There are a number of situations where cabinet refacing is a very practical and affordable solution to change the look of the cabinets in your kitchen. The process of refacing cabinets can be completed much more quickly than a replacement project and the cost can be as much as half the price of having brand new cabinets installed. The caveat is that you must be happy with the current layout of your kitchen because the cabinets cannot be moved to a new location.
Cabinet refacing most often involves replacing doors and drawer fronts and putting matching wood veneer pieces over other exposed areas. The installer will use your existing cabinet framework for the project so as long as your current cabinets are structurally sound this type of kitchen remodeling will work. Once all of the drawers and cabinet doors have been removed, the pieces of wood veneer are cut to size and affixed to all of the parts of the cabinet frame that can be seen. The veneer pieces are very thin and have a self-sticking back so that they adhere well to the surface. Matching strips of molding are often used to cover the area where the cabinet meets the wall to cover any gaps.
There are a myriad of choices when it comes to the type of wood and stain for refacing your cabinets. Major manufacturers boast of over 400 selections of solid woods, door styles and finishes to suit your taste. They also offer the latest options for outfitting your cabinets that were not available when your old cabinets were made 15 or 20 years ago. Pull out shelves for base cabinets will add to the functionality of your kitchen and give you more storage space, lazy susans will make things stored in corner cabinets more accessible and you can have one of your bottom cabinets outfitted with a stow away trash bin.
There are other modern conveniences that can be brought into your kitchen while you are having kitchen refacing done. Want a microwave that hangs over the stove? Your installer can retro-fit the current cabinet structure to accommodate that. Contractors can also rework your current layout to turn a set of existing cabinets into a large pantry. If you have the room, the contractor will also be able to add an extra cabinet or too as part of the project. If you have always wanted an island in your kitchen for entertaining and food preparation, this is the time to do it.
One of the major advantages of going the route of cabinet refacing is that the entire job can be completed in less than a week. Instead of losing the use of your kitchen for weeks, a refacing job can be done in a matter of days. There also is not the hassle of figuring out where to go with everything that is stored in your cabinets when the kitchen is gutted. When you do cabinet refacing, most of the things in your cabinets will not even have to be moved.