"Juls" wrote in message
...
Hey Phil,

I'm going to go to Lowes either tomorrow or Friday to get a sheet of
MDF (3/4 inch) for another project I'm doing (building a desk). The
sheet they have is 4' by 8' so I'll have a lot of MDF left over.

First, do you think MDF would be okay to use for the cat wall shelves?
I know there's a slight leak of formaldehyde, so I'll seal it before
adding the carpet. (The carpet might seal it, but I'd rather play it
double safe)

You should also seal the pieces you use for your desk.

Lowe's claimed they'll cut the whole sheet down for me if I come in
with a plan, so I thought I might as well have them cut it down to the
sizes I'll need for the shelves (and then cut some other shelves I may
use elsewhere)

"Claimed?" You sound doubtful. I've never been to Lowe's - we only have one
around here and it's on the opposite side of the city - but if they are
anything like their major competition, Home Depot, they will definitely have
a huge wall-mounted saw for cutting large sheets of plywood or other sheet
materials down to smaller pieces. If you're trying to carry the cut pieces
inside the car - as opposed to on a roof rack or in a minivan - be sure you
figure out how large the pieces can be and still fit into the car. For
example, if your pieces are going to be 4 ft X 4 ft, make sure that you can
get a piece that size into your car door or trunk.

What depth of shelf should I do? I'm thinking 10 to 12 inches, but
since I've never done this, I'd like to get it right. Jack is a big boy
(17 pounds) so needs to be big enough for him. I haven't exactly
figured out my plan yet, but I know they're gonna love this! I've got
their tower in the bedroom at a prime window, and I'm going to
incorporate the tower into the overall plan since they use the tower so
much.

TIA,

Juls

p.s. I do have a saw of my own, a Black and Decker Navigator (which my
friend calls my ladies' saw), but since Lowes said they'd cut it all up
for me, it will save the blade, plus cut down my risk of losing an arm.
Also, I need to fit this all into my car. The saw has a small jigsaw
attachment, so I can cut the holes myself.

Good! I don't think Lowe's will cut those for you :-) Again, if they are
like Home Depot, they will cut large rectangular sheets down to smaller
rectangular sections but won't do anything more than that.

Sorry, I didn't mean to butt in but just wanted you to understand the
wood-cutting service the large stores offer.

Rhino