With the passage of time, new cabinets will always turn into old cabinets quickly. If they are not properly maintained, the cabinets may age, fall off, or even become moldy. The new cabinets will become old after a few years. How to reface cabinet? How to reface the old cabinets? Is there the most cost-effective way? Let’s start our topic immediately.
What is cabinet refacing
Cabinet doors have to be opened and closed thousands of times, many hinges are difficult to meet this requirement, so consumers must be willing to spend money on points when customizing cabinets. Most of the cabinets use slightly cheaper hardware accessories, mainly to reduce costs, and use low prices as the main means to win customers. However, at present, there are also some brands of cabinets that clearly indicate the brands of hardware used, or indicate the prices of different grades so that consumers have a choice.
The hardware on the cabinet is the most important part of the overall kitchen, even more, important than the cabinet plate and countertop. It directly affects the overall quality of the cabinet. Based on the years of experience in the development of foreign kitchens, the quality of hardware accessories has become an important sign to distinguish between good and bad cabinets.
How to reface cabinets/ How to reface kitchen cabinets
Tools that may be needed: sandpaper, screwdriver or electric drill, portable electric scraper, scissors, paint scraper, paintbrush, paint roller.
The following are the common methods for refacing kitchen cabinets.
Hardware replacement for cabinet refinishing
Change cabinet hardware while cabinet refacing. The hardware of the cabinet is the most important part. After a long time, it is inevitable that it will be outdated or even broken. Buy a new set of hardware to replace it, and instantly change a good mood, and it will be more comfortable to use. If you are still hanging the original handles and knobs, then it may take time for a complete hardware overhaul. Fortunately, many crafts and boutiques already have this service and offer prices in a variety of styles. Feel free to use these tiny parts to show your personality. Look for a modern appearance and stylish hardware, or a fun bohemian style. If the paint is like a haircut, then the new hardware is a perfect accessory to highlight your best features!
Use stickers
If you want to change the color of the cabinet, the most cost-effective and convenient way is to use the most popular self-adhesive paper to change a new coat for the cabinet. You can do it alone at home without causing any peculiar smell. In the future, it seems that the transformation effect will be particularly great. This is the easiest and money-save way for cabinet refacing.
Update small accessories
There are not many kitchen decorations, so use these small accessories as much as possible to update the appearance of the kitchen. Buy a small wooden tray and put the commonly used seasonings in it, which is interesting.
Add window
The cabinet window can immediately illuminate your kitchen space and is relatively easy to install. Take the measurements of your cabinet doors and buy glass flakes or tiles from the hardware store. You can arrange a tiled pattern, or stick to a sleek, solid appearance. You can hire someone to cut out your middle cabinet, or you can try carpentry yourself. Make sure you have the proper equipment to ensure safety and prevent yourself from being injured.
Increase storage space
The open shelf can free up storage space and is economical and practical. You can go to the timber market to buy some old boards and repaint them as wall shelves. The design of the open shelf not only saves money but also can clearly display the kitchen utensils, which is convenient for the access of the tableware and easier to clean.
Replace the countertop
In fact, the most frequently used cabinets are the countertops. In some users’ homes, the cabinets look very new, but the countertops have been broken. In this case, the countertops need to be replaced.
If only part of it is replaced, there may be a chromatic aberration, and the overall effect is relatively poor. In addition, the two countertops are glued together, the bonding is difficult and the adhesion is not strong, and it is easy to cause cracking, so we recommend that the countertops should be replaced as much as possible. This is about kitchen refacing.
If you need to replace the , you can contact the cabinet company in advance, and wait for the designer to come to measure the precise size. The countertop material should be purchased at the cabinet brand store as far as possible. After consulting the price, you can make a choice according to your own budget.
Reorganization
Messy cabinets can cause problems in the kitchen redesign. Remember that at that moment, the wardrobe in the old cartoon will open, and the team inside is full of all kinds of sundries. Don’t let this happen to you. So take time to organize your cabinet space for kitchen refacing. If you have children, then you should also consider some of the more commonly used kitchen supplies.
Painting or renovation
Painting work is one of the most underrated design techniques. Adding a new color scheme to your kitchen can completely change the style of your space. Paint is not the only technique, you can polish and repair old wooden cabinets and you can also make a big difference in the overall feel of your kitchen.
What are the methods of painting old cabinets – Cabinet refacing
- Determine if you can change the paint with other colors
With the development of industry, the board for furniture is no longer limited to logs. Commonly used are various woodworking boards, fireproof boards, compression molding boards, etc. Among them, fire protection boards and compression molding furniture are not suitable for paint color change (mainly color change The process is cumbersome).
- Preparation before changing paint
If it’s log furniture, buy some sandpaper, and prepare it for thickness. If it is not logged furniture, you need to buy some extra “putty” for leveling and filling. The choice of paint, due to the different components of the paint, some paints will cause mutual chemical reactions, so you should choose the type of paint that is compatible with your own furniture.
Precautions for painting
- Depending on the board of the cabinet, the method will be very different. If the cabinets in your home are painted panels, you can find the manufacturer to re-spray the color. It can be the original color or change to other colors, which will not have much impact.
- Some people think that the spray paint method is not very environmentally friendly, and it is easy to breed formaldehyde. Therefore, some owners will directly buy a kind of paint-free paper, which will be available on Taobao, and can be posted at home. Convenient to save money, and most importantly, it is easy to replace after a long time. But this kind of sticker is generally best used for cabinets without patterns, otherwise, the effect may not be so good.
- Polish
Find a cuboid that can be held by your hand. Wrap one of the relatively flat sides with sandpaper, press it with your hands, and polish it. The order of the direction of polishing the plane is: first horizontal and then vertical. When sanding, go up first, then go down, outside first, and then inside. The choice of sandpaper is coarse first and then fine. The corners, shapes, and details of the furniture must be done by hand. Do you know why it needs to be polished? On the one hand, it is to remove the impurities on the original paint and paint surface, and on the other hand, it is to increase the adhesion of the new paint.
- Preparation before painting
After polishing, check whether the furniture is uneven. If so, use putty to level it and polish it again to a smooth state. Then protect the area around the furniture and the floor to prevent the paint from contaminating these areas. And wipe the furniture with a damp towel with very little water. Stir the bucket of paint evenly with a small stick, and do not move your hands too fast to prevent splashing.
- Paint
Dip a little paint with a paintbrush and apply it to the painted surface of the furniture to see if there is any chemical reaction. If not, proceed to the next step. Then use a brush to pull the paint apart and spread it out. The paint layer should not be thin or thick. If it is thick, there will be water ripples or small bumps formed by the paint. Don’t expect to paint the effect and color you want on the first pass. It is recommended to go from the inside to the outside. If the inside is not well painted, no one will see it. If the surface is not well painted, it will be difficult to see. After the first brushing, let it stand for two or three hours, and gently touch the paint surface with the back of your finger to feel dry and non-sticky. Paint a second time. After the second painting, the paint is thoroughly dried and then dipped in water with very fine water sandpaper to polish the surface. The main thing is to remove water ripples and paint bumps. And prepare for the varnished painting. But there are two points to note: Compared with spray paint, paint is prone to uneven color, and the master is not easy to operate. In addition, in this way, light colors are easier to operate than dark colors. If the color of the cabinet is too dark, it is actually not easy to handle. Even if it can be painted well, the settled money may be more expensive than the finished product.
- Paint protection
Usually, after finishing painting, the furniture should be painted with varnish to protect and brighten the paint layer. The varnish is also applied in the same way as the paint, but the amount of paint-stained with each paintbrush is less. No matter how many times I waved my wrists to spread the varnish. It is recommended that the varnish is at least twice, if there is a phenomenon of brush shed hair, be sure to deal with the shed hair in time. The varnish is only applied to the surface of the furniture, not the inside.
- Finishing
Be sure to wait for the paint to dry before removing the protection around the furniture, seal the remaining paint, and place it in a place that is not easy for children to touch.
Precautions for cabinet renovation and money-saving tips
Maybe you’re still wondering how much does cabinet refacing cost or How much does it cost to reface kitchen cabinets, Well, different ways has a different cost. Here’s a list of a few tips for you to save as much as possible.
- Kitchen wall renovation
No matter how you pay attention to cleaning, the kitchen walls will always be contaminated by oil after a long period of use. So the first thing everyone considers when refurbishing the kitchen is definitely the wall. Generally, the walls of the kitchen are tiled. There are two ways to refurbish. One is to remove all the original tiles and re-attach them. The second is to directly paste new tiles on the original tiles. Obviously, the second method saves time and effort.
- Try to keep the original cabinets
When refurbishing cabinets, if your budget is limited, it is best to keep the original cabinets. You can choose to paint the surface of the cabinet directly with paint. Generally, only one brush will not cover the original color of the cabinet, it is best to brush three or four times. You can also choose to do only replacement cabinet doors to keep the outward-facing side of the cabinet updated.
There is also a kind of film on the market now, with different designs and colors, the space to choose from is particularly large, and the price is very affordable. It is also a good choice for the renovation of home kitchen cabinets.
- The cabinet is best to choose to assemble
If the original cabinet is too old, you must replace it with a new one. So, when choosing cabinets, it is best to choose this kind of assembled cabinet, which can save a lot of money compared to custom cabinets.
- The partition use of the kitchen countertop
There are many materials to choose from for kitchen countertops, and most people tend to prefer marble countertops. But the price of marble countertops is higher. Therefore, we can choose to use marble countertops and countertops of other materials in different areas. For example, choose marble on the console, and choose wooden countertops on the bar. This combination can save more budget.
- Don’t change the location of the original equipment
The change of equipment location requires the change of water and electricity, which greatly increases the amount of construction and the difficulty of construction, and the cost will naturally increase.
- Re-plan the use of walls
Still, worrying about the storage space in the kitchen? You can go to the market to buy some wooden boards, paint them, and make the shelves on the wall. Not only does it increase storage space, but the price is also particularly affordable.
The above are all the instructions for cabinet renovation. Of course, if you have a sufficient budget, you can also choose to refurbish the kitchen and replace all the cabinets instead of kitchen cabinet refacing. This saves trouble and is done once and for all, but with limited funds and the cabinets can still be used, renovation is the best option!