Cabinet Refacing

[Squintz]

I was thinking about trying to reface my kitchen cabinets my self to cut down on cost. Have any of you done this before? I've watched several videos and read a few articles and it does not look to be an impossible DIY task but it looks like it might be a pretty big project for one person.

I guess the biggest question is who should I buy the marterial from?

 

[personalt]

rockler a woodworking place sells some of that laminte and the cutters that you use for the rework of the cabinet shell.
I dont know if they sell any doors.

I was thinking about trying to reface my kitchen cabinets my self to cut down on cost. Have any of you done this before? I've watched several videos and read a few articles and it does not look to be an impossible DIY task but it looks like it might be a pretty big project for one person.

I guess the biggest question is who should I buy the marterial from?

 

[jwilson56]

You must have missed my thread.... 3 1/2 years laster and it still looks great..


http://www.cocoontech.com/index.php?showto...&hl=kitchen

 

[Squintz]

I did miss it. Although I seems to have replied to it and somehow forgot about it. Thanks for pointing it out.

 

[SnyperBob]

Wow, nice job John on your cabinets. Looks really easy to refinish with those laminates. When I was younger my parents wanted to lighten up their cabinets. They paid me a video game system to sand them all down. After TONS of sanding, my mom stained them all a lighter shade. Looked similar to John's setup. Super dark to begin with, and a light oak when done.

Sanding was a bitch tho, I think it took like three weeks straight of sanding for the entire kitchen. It didn't look as nice as the veneers that you guys are talking about. Do those just stick to the front of the old/dark cabinets?

 

[jwilson56]

There is a link to a video in my thread that shows the process... but yes you basically sand the surface some and then stick down the laminate. My cabinets were Formica covered and I called the place worried that it would not work. They said actually it will stick on even better once I got the shiny finish off.

We are happy with the results. It does take a steady hand trimming the veneer but you can always just rip it off and redo it if you make a mistake. The veneer gets harder to pull off with time.