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essie21000

New cabinets dilema

7 years ago

i just replaced my cabinets with Kraftmaid cabinets. the pantry with pull out shelves ha a terrible odor. zi have been reading about VOC and hoe to remove the odor. I put vinegar and a little containi g with baki g soda in every roll oyt trays, and it didn't work. I cleaned the shelves with fabrize. it didn't do anything. I have read about green tee bags, coffee grounds. and someone said activated charcoal msy i deed remove the odor not mask it. any advice will be really appreciated. The cabinets were instalked on the middle od April and the odor is still there. i still don't have countertops installed.

Comments (18)

  • 7 years ago

    Have you contacted Kraftmaid? Two things strike me as odd about this - first is that it’s only the pantry that smells and second is that they are months old at this point. FWIW, my Kraftmaid cabs have been in four weeks now and there’s absolutely no smell. There was a faint smell when they were first installed.

  • 7 years ago

    Could something have died behind or under it? What kind of smell is it? Chemical type smell?

  • 7 years ago

    Actually Friday, I removed all the things from the four drawer base because when I opened the drawers it also smelled. The only comment Kraftmad asked me if I had removed the roll out shelves out of the box when I got them. No, I didn't. I wasn't told to do it. Yesterday, I ask the sales rep and he told me he only washed his with soap and water. I am doing it tonight.
    On 8/17, the installer is coming to fisish some detaila, and then I will schedule the quartz tops, so I still can't cook.
    As an additional comment, the vanities and home office are Kraftmaid in a wood color. They were delivered by Kraftmaid trucks. These are painted maple delivered by a delivery agent. I don't know if it has something to do with the odor. Install got delayed due to damage cabinets and doors.
    No dead animal. I don't even own a pet.

  • 7 years ago

    Yes, it is chemical odor.

  • 7 years ago

    The smell comes out when I open the doors.

  • 7 years ago

    The smell comes out when I open the doors.


    Try removing the doors altogether and let it air out for a week or so...with a small box fan positioned to blow into the cabinet to increase air movement.


    What is on the other side of the wall behind the pantry?

    Did you replace any flooring? Subfloor or underlayment in the remodel?


    Can you post a picture (long shot) of the entire wall including the pantry?

  • 7 years ago

    Can you remove the pull outs and drawers and separate them completely (garage, outside) from the base for a while to see if the smell is coming from the base cabinet or shelves or both? Replacing drawers and pullouts would be an easy fix. Cabinets a little harder but also do-able. No way I'd install any kind of countertop on problem cabinets. You've been very patient. Time to find out whats wrong.

  • 7 years ago

    The cabinets are Kraftmaid. I washed the ROT, and removed the glue bead on the middle of the trays. I left them on the kitchen floor. The pantry frame has a glue bead on the inside. I only washed it and rinse it. The drawers are on the sofa with the ceiling fan on. I don't have a garage just a small lanai, but I don't know if it is a good idea with the rain. What is your opnion?

  • 7 years ago

    Don’t wash wood. Water is the enemy of wood, and you can ruin the structural integrity. If there’s an issue, it’s not glue, or any other surface contaminate. It will be in the plywood or wood itself. It is curious as to why you say it is isolated to the pantry, and isn’t present to any of the other cabinet drawers. The sides are outsourced finished production components, and only the rears and bottoms are cut to size in the factory, and then the whole is assembled.

    Other visitors don’t notice it? Neighbors? Family? What did your cabinet seller say when they visited? The KM cabinet rep?

  • 7 years ago

    Green Designs The rep has not come yet. That is the final call, but he told me to wash with soap and water. I didn't soak them. I am not cooking and I use paper plates most of the time. No one has visited me since the downstairs is a mess. Tomorrow, a friend is coming. I will have to put back the ROT in the pantry, and find out his opinion. Today, I left the ROT in the lanai because it wasn't raining, but I just put the inside the house.

  • 7 years ago

    A friend came, and he told me the smell is from the new wood. The only thing I know the smell is from the bottom of the ROT and drawers, and it is unfinished wood. am leaving al the doors and drawers open for ventilation. Only time will say. Thanks to all!

  • 6 years ago

    I have the same problem with my Kraftmaid cabinets. Only two smell, but it's awful. It's been three months.

  • 6 years ago

    Hi, I've used an Odor neutralizer called Ona. It has a strong smell when you first open it but it will dissipate quickly. It works! Good luck https://www.amazon.com/Ona-Products-ON10061-25-8-Neutralizer/dp/B00AC1N4DM


  • 6 years ago

    Here it is a year later and I’m hoping you figured out the reason for the smell! I found your post because I have the same problem with my new cabinets and roll out drawers as well. I have the exact same shaker style white Kraftmaid with pull outs ordered from a local store and installed by a carpenter. Same smell.

    Please tell me there’s been a solution!

  • 6 years ago

    I still had the smell after four months. I haven't been there since then, but I left the cabinets open and am hoping the smell is gone when I return...

  • 5 years ago

    Also here because we just installed super smelly kraftmaid cabinets! I am currently leaving them open but hoping someone from last year can comment any tricks to speed this up!


  • 5 years ago

    This is an old post, but I want to leave an update. The smell with the Kraftmaid cabinet wasn't really the cabinets. A friend went in 2019 and told me the odor was the wood. I guess my allergies to odors makes my smell too sensitve. The odor is already gone!

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