Your Home’s Kitchen Cabinets…Replace or Reface?

No feature in your kitchen has a greater impact on its style and functionality than the cabinets. As the largest component in the space, they’re the first thing everyone notices when they enter the room. A kitchen makeover offers you the opportunity to upgrade the cabinetry to better suit your cooking style and personal taste. The first decision you’ll need to make when taking on a kitchen remodeling project is whether to reface or replace the cabinets. These tips from the pros at Handyman Connection of Eden Prairie can help guide you to the best decision.

Explore Your Refacing Options
The refacing process typically entails resurfacing the doors, drawer fronts and exposed frames with a fresh finish so that they look like new. Materials used to reface cabinets include plastic laminate, rigid thermofoil (RTF) or wood veneer. The wide variety of surface materials available ensures you’ll find the ideal choice for your kitchen’s style and color scheme. You’ll likely want to include fashionable new pulls, knobs and hinges in the makeover as well.

Evaluate the Condition of Your Cabinets
New doesn’t always mean better when it comes to kitchen cabinetry. Cabinets built decades ago were often built with better quality materials than their modern counterparts. If your existing cabinets are crafted from hardwood and feature solid construction, refacing them can be a good option. If a careful inspection of your cabinets reveals signs of great craftsmanship like dovetailed joints, solid pieces of fine-grained wood and thick sides, floors and shelves, they’re likely a good candidate for refacing.

Costs and Completion Times
Refacing cabinets can usually be completed at up to half the cost of replacing them, but there are exceptions. If you decide to add new doors and drawers fronts, for example, it may be more cost-effective to replace the cabinets altogether. The refacing material you choose impacts the price too. Real wood veneer is more expensive than synthetic materials. When time and scheduling are major considerations, refacing wins, hands down. The process is far less time consuming than removing old cabinets and replacing them with custom-fit models. Refacing projects can usually be completed in days, not weeks.

Consider Your Current Culinary Needs
Be realistic about your expectations when weighing the advantages and disadvantages of cabinet refacing. Refacing won’t add extra storage or alter the layout of the room. The last thing you want is to invest in a refacing project only to discover your kitchen still doesn’t meet your functional needs. New cabinets give you the chance to personalize every square inch of space, creating an organizational scheme that fits your cooking style to perfection.

Keep in mind that refacing isn’t an all-or-nothing venture either. You may wish to replace some cabinets while refacing others to match the new additions. The experts at Handyman Connection of Eden Prairie have experience in a broad range of remodeling options and can customize your project to fit your individual needs. Whether you want to include new countertops with your refaced cabinets or renovate your entire kitchen, you can rely on the expertise of our craftsmen for quality results. We’re here to help you turn your vision of a dream kitchen into reality.