Kitchen cabinet refacing is an excellent alternative to replacing your old cabinets, especially if they are still in good condition. If you know the basics of kitchen cabinet refacing, you should have no difficulty refacing the cabinets yourself. By doing the work yourself, you can save at least one-third and possibly twice the cost of new cabinets. If you choose not to do the work yourself, you might consider hiring the services of a cabinetmaking company who has experience in refacing. They may be able to add several new features and conveniences to your cabinets giving your kitchen even more of a remodeled look.



You should first choose a door type and style. If you have traditional face-frame cabinets, choose a door that will set into the frame but overlay it by a half inch or between what is referred to as a 3/8 inch inset. Doors for frameless cabinets can be with inset or overlay, though fully inset doors require more skill to fit and require perfect square openings. When choosing the door style, you need to determine the wood species, profile and finish. For instance, the profile could be a raised or flat panel and the finish could be painted, pre-finished natural or unfinished. If possible, ordering the door pre-finished in a style you like can save time and usually produce a better quality finish. However, a benefit to unfinished doors is that you can match them to other cabinets or a particular style you already have in your kitchen or home.

Next, choose the hinges and measure for the doors and drawers. Fully concealed hinges with either overly or fully inset doors, which you should keep in mind as you choose a door type and style. When choosing hinges, be sure to consider your door's opening capacity, ranging from 100 to 180 degrees, as well as clearance for roll-out shelves, snap-closing compared to free-swinging and adjustability. Be sure to measure the height and width of all door and drawer openings to at least within 1/16 inch, including the false door front opening beneath your sink. For single-door openings, you need to add two times the amount of any overlay and, when two doors are to cover a single opening, add the overlay amount minus 1/16 to one-half the opening width. Subtract one-quarter inch from the width and height for inset doors.

Finally, when calculating your veneer order, keep in mind that you will need about sixteen square feet of veneer (peel-and-stick) for ten cabinet doors. This will allow for you to cover the front of the frames so they will also match your cabinet doors. You can add more veneer for additional items you would like to reface, such as drawer rails or base units, for example. You should also measure the wall and base cabinets and panels, which can be covered by either plywood or actual door panels. If any of your existing cabinets have a glass door or insert, measure the inside of the walls and order matching plywood. Until your order arrives, you can make any other improvements or repairs such as replacing damaged shelves.