snark\on
Yeah, they are both exactly the same thing, just like paper is the same stuff as wood actually. Just like a Belter chair is the same thing as an Ikea chair.
snark/off
Casey

We had an ice dam problem about a month after install. The water ran down the wall behind the cabs and the particle board swelled right up and they had to replace the cabs. Would this have happened with plywood?

I did not imply that partical board is the same as wood. It's obviously not. However in most cabinet construction situations, they will be 99% functionally equivalent when compared in actual usage situations. That's what the KCMA certification is all about. It tests cabinets in real world hard use situations. Over and over. If a cabinet line passes, it receives KCMA certification. It will hold up in most consumer's homes just fine.

Water is the enemy of all wood. Plywood delaminates in the presence of moisture and partical board swells. Either damage will happen if the cabinets get soaked. So, even in a flood situation, the plywood and the partical board are basically functionally equivalent. Both are damaged.

Here is a link that might be useful: KCMA--what it is and how they do it

I don't like particle board because of all the off gassing of formaldehyde/glues. I can't walk down the cabinet aisle of any of the big box home improvement stores without it giving me trouble. As I am writing this I realize that walking in the Ikea displays does not give me trouble, but walking in where the warehouse area is does. What gives?

Also, the backs of the cabinets are definitely different. In my plywood boxes the backs are pretty solid. In the cabinets from Ikea they are thin, slightly thicker than plastic coated cereal boxes. I think you can find good and poor manufacturers of either.

I am linking to a Lowes description of the differences between the different materials that are reconstituted wood particles. You can also see their link to a page about the differences between different plywoods.

Here is a link that might be useful: Differences between MDF, Particle Board, Strand Board

I asked the cabinet designer at the local place, and he said there is not a difference once installed. He said the only difference would be the plywood would be more likely to survive water damage.

Plywood is stronger than particle board pound for pound, so upgrading to plywood is like upgrading from a wood girder to a steel girder. It takes less material to do the same job, so plywood cabinet boxes may be significantly lighter. A lighter box means that the joints (assuming same type of joints) are going to have a higher failure strength, because part of the strength isn't wasted holding the heavier box components together. Also, the same joint is stronger in plywood than it is in PB, because fasteners and glues hold better and more reliably in plywood. Of course, the manufacturers love particle board, as it gives them something to make from all of their sawdust. They take it, add an equal amount of resin/glue, and sell it back to the consumer as Ikea furniture!
Casey

Hestia, I think that Ikea uses a plywood that doesn't off-gas. I think (I'll have to research this better!) that there are stricter laws in europe (and Scandinavia) than there are here in terms of the off gassing chemicals.

There is some cultural stuff going on here too, I think-- some very high-end european companies use (very high end) particle board and no one blinks an eye, but here there is a sense that plywood is better, even if it's cheap-o plywood. It's probably like most issues-- the answer is "it depends." :)

I see this thread goes back to 2009. Maybe things have changed a bit?

The references to 'particle board' are interesting. The cabinet shop stated that MDF is not particle board. They are two different materials. That particle board is the cheap or poor product. She said it's high density fiberboard today and very strong. Not something to be concerned about in terms of durability.

The off-gassing didn't come up but that's an important point. Certainly plywood also offgases but maybe not as much? I think the water damage issue is another important consideration.

For painted cabinets, she says they do MDF so the finish holds up to humidity changes. I don't understand why she talks about it being high density but we were saying "MDF" not "HDF". I don't know if this painting method is used just for the doors or if getting painted means the whole cabinet basically must be fiberboard. (I believe the frame and some other parts are always solid wood). She did say plywood upgrades are available.

On all wood, warpage is a serious consideration so I'm not sure why that's considered so much better.