Kitchen Cabinets, Plywood box Ok?

[Borderdon]

The above advice is good IMHO, drawer, door hardware is important.
As another retired carpente/ contractor I’d avoid anything less than plywood.
Best of luck with your reno.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by Jeff Scott

You want plywood these days for a stronger box. AVOIND AT ALL COST - MDF, EVEN FOR FLOATING PANELS IF YOU GET FLOATING PANEL DOORS WITH STILES AND RAILS.

If you can, buy custom made cabinets from the Amish (you will most likely need a real contact point guy - a contractor who does business with the Amish., they are around the same price as Big Box store cabinets and are much higher quality and can be custom sized and you can have long runs of cabinets (none of this multiple, separate cabinets that get tacked together with filler strips BS. All the custom cabinets for our kitchen gut renovation cost us less than the store bought ones, and we got custom sizes, custom runs, and other special stuff.

Quoting this piece of wisdom for the bump to page 2 because invariably the debate will continue even after the question has been answered.

+1 on the hardware as well. My wife decided to put all her hardcover cookbooks and crockery in the same cabinet and it began to pull away from the wall.

[GHS]

M buddy just spent 125K upgrading his home. New heat/AC, windows, flooring, about 45K went into the kitchen. It was what THEY liked, not with interest of resale. Most realtors will tell you put money into windows, decks, heating, dont waste it on kitchens and bathrooms. Because like every "house hunter" reality show every wife that walks into the kitchen will say "ewww!!" those cabinets have to go, I dont like the counter top, etc. Its the truth. House next to mine was redone top to bottom. they had an open house which we went to. The kitchen was stunning and almost every wife that came in said "Oh, I dont like the color, ewww, those appliances are not good". It was scary true. Do what you like now...its not going to matter later on.

[Jeff Scott]

Originally Posted by GHS

Do what you like now...its not going to matter later on.

Totally! We know that all the renovation work we've been doing won't pay off in the end (we'll be dead by then, anyway ), but we do it for us, not for the next guy.

[rdeane]

I built cabinets for my entire kitchen. You can make a quality product with good quality hardwood plywood, solid wood face frames and solid wood doors. Nothing wrong with plywood with a first quality exterior layer. That stuff is not cheap to buy by the sheet. Quality hinges are also necessary. I believe you should be able to find well made cabinets for a reasonable price. Solid wood is not necessary, as stated above and make no difference in the end, while saving you money as long as the construction is well done. .

[chistrummer]

Didn't even know you could buy all solid kitchen cabinets anymore. Why would you want the sides solid?

[B Chas]

Originally Posted by chistrummer

Didn't even know you could buy all solid kitchen cabinets anymore. Why would you want the sides solid?

You can buy solid wood boxes, funny Home Depot offers a solid wood box option with their Decora and Kraftmade lines. They advised against it, mostly due to the weight, also because it's a waste of money. Custom makers insisted on solid wood cabinets, perhaps it's my not understanding of the term solid wood cabinet.

I now understand the different elements thanks to my AGF friends.

I'm still attracted to my Home Depot, they've been generous with their time and advise, have a giant selection, offer a life time warrantee and are a known as opposed to the unknown of a small shop cabinet maker.

What I do know is the good advise we get here at the AGF. Thanks

[guitar george]

Originally Posted by B Chas

I'm still attracted to my Home Depot, they've been generous with their time and advise, have a giant selection, offer a life time warrantee and are a known as opposed to the unknown of a small shop cabinet maker.

You can trust Home Depot and not have to worry about a thing. They will get the job done to your satisfaction and back it up with their super warranty. Their prices are usually quite reasonable as well.

[Neil K Walk]

Remember that sometimes you get what you pay for. I was at Home Depot today looking at unfinished cabinets and found them lacking in more than just finish. The hinges were clunky and the doors a tad light for my tastes, as if it were hickory instead of oak. I am also not a fan of laminated low density fiberboard shelving as it tends to bend under excessive strain (as opposed to plywood which is resistant to bending IME) or bubble when wet.

[guitar george]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

Remember that sometimes you get what you pay for. I was at Home Depot today looking at unfinished cabinets and found them lacking in more than just finish. The hinges were clunky and the doors a tad light for my tastes, as if it were hickory instead of oak. I am also not a fan of laminated low density fiberboard shelving as it tends to bend under excessive strain (as opposed to plywood which is resistant to bending IME) or bubble when wet.

Is this the only type they sell? If so, the OP might decide to not get that type and buy somewhere else.

[Fogducker]

The OP in his original query stated that Home Depot had the BEST SELECTION.
That implies that they have excellent and lower quality available. This forum made many good suggestions and what to look at for better cabinets.

I have no interest in Home Depot other than as a customer, but after carpet/installation, appliances etc., I have found them to be excellent and they do as they say. Oh yeah, as I mentioned before, they treat us veterans good too!

Fog

[dingrr]

We built our first home in the late '80's and used custom solid wood cabinets. Beautiful stuff that held up extremely well. Recently, we have remodeled two kitchens and went with Ikea (assembly required). Very happy with the results; wait and see how they hold up.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by guitar george

Is this the only type they sell? If so, the OP might decide to not get that type and buy somewhere else.

No, but the selection in store is limited and invariably you still need to order a custom size. Also, if you want a custom finish other than "medium oak" or "cognac" (which doesn't look like it's a particularly hard wood) then you're going to have to wait. If that's the case, then as you say it's probably better to shop around and get something a little higher in quality - that may have a warranty as well, although that's not really a selling point with me anyway.

FWIW, I've bought an unfinished cabinet that somewhat matched the contractor grade medium oak cabinets in my 30 year old kitchen. For a small project that required me to drop in a cabinet to replace a mostly-nonfunctional stove hood so that I could hang a microwave it was "good enough" - but for a whole kitchen remodel? LOL, nope.

I have to ask the OP: what's your wife or significant other been saying to you? Cheap and easy are the mantra for those who are rushed.

[Jcamp]

Ply wood sides is perfectly fine. Ply wood is basically the same as solid except it’s multiple thin sheets glued together. In my opinion it’s better due to it will resist bowing/cracking and shouldn’t warp if u ever have a leak. Do solid wood faces and solid doors if that is a option. One poster said cabinets could go up to $15k...... I had a guy from Menards try to sell me a set for $35k when I was looking. I didn’t get them FYI lol. Anyway... if you looking for what you want ply wood is great just get the good hardware with it and you should have no regrets. If your looking to resell id just suggest cleaning and painting or refacing the ones you have. Good luck

[J Patrick]

....I am a retired carpenter/builder and have installed hundreds of cabinets and worked on many vintage homes...I have never seen solid wood cabinet shells except for custom built ins...and rarely then because it doesn’t make sense economically or structurally....I would be surprised if you could find solid wood carcassses available anywhere at any cost without talking some custom cabinet maker into doing it for you....and btw..You can get very good made in USA cabinets from either Home Depot or Lowe’s by special order...