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Design Dilemma Kitchens

Cabinet Box Materials

last month

Hi!

New to Houzz but undergoing a kitchen reno right now and have a question regarding the construction of cabinet boxes. We are getting custom cabinets and the base cabinets were just installed yesterday. They look nice but my husband and I are questioning the quality as the box is primarily made of particle board. Some of the back of the box is plywood and the drawers are hard wood, along with the doors but the rest is partical boards - sides, top, toe kick. We brought this up to our contractor stating that we thought the majority of the cabinet box would be plywood and our contractor stated that what we have is industry standard and cabinet boxes have not been built like that for the past 30 years. We spoke to multiple family members who recently got some cabinets and they stated that they made sure their boxes were primarily made of plywood. We are concerned now about the quality and the durability of our cabinets being installed. I feel like we are paying a pretty dollar. Is this really industry standard and will cabinet boxes made of particle board withstand the test of time?

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Comments (4)

PRO
HALLETT & Co.
last month
It will be fine. I find that in most cases the up charge to switch to plywood is marketing- if your kitchen floods plywood cabinets are just as ruined as particle board.
catbuilder
last month
Maybe if the kitchen actually floods the end result would be the same, but a plywood bottom can withstand a leak under the sink, while particle board cannot.
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How much do you *think* all of those top 10 all white kitchens on Houzz average in cost?? I'd be surprised in the total project costs for *any* of them was below 100K. Cabinetry is usually around 40% of a plain jane like for like kitchen redo which is around 55K, national average. That's for an ''average'' kitchen, without stacked cabinets to the ceiling, all drawers, glass cabinets, stacked crown moldings and all of the rest of the $$$ upgrades that Houzz browsers don't realize are costly upgrades from ''average''.
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To "tatts": A smell getting in your food and on your dishes from MDF? That's a new one, and a complete fantasy." I started having this problem with food in my pantry after we moved 4 years ago, so I did some research on the web and found numerous articles regarding this matter. https://www.care.com/a/creating-a-toxin-free-home-04161413 "Unfortunately, the plywood, pressed wood, particle board and medium density fiberboard, which are used in most furniture and cabinets today, are generally treated with formaldehyde, a suspected carcinogen, and can emit fumes for as long as five years. The chemicals can also migrate into the food." And here is a link and a quote to a discussion of this issue on Houzz: http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2694544/i-have-a-pantry-suggestion-ventilate "As for the smell. Do you by any chance have shelves or anything in there made of MDF or particle board. For some reason those materials tend to soak in smells more than wood. However wood will too to some extent. Paint should seal, but with MDF and particle board I've had the experience that it still picked up smells." We dis-assembled our entire 30" deep x 60" wide x 96" tall pantry and used Zinnser "SealCoat" on any & all "raw" backs, edges, sides, etc. of the interior cabinet and pull out shelves. Let it all set about 2 weeks before using it. It seems to have worked. When I have a problem, I like to find a solution. I don't have time for fantasies.
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Comments (1)
Not quite sure the difference in practicality
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Comments (4)
My neighbor did that. She has plywood for her sink base cabinet. It may depend on the company you work with. There are different grades of particle board - I think. My boxes are particle board and amazingly tough - I found out when retrofitting a plate rail in a cabinet - and they are over 20 years old. The sink base is holding up fine, though I am a careful person in the kitchen.
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PRO
The Kitchen Place
last month
Majority of cabinets sold today ARE the particleboard type...that is correct. Agree with Hallett....upgrading to a plywood box is a feel good thing. Is it worth the extra $1500 to $2500 to upgrade? It depends.

NOW...what I do think you should check out are the side panels? Are they real wood veneer or printed wood vinyl? I would only want the veneer. The vinyl ends are not good! Most brands offer a finished wood end upgrade. Or....You can get "skins" to flush out to a nice wood veneer end if you got the vinyl ends.

Sometimes when KraftMaid has a sale on their Vantage all plywood box....it's a no brainer...because it might only add $500.

What brand do you have??
millworkman
last month
Did you look at cabinets in a showroom? Did you have drawings and specs on what was quoted that you signed off on?

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