Solid Hardwood, Engineered and Laminate Flooring - 1/4 inch luan board -- bookcase backing?

I am building in bookcases and thought of using some type of 1/4 inch plywood backing. What is luan and is this a suitable material? How is it on cost?

Thank you.

Greg.

I've used 1/8" luan to back a bookshelf before and it did well. It's also known as "door skins". It's about 8 to 10 dollars at Home Depot, and they usually have the better quality that I've compared at other home centers. Luan is usually available in two thicknesses, 1/8" and 1/4" (or close to that). I would use 1/8" for a bookshelf back, unless you intend for it to be your primary support to hold it all together. I've known of people building kayaks out of the 1/8" luan and it finishes quite well, after all, it was intended to be used on door faces.

Luan is a member of the mahogany family. Luan is cheap wood. For structural reasons, consider the 5MM (1/4" almost) thickness over the 3mm thick material. The cabinet back should be what holds your cabinet square. This wood soaks up finish materials, glues well. Remember a cubic foot of paper, books, weighs about 30 pounds so strength counts. You may want to check out another forum as this isn't really a flooring question.;)

Thank you all for your help. Quite right -- I did repost this in the proper forum. What happened was I saw a post here about 1/4 inch luan and tried to tie in to the string.

I believe I will use the luan (if not 1/4 birch). I have a sheetrocked wall which I will now cover with the 1/4 luan/birch. The built in bookcase to be will be supported with side 2 x 4s and not the luan/birch which will merely be a decorative backing.

Thanks again. Greg.