw horses because I had a spare door.

[canucksgirl]

It should work fine if you have a long enough (and strong enough) support bracket, and 2 might even be better (one on the open end, and one in the middle); with a full channel that the door can slide into on the short side, against the wall. The brackets would also have to be anchored to the wall studs to be effective. If the door isn't too cheap (for a hollow core door), it should be sturdy enough for a desk. Just keep in mind that the more weight you need it to hold, the more reinforcements you should add. (I hope that helps). ;-)

[ProRock]

Thanks,
That's kind of what i was thinking, i just wanted some one else's opinion before i went ahead and started construction. I'll probably make a instructable when I do start construction.

[canucksgirl]

Here's a link to using a hollow core door (in case you have more questions). ;-)

[canucksgirl]

Please do! (The bonus is FREE Pro Membership if they "feature" your Instructable). ;-)

[Vyger]

I agree with ReDesign. A hollow core door is pretty flimsy. They are made just to act as a privacy barrier and that is about it. The wood is only about 1/16 of an inch thick on the face. Just dropping a tool on it will punch a hole in it. And if you cut away the frame then there is really no support for it left. A solid wood door is a much better choice. Sometimes you can get those for free. Anyplace they are demolishing a building or even a wood recycling company. Strip off the old paint and then sand it and refinish it. But don't use a hollow door. A 1/2 sheet of plywood is more substantial. Or another option is layer and glue planks from pallets.