Acrylic Modular Kitchen – Advantages and Disadvantages

We discuss the various categories of acrylic available in the Indian market for your Acrylic Modular Kitchen. Then, we have listed down the advantages and disadvantages of each of them so that you can take a more informed decision.

Feel free to reach out to us for your own interiors as well.

Acrylic seems to be a very famous finish for kitchen shutters that is asked by a lot of clients.

There is usually just one reason for which acrylic is in much vogue.

It’s because its glossy as compared to laminates.

While this is partly true, it’s not entirely necessary. There are some amazing high gloss laminates available which can give any acrylic sheets a run for their money. Similarly, there are many acrylics which are matte and can give you a same finish as laminates.

So doesn’t acrylic have any advantages? Yes and No.

Acrylic is supposed to be much harder than laminate if it is manufactured properly.

Unfortunately, most of the acrylic available for acrylic modular kitchen and other areas is the cheap stuff. This is neither harder nor much different from laminates.

Acrylic Modular Kitchen with Sheets Less than 2mm thick

There are many cheap acrylic sheets available in the market. They usually are available in 1 or 1.5 mm thickness. Many of them are imported from China. These acrylic sheets have:

1. Most features are same as laminates. They are glossy but not hard enough like an acrylic should be.
2. Range is very limited since it’s usually imported.
3. They are usually made using extrusion which has several disadvantages apart from the material quality. This is a low cost method which leaves many impurities in the sheet which can have long term health issues as well if it heats up which is highly likely in an Indian kitchen in an Indian summer.
4. They can yellow over a period of time.
5. The only reason that they are famous is because of the fame acrylic has. These sheets come within Rs.4000-5000 per sheet and are relatively cheaper compared to thicker acrylic sheets.

Acrylic sheets more than 2mm thick

Some good brands including Rehau and Action Tesa have acrylic boards which can be as thick as 18 mm in which case they will not need a plywood or MDF backing.

1. These sheets are very expensive and usually come mounted on HDHMR or MDF boards.
2. Range may be limited.
3. These are strong as good brands usually use cell casting method to make them. This also makes them highly scratch resistant.
4. They will not turn yellow but the whole shutter needs to be replaced if the doors start looking faded or too many scratch marks become visible.

Acrylic Paint and Polish

This is one type of acrylic for your Modular Kitchen that you will possibly not be told by your neighborhood carpenter or interior guy. Reason: It requires special sealants and polishes as well as special training to do. A sheet on the other hand is stick and go. These acrylic paints though have many advantages over acrylic sheets:

1. They are super glossy but can also be matte if need be.
2. Innumerable range of colors. In addition, transparent acrylic can be done on top of veneer to give it wooden look as well. (The image has bottom in veneer with transparent acrylic on top. This is medium gloss. Higher mirror shine is easily possible)
3. Edges of the shutters are seamless. Means no edge bandings. They are simply “perfect”.
4. They have very good strength and also don’t turn yellow over time.
5. If after few years, you feel that they need to be redone, just call a polish guy and get them buffed and they will be good as new!

Looking for Acrylic Modular Kitchen Interiors?

Do not confuse yourself. We have options in acrylic sheets as well as acrylic paints to choose from.

Basic difference between various Acrylic types and laminates

Name	Acrylic Paint and Polish	Acrylic Sheets >2.5 mm thick	Acrylic Sheets 2 mm thick	Normal Laminates
Finish	Any shine is possible	Glossy	Glossy	Glossy / matte
Edges	Seemless Edges	Edge banding needed	Edge banding needed	Edge banding needed
Scratches	High resistance	High resistance	Medium resistance	Depends on paper used
Durability	Very high	High	Average	Average
Yellowing over time	No	No	Might happen depending on method of making	No
Maintenance	If needed after few years, simple buffing will make shutter good as new.	Shutters need to be replaced	Shutters need to be replaced	Shutters need to be replaced
Price	Higher	Higher	Medium	Low
Range of Catalog	Limited by imagination	Limited	Limited	Very high