On 3/29/2011 5:14 AM, Kate wrote:
Has anyone hired a company to reface their kitchen/bathroom cabinets?

If so, were you happy with the results and can you give me some tips?

Many thanks.

Kate

We did, with Sears in Florida. We had signed papers with Home Depot to
replace cabinets with new, and got as far as the sub who did the
measurements...when we went to HD afterward, the planner couldn't figure
out why one wall of the kitchen had a wierd angle. That was a deal
killer, as it was obvious that a measurement made at the corner of the
two walls was incorrect; the sub put in something other than 90 degrees.
I wasn't going to work with someone who couldn't solve such a simple
issue. We weren't going to bother asking for our deposit ($100) back,
but on a later trip to the store the kitchen planner flagged us down and
made us take it )

We then decided that since the old cabinets were good, just ugly, we'd
look at refacing. We had 3/4" ply, built in place cabinets as good as
the day they were built. The carpenter for Sears worked for a week,
refacing, new doors and drawers. We used old door and drawer pulls, but
other hardware was new. I painted inside of cabinets prior to the work.
The carp. was skilled and careful, but I had to call him on a couple
of issues, the major one being counter-top that wasn't even along the
miter at a corner. They are subject to water instrusion if not joined
exactly even and tight. The next issue was a sub who installed the new
sink...from RotoRooter, if I remember right. Late on a Friday, he tried
to convince us that since he didn't have the right size clamps to hold
down the stainless sink, just a line of silicone caulk was going to glue
it down tight. No way!! Hubby made a run to plumbing supply whilst I
held the guy prisoner and we got the sink fastened down right. The
plumber was a dope.

Bottom line: a name is just a name. Sears or HD or whomever will have a
variety of contractors, not all good or all bad. You need to know what
they need to know and be there to watch them do the work. We didn't
hover, but sure checked often. It was expensive, so refacing cheap
cabinets may not be wise...if just refacing, not replacing major items,
might be good. We also covered old metal wall tile with laminate and
then installed glass as a backsplash above our cooktop...love it, so
easy to clean.

I think it is always best to hire contractors whose work you can see, so
check with friends or neighbors. Refacing might be fairly simple, just
contact cement. The cutting and finishing is where quality shows.