ᐅ How do you repair damaged Malm drawer fronts?

Hello everyone, I have several Malm dressers from IKEA, and unfortunately some of the drawer fronts are damaged. The fronts are usually made of fiberboard with a smooth veneer coating, which makes repairs a bit tricky. Specifically, the damage is often chipped edges or scratched surfaces that can’t simply be painted over without being noticeable, because the surface is so smooth and even. How do you usually approach repairing these Malm drawer fronts despite their particular material? Are there any experiences with specific fillers, sanding techniques, or suitable paints/films to restore the appearance as close to the original as possible? I don’t want to just “paint over” the damage, but rather achieve a solid and long-lasting repair.

If the trim only has minor chips, I recommend using wood filler to repair them. After it dries, gently sand the area and then paint it with a matching paint from the hardware store. For a smooth, glossy finish, a fine spray technique works best.

tinau schrieb:
For the smooth foil look, a fine spraying technique works best.

I’m not sure if that’s really ideal. When relying on DIY store materials, you often end up with a patchy job. The Malm trims come factory-coated with a foil finish that is hard to replicate. Why bother repairing when you can get replacements for little cost? Attempts with fillers are often a wasted effort.

The topic of repairing Malm drawer fronts is actually quite tricky because the material is not a solid wood surface but a foil-coated MDF board.

First of all: Simple wood filler is only suitable if the damage is minor and, above all, if the foil is not completely missing. For larger defects, a combination of gluing the remaining foil pieces with wood glue and then filling with a polyester-based plastic filler often works well. After sanding, a satin-matte acrylic finish can achieve very good results.

However, if the area is heavily chipped and the foil-coated decorative edge is missing, you can usually only repair part of the surface but cannot fully restore the original foil texture. Some users apply special foil veneers to cover the damage, but this is labor-intensive and relatively costly.

Even if unavoidable: sanding after filling should be done with very fine grit (e.g., P240-P320), otherwise visible imperfections can occur.

LENNAU schrieb:
First of all: Simple wood filler is only suitable if the damage is not too extensive

That’s true. I would add that before repairing, the panel should be thoroughly cleaned and free of dust to ensure good adhesion of the filler and paint. Lightly sanding the damaged edges with a fine sanding pad also helps achieve better results.

Regarding color matching, I recommend applying several test coats in a discreet corner of the drawer before painting. The Malm laminate often has a specific shade and slight sheen that is difficult to match exactly with normal paint.

Alternatively, there are specialized repair kits for furniture laminates available from retailers, which can conceal small scratches and chips using acrylic fillers. With some patience, these can create a satisfactory surface finish.

Hey everyone, I had exactly the same problem with my Malm dressers. My solution was a special furniture repair marker that works like a felt-tip pen but is filled with a type of acrylic paint. Of course, this is mainly meant for small scratches, but for chipped corners, I first applied a thin layer of clear varnish, then used the marker, and finally added another layer of clear varnish. It looks definitely better than nothing and doesn’t cost much.

If the panel is heavily damaged over a large area, I would seriously consider getting replacement panels, as the effort otherwise becomes too great. But for touch-ups or smaller blemishes, these repair markers are an easy solution. 🙂