Cabinet Refacing
What is Cabinet Refacing?
Cabinet refacing is a simple concept that started sometime back in the 1970s. The name says it all: cabinet refacing is where you keep your kitchen cabinet boxes and put a new face on them. It’s an economical way to upgrade your kitchen without a complete tear out.
In those days, cabinet refacing involved applying a plastic laminate to the face frame and sides of the cabinet. The doors were made of plastic laminate and would match the face frames, with the laminate being applied over a plywood panel. This is not how we do things at Detail Design & Remodeling. Watch our video to learn more about our our process for cabinet refacing.
Things to look for with Cabinet Refacing
Today, cabinet refacing has become much more complex. Some companies choose very inferior and inexpensive products like a painted medium density fiberboard (MDF) door and drawer front, while companies use something called an RTF door (Rigid Thermofoil), which is a plastic foil or sheet that is wrapped over an MDF panel. These can look like real wood or a painted surface. There are drawbacks to using these materials, especially in warm areas, like any cabinets next to the oven, are that they are likely to shrivel up when too much heat is released from the oven. In other cases, the areas around the dishwasher or sink can absorb moisture, and the MDF will expand and cause the plastic to come loose. Sometimes, the plastic panel will just pop off the door. We have also seen white kitchens that have turned yellow while some doors turned yellow and some stayed white!
The companies that use these products for cabinet restoration like them because they are easy to install and easy to sell. They can usually finish a kitchen in a day or two. There are very few occasions where we would recommend this product.
The Benefits of Professional Cabinet Refacing
Home remodelers and DIYers love the beauty and value afforded by cabinet refacing, and for good reason! If you’re not yet sold on the idea of renovating your kitchen with cabinet refacing services, it can help to know that this project can help you to:
- Save time — The process of tearing out your existing hardware for new cabinets can prove to be an intensive project. Instead of waiting for weeks for your new cabinets to arrive and be installed, you can instead rely on cabinet refacing to get the job done in mere days. Less downtime for you and your family can help to make life easier!
- Reduce waste — Less replacement equates to less waste placed in our landfills. You can breathe easy knowing that you’re working with a home remodeling company dedicated to eco-friendly results!
- Save money — Reducing the time, labor, and materials needed to renovate your kitchen cabinets will all lower the total cost. Detail Design & Remodeling focuses on quality results through proven means to streamline costs and save our clients as much money as possible.
- Create lasting beauty — By replacing the fronts of your existing cabinet fronts, doors, and drawers, you’re creating a dynamic new design shift which can provide high-quality improvements for years to come. Our home remodelers know how to create last value and beauty, and will be happy to discuss your design preferences!
- Improve home value — Increases in the beauty and functionality of your kitchen will undoubtedly increase your property valuation. Our home remodeling contractors focus on quality at each step of the process to help maximize your home’s value once the dust settles.
Why Use Detail Design For Cabinet Refacing & Refinishing
Our custom cabinet refacing uses real wood doors such as maple or cherry. We use real wood veneers on the face and sides, and if you want a painted look, we actually paint the boxes on-site and don’t use a veneer. We can also modify or add cabinets. If we change drawer boxes, we usually use dovetailed, clear coated, full extension glides. We will add pull-out shelves in some cabinets to make them more functional.
Our goal is to create a kitchen that is more functional, more beautiful, and less expensive while being less intrusive than a complete tear out! When we are finished, it is usually difficult to tell it has been refaced! Our motto is “We apply Old World craftsmanship to create your dream kitchen where friends and family gather!”
How To Determine If Your Kitchen Qualifies For A Refacing
Do you like the layout of your kitchen? Even though we can make a few modifications, there is a point where it makes more sense to do new cabinets. Basically, the more changes you make to the layout by modifying existing cabinets, the closer you get to justifying a full tear out. With most cabinet refacing projects we do, we might make a few cabinet changes, but overall, the customer wants us to keep the basic layout. In cases were changes are a must, our custom woodworking team can step in.
Are the cabinet boxes in good shape? We rarely see boxes that are too bad for cabinet refacing, but it does happen!
Do you have existing granite countertops or something similar and don’t want to replace them? We see this quite often. There is no practical way to remove tops and install new cabinets and then re-set the existing top.
The fact is that when you look at a kitchen cabinet, the part you see is the most important part! The doors, drawer fronts, face frames, and any trim set the style and look of the kitchen. One benefit of a custom cabinet refacing project is the ability to create the exact look you want. You may have an old 1990’s white Thermofoil kitchen and you want to go to a nice, traditional stained look. That is easy to do! Maybe you have nine-foot ceilings and your cabinets only go eight feet, which is very common, but you want yours to go to the ceiling. This is easy for our team of home remodeling contractors to accomplish.
Personalize Your Design
In addition to choosing from a variety of real wood veneers for your cabinet refacing project, you also have the power to personalize your kitchen design with a variety of hardware choices. Homeowners who schedule an in-home consultation with us love the process of choosing the perfect style and design of pulls, knobs, hinges, and more to bring their vision to life. The right accessories can help to improve the look and feel of your kitchen, and can also make life easier. Contact us today to learn more about our accessory options!
Looking for Custom Cabinets?
While your kitchen remodel may focus heavily on cabinet refacing to save time and money while generating the same level of visual quality, certain improvements may necessitate services tailored to your space. Our custom woodworking team, Detail Design Woodworks, provides a full spectrum of high-quality home remodeling services. Through this company, we are able to generate custom cabinets to meet any design need. Our remodelers also have experience in fabricating kitchen islands, backsplashes, range hoods, and more. If you’re looking for a personalized touch of style to make your renovations stand out, we’re the team to call!
See How Much You Can Save Today!
Kitchen cabinet refacing can save you time, money, and stress, all while delivering a high-quality result that you’ll have to see to believe! In the correct hands, this service can provide lasting beauty and value to proud homeowners. Now is the perfect time to schedule your in-home consultation, where our home remodeling contractors will come right to your door with our entire showroom in tow. We have an enormous amount of door style options, color options, and trim options that we can use to come up with almost anything you have in mind! Click below to get started, fill out the form, or contact us online to schedule your free consultation. We look forward to working with you!
