As a way to personalize and organize your kitchen, bath, and office, as well as increase the value of your spaces; you might be considering installation, renovation, or replacement of your cabinets. Whether remodeling an existing space or building new construction, some of the top kitchen styles are farmhouse, transitional, and contemporary designs. Many of these cabinets have cabinet facings that are a paint, wood, or glass finish. Two of the most popular finish colors has been white and grey. However, sometimes the island is two-toned in different colors. Quartz is increasing more common for countertops, but granite and marble are also still popular.
Cabinet quality and associated pricing fall into at least three categories. The lowest cost is basic stock cabinet that is premade into modular units. Because the cabinets are already constructed, there is less opportunity for customization. More customization options are usually found in the next category of semi-custom cabinets. Semi-custom cabinets afford a wider selection of materials and finishes. These cabinets may also give you wider storage options. The highest quality and cost is fully custom cabinets. Custom cabinets are built to order. Because of this, these cabinets offer almost unlimited options and the widest selection of materials and finishes. The design is only restricted by your imagination, your interior designer ideas, and construction limitations.
Most cabinets are constructed of wood material. Metal and other materials only make up a relatively small percentage of constructed cabinets. The majority of wood cabinets are mostly particle board, followed by higher quality plywood or medium density fiber board (mdf). Some of the techniques use in construction are blind dado, dowels of wood, plastic, and metal; as well as cylindrical rods. Blind dados are hidden joints at the ends of shelves and cabinet floors.
Two important types of hardware are the confirmat and pocket screws. Confirmat screws are connecting screws on cabinets and other box construction. These fasteners are like a steel dowel that creates a strong and stiff butt joint. Confirmat screws have a larger shoulder under the head that prevents pulling through softer material. The other type, pocket screws are held in place as pocket hole joints with a wide washer head. This shape prevents the pocket screw from going too far into the joint and cracking the wood. Both of these screws are a relatively higher cost than standard screws, but cabinets constructed with these screws result in cabinets joints that are more tight, strong, and sure. Other common methods for constructing cabinets include the biscuit joint, rabbet joint, mitered butt, tongue and groove, half-blind dovetail, half-lap, and basic butt. Mortise and tenon are common used on a lot of doors.
Some common wood substrates used to construct cabinets are solid wood, plywood, furniture board, and medium density fiberboard (mdf). Solid wood is used for cabinet parts like door frames, fronts, and upgraded drawer boxes. Types of solid wood include maple, oak, cherry, birch, alder, hickory, and other wood types. All wood species can be stained, but maple is the most consistent for stained and painted finishes. Some species are more stable and paint and stain well like maple. However, other species use a natural stain that might be more costly. Species like oak do not paint well because of the variation in the grain.
Plywood is another substrate commonly used for the cabinet back, sides, top, bottom and shelves. Plywood veneers that are glued are more stable than other types. Plywood is more resistant to moisture than other wood options. This material is strong and holds weight. Using plywood for cabinet sides is more costly than alternatives and the consistency varies more than virgin wood.
Furniture board is another substrate with a lower cost that is used for cabinet back, sides, and shelves. This material has excellent durability and is an affordable option. Unfortunately, some furniture boards may be low quality material in material and/or craftsmanship and are heavier than plywood. This brings into question the long-term quality of poorly veneered particle board.
Laminated door fronts and veneer center panels of doors may be comprised of thermofoil, melamine, or high pressure laminates. Some of these veneer types accept stains. Veneers are generally less expensive and has consistency in dimensions. However, veneers may swell with exposure to moisture and emit formaldehyde and resins. Cabinet boxes may be made of plywood or furniture board.
Ready-to-assemble (RTA) cabinets are flat packs that are generally imported. Since they are not shipped fully assembled, RTA cabinets are less expensive to transport and use less inventory space. Cabinets may also be shipped assembled and ready to install out of the box. This requires more room to transport, but tends to be more durable than RTA.