We are often asked about refacing kitchen cabinets vs. replacing them. Most people believe that refacing cabinets will save them a lot of money and be easier to deal with than replacing them. Let’s explore the ins and outs of both options.
If you want to reface your cabinets, you will need to be sure your layout is good and that you don’t want to make any changes to the location of your appliances. You could remove a few cabinets and add open shelving for a change, but things will need to stay where they are. Refacing is done by either painting the boxes or covering them with laminated product, then replacing all the doors and drawer fronts. If you want to upgrade your drawers to the soft-close, full extension that is popular today, you will need to replace your drawer boxes and glides as well. You may be able to keep some items in your cabinets during this process. The job should be done a bit quicker than a full remodel. If you don’t replace your countertop – no need for a plumber, but most folks do replace tops when refacing.
Cost of refacing? This can vary. A recent article in House Digest gave a starting price of $7,000 to over $20,000 for a more upscale look – and this is just for the cabinets. Add in countertops, plumbing, flooring, backsplash and whatever else you want to upgrade, and the price will go up from there.
On to Replacing cabinets. You will have more freedom here. You can have walls removed, move doorways, change appliance locations – or whatever you want! A good designer can really help you to envision your kitchen with a whole new layout. You will need to empty out your cabinets to replace them and the entire process generally takes around 4-5 weeks, but you are left with a beautiful, newly designed space with the latest in cabinet options and design.
Pricing for a brand-new kitchen will vary greatly depending on the overall scope of the job, the selections made, and the quality of the products used. A good rule of thumb is that a new kitchen generally costs as much as a new car! So, do you want a tiny, basic kitchen or a luxury model one?
What do we recommend here at J & D Kitchen? We don’t offer refacing and we believe for good reasons! Generally, a large portion of the price of cabinets is in the doors and drawer fronts – so you are paying a lot of the expense to just partially re-do your kitchen. Any issues you have with the cabinets will still be there once they are refaced. Several of the designers here have priced refacing at past jobs and found the overall price was not much different than a full kitchen replacement.
We invite you to stop by the showroom located at 132 Old National Pike in Hagerstown to see all the options for a new, updated kitchen.