By If you are thinking of refacing your cabinets, you will be faced with many decisions. Many people like the idea of refacing cabinets because this is a good way to have a new look at older cabinets. You can try different cabinet door styles. Actually, the possibilities of giving your kitchen cabinets a facelift are endless. For example, you can change cabinet door styles. However, you need to know the type of cabinets that can be refaced.
Before we get to that, let’s look at what is cabinet refacing?
What’s Cabinet Refacing?
Cabinet refacing is the removal of old cabinet doors, drawer fronts, and hardware, followed by installing new cabinet doors, drawer fronts, and hardware. A matching veneer or laminate is applied to all exposed surfaces of the cabinet boxes. Cabinet refacing is a fraction of the cost and time involved with conventional remodeling projects.
Cabinets that Can be Refaced
Various materials are used for refacing cabinets, ranging from rigid thermofoils (RTF) to wood veneers to laminate.
Cabinet refacing can be done on any type of cabinet but is best suited for framed (face-frame) cabinets. Inset style cabinets can also be refaced using a similar process, but because there are no exposed face frames, it requires different tools and techniques.
Refinishing or repainting the exposed cabinet box and frame will give your kitchen a new look while keeping the cost down. Refinishing is typically done with a fresh coat of paint in either a solid color or glaze over your original stain color. The doors and drawers can also be sanded down to bare wood and stained in either a lighter or darker shade than your original color for an updated look as well.
Cabinet Refacing Options
There is a wide range of cabinet refacing options, from real wood veneers to acrylic-coated high-pressure laminates, with many colors and styles to choose from.
Therefore, you can find a large selection of materials with which to reface your cabinets. These include-
Wood veneers
Wood veneers are the most expensive option, but they are also the most durable. Be sure to use the finest quality wood veneers and varnishes available on the market.
Acrylic-coated high-pressure laminates
Acrylic-coated high-pressure laminates (HPL) are more affordable than wood veneer refacing and are very durable as well. They come in various colors and styles and can be textured to look like wood grain.
3D laminates
You can reface your kitchen cabinets using 3D laminates, which are similar to HPL but have a textured surface that mimics natural stone such as granite or marble.
Points to Note
If your cabinets are made of solid hardwood and have plywood or particleboard sides, you’ll see a good return on your investment by refacing them.
If the cabinet frame is made of particleboard or plywood covered with laminate, refacing will not give you the results you want because the material is too thin and weak. Most kitchen cabinets today are made this way. You can tell if yours are by examining the cabinet sides. If they’re not solid hardwood or even plywood but instead feel like cardboard, refacing probably won’t work for them.
If your cabinets are in good shape structurally but need cosmetic repair, consider refinishing them instead of refacing them. Refinishing entails sanding off the old finish, repairing any damage, and then applying a new stain or finish to the wood.
