The Cheap Way To Reface Kitchen Cabinets

Upgrading your kitchen can sound intimidating and stressful if you have limited time and money. If this sounds like you, then we encourage you to continue reading because you may find some valuable information for your upcoming kitchen remodeling project.

Rather than gutting out your fundamentally intact cabinet boxes, cabinet refacing can create an impressive transformation in your kitchen by only upgrading your cabinet doors and drawer fronts. It is a great way to add more value to your home while saving money, energy, and time. Here is your ultimate guide for giving your cabinet fronts a facelift.

Make A Plan

Refacing kitchen cabinets is a project that consists of keeping your current cabinet boxes intact, while removing your old cabinet doors and drawer fronts to replace them with new fronts. This process is a cheaper way to remodel your kitchen, costing less than half the price of a full remodel.

First, create a plan which involves establishing a budget. While making a budget, a tip is to include the ten percent cushion rule. Architectural Art Designs states that it is a good plan to add 10-20% more to your budget for unknown errors or extras in the remodeling process just so you know it’s there for you if you need it.

Refacing VS Full Remodel Cost

How to Know If Cabinet Refacing Is Right For You

Once you have a set budget, it’s time to make sure if refacing is right for you. Two questions to consider:

• Do you want to change your kitchen layout?

If you want to change your kitchen layout, then refacing may not be your best choice, because this will most likely require you to change the sizes of your cabinet boxes. Not to mention, if you decide to change your floor plan, this will require you to uninstall your cabinet boxes which increases your risk of damage.

• Are your cabinet boxes in good shape?

If your cabinet boxes are in good shape, then refacing is highly recommended for an economical approach. In this case, you would still leave the structure of your cabinet boxes and drawer boxes while only removing your existing cabinet doors and drawer fronts to replace them. Oftentimes, people will update their hardware as well.

Refacing: The Basics

Let’s go over the basics of refacing. Things to consider are the new style, material, finish, and measurements of your new cabinet doors and drawer fronts.

• Style: The first step is to choose a style for your cabinet doors and drawer fronts. CabinetNow offers hundreds of styles for your unique project needs, whether you are looking for a trendy or timeless style.
• Material: The material you settle on for cabinet doors is chosen based upon your budget and durability expectations. We offer solid wood, thermofoil, veneer, and MDF cabinet doors.
• Finish: Next, you will choose if you want unfinished or finished cabinet doors. CabinetNow offers finishes such as white pre-primed, painted, clear coat, and our thermofoil doors.
• Measurements: If you want the same size as your existing cabinet doors and drawer fronts, simply measure the width and height of each. If not, measure your cabinet box opening and incorporate your desired overlay in those measurements.

DIY Your Refacing Project

Once you have established a budget, whether or not refacing is right for you, and the design of your new cabinet doors and drawer fronts, it’s time to learn how to actually give your cabinets a refresh in just 4 steps.

1. The first step is to remove your cabinet doors and drawer fronts by unscrewing your hinges.
2. Add the matching material of your new cabinet doors and drawer fronts to your cabinet boxes.
   • If you are matching a wood species for an unfinished door, you can purchase wood veneer or wood filler to cover your cabinet box frames.
   • If you are matching painted doors, you will sand, prime, and paint your cabinet boxes to match the paint color of your new cabinet doors and drawer fronts by going to your local paint store.
   • If you are matching thermofoil doors, you can purchase laminate sheets to match the exact material and color of your thermofoil choice.
3. Once your new cabinet doors and drawer fronts arrive, use your existing hinges to screw on your new fronts.
4. Whether you are using old or new hardware, screw the handles and knobs back on. And that’s it!

Custom Cabinets

Going through a custom cabinet shop like CabinetNow is the perfect choice for an affordable remodeling project like refacing. We most likely have exactly what you may need including custom sizes for cabinet doors to fit any cabinet brand as well as wood and laminate accessories to match your new fonts to your existing cabinet boxes.

Let CabinetNow be your one stop shop for your cabinet refresh. We pride ourselves in the freedom of cabinet options we can offer to our customers and we love to see refacing transformation pictures! If you would like your project to be highlighted on our website please email us at info@cabinetnow.com.

If you are ready to start ordering or if you need assistance, please feel free to give us a call at 1-855-669-5222 or send us an email at info@cabinetnow.com. As always, our designers are here to help with everything from measuring to ordering. You can also fill out our custom cabinetry request form for a free quote which includes a 3D render and floor plan from our cabinet experts!