Hello,

I am just starting the demo of my kitchen in preparation for a remodel. There are (or were) 11" soffits above all of the wall cabinets. I am removing the soffits right now in preparation for installing beadboard panels. Eventually, I am going to remove and replace all of the cabinets, but I thought I could get a head start by just removing the soffits and installing the beadboard above the wall-hung cabinets. There are some cabinets over a peninsula that I knew I was going to have to remove as I knew they would be supported from the ceiling. What I didn't expect is to see that ALL of the wall cabinets are supported this way - even the pantry cabinets that appear to go floor to ceiling. These were site-built and all 3/4" birch plywood. I think these could have survived a nuclear blast!!

So, those of you that are familiar with older construction - was this typical? I can't tell for sure if they are also supported on the wall but I won't assume this.

Any ideas? Am I right in assuming I will likely have to totally remove all of the uppers? There is only one wall cabinet 0 the "china" display cabinet that appears to have been hung on the wall like I ould have expected.

Any input would be appreciated.

Regards, Dean