Cabinet Refacing near you

A complete refacing touches every visible surface of the cabinets. The quote should list each item, because new doors alone and a full refacing are very different jobs, and the difference shows most at the frames and the ends of each run.

The veneer on the frames and the finish on the doors should be chosen together, so the grain, colour and sheen match from one surface to the next. Most suppliers offer the same families of finishes for both.

Refacing puts a new face on the existing cabinets, so everything behind that face has to be worth keeping. A good installer inspects the boxes before quoting, including under the sink, and tells you frankly if they aren't.

Because every door comes off anyway, refacing is the easiest moment to change how the cabinets work, not just how they look. New doors are bored for their hinges in the shop or on site, so the hinge type is part of the order, and it is worth deciding on drawer changes at the same time.

Doors and fronts are made to order, so the measurements decide everything. The installer records each opening, the width of the face frame around it, how far the doors will overlap the frame, and where hinges, pulls, appliances and walls limit how far a door can open. Doors near an inside corner or beside the fridge need enough clearance to swing fully and to let drawers slide past neighbouring handles.

Once the order is placed, the doors and fronts are built and finished, and the work in your kitchen starts only when they arrive. A typical installation follows these steps:

With refacing, the kitchen keeps working through most of the project. The countertop, sink, backsplash, appliances, plumbing and wiring stay put, there is no demolition, and the dust comes mainly from trimming veneer and drilling. The longest wait, while the doors are being made, happens before the installer arrives rather than while your kitchen is torn apart.

Many refacing doors, drawer fronts and end panels have a core of medium-density fibreboard or particleboard under the finish. Health Canada lists composite wood products among the indoor sources of formaldehyde, notes that levels can be higher in recently renovated homes, and suggests choosing products with a laminate or coating on all sides, or sealing them. Canada's Formaldehyde Emissions from Composite Wood Products Regulations set emission limits for these panels and for finished goods made with them, such as cabinet doors, and require them to be labelled as compliant.