Cabinet refacing or replacement: what should you compare?

Three options, not two

"Refacing" and "replacement" are not the only choices, and companies use the words differently. Ask each one for a written list of what stays, what is replaced and what is covered.

This Old House describes refacing as applying veneer to existing face frames and exposed cabinet sides, usually together with new doors and drawer fronts, and notes that it does nothing for dated countertops. Hinges, drawer boxes and slides may or may not be part of a refacing job, so ask.

Start with the layout question

If the current layout does not work, refacing will not solve it; the same article makes that point directly. Settle the layout before comparing cabinet options: where the sink, cooktop and refrigerator sit, whether the aisles work, and where you store things. Kitchen layout and storage planning walks through those decisions.

• Will any appliance change size? A wider refrigerator or a new dishwasher affects the cabinet run around it.
• Do you want drawers where you now have shelves behind doors? That changes the boxes, not just the fronts.
• Will the sink, range or refrigerator move? Then the job is no longer only about cabinets; see cosmetic refresh vs. full renovation.
• Are only one or two runs a problem? A mixed approach, with some boxes replaced and the rest refaced to match, is a question worth asking.

Look at the boxes, but do not take them apart

This Old House says damaged cabinets are not good candidates for refacing, because the cabinet has to be structurally sound. Whether yours are sound is for the cabinet professional to confirm. What you can do is note what you see in normal use and photograph it:

• Doors that will not stay aligned, or hinges that keep loosening
• Shelves that sag or drawers that bind
• Stains, swelling or soft spots, especially under the sink
• Face frames or end panels coming loose
• Gaps between the cabinets and the wall, floor or ceiling

Any sign of water under a sink is a question for a licensed plumber before it is a cabinet question. Do not pull out cabinets, cut panels or open walls to investigate.

It also helps to know how the cabinets are built. A guest article published by the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association (KCMA) describes framed cabinets as having a solid wood face frame attached to the front of the box, and frameless cabinets as eliminating the face frame, with doors covering the whole box. Framed cabinets can take partial-overlay, full-overlay or inset doors; frameless cabinets are full overlay. Ask whether the refacing product and door style you like work with your cabinets' construction.

Older kitchens: paint comes first

Many older kitchens have painted cabinets, trim or walls. EPA requires anyone paid to do work that disturbs painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 to be certified under its Renovation, Repair and Painting rule. Refinishing, removing old doors and trim, or preparing frames for veneer can all involve painted surfaces.

Ask each provider whether the house is in scope, whether the firm is certified and how the work will be contained and cleaned up. Renovating an older home covers lead and other older-house checks.

What to ask about new materials

New boxes, doors and refacing panels often include composite wood. EPA lists hardwood plywood, medium-density fiberboard and particleboard, and finished goods containing them, among the products covered by its formaldehyde emission standards, and says composite wood products must be labeled as TSCA Title VI compliant. Ask how compliance is documented for the products in each quote.

KCMA also runs a voluntary certification program. It says its tests evaluate cabinet structure, door and drawer operation and the finish, to standards it developed (the A161.1 seal). Ask whether a proposed line is certified, and treat the answer as information about that product line, not a promise about a particular installation.

• Exact door style, material and finish, with the manufacturer's identifier
• What the veneer or panel material is, for refacing
• Whether hinges, drawer boxes and slides are new or reused
• Care instructions for the finish you are choosing

Permits and paperwork

In New York City, the Department of Buildings lists installing new cabinets among the jobs that do not need a work permit, adds that such projects still have to comply with other laws and rules, and says contractors doing them must hold a Department of Consumer and Worker Protection home improvement contractor license. If a replacement involves moving plumbing, gas or electrical work, ask the Department of Buildings what that changes. In Suffolk County, ask the town or village building department. See renovation permits: NYC DOB vs. Suffolk town rules.

New York General Business Law §771 sets requirements for written home improvement contracts; read the statute or ask the DCWP or the county consumer affairs office. That is one more reason to get door style, finish, veneer, hardware and the list of cabinets included in writing.

Compare quotes on the same basis

Two quotes for "new cabinets" can describe very different jobs. Before comparing prices, make the scopes match:

• Which cabinets are included, and which are excluded (pantry, vanity, built-ins)?
• Is anything reused: boxes, hinges, drawer boxes, slides?
• Does the work disturb the countertop, sink or backsplash, and who handles that?
• Are end panels, toe kicks, fillers, crown or appliance panels included?
• Who removes and disposes of the old doors or cabinets?
• How long will the kitchen be out of use? See living at home during a renovation.

How to compare remodeling estimates has a side-by-side table for the rest of the proposal. The planned kitchen scope is on the kitchen remodeling page.