What is Cabinet Refinishing?

You might be wondering what is cabinet refinishing, and how does it differ from other kitchen remodeling jobs. Cabinet Refinishing is the process of taking existing kitchen or bathroom cabinets and restoring them to as good as new condition. That can be done in a couple of different ways.

Applying a new stain to the cabinets

The first process is labor intensive, where the cabinets are sanded down to the original wood, and then a stain is placed on the wood. In many cases this makes the cabinets almost as good as new. There are different types of staining that can be done to give it a more detailed and interesting look. One of the hot trends today is multi-colored stains. So that you might have one darker color accenting a lighter color. Also a hot trend is going back more to a more natural color of the wood. Oak has come back into prominence after being supplanted by darker colors in the past 10-20 years.

Cabinet Painting instead of a stain

The second way that cabinet refinishing is handled is where the original cabinets are painted instead of applying a new stain on them. This is generally cheaper than cabinet refinishing. It costs about 30-50% less, and is less labor intensive. In many cases you don’t have to sand the cabinets down to the original, you can simply apply a high quality primer and then paint over the top of the primer.

When should I Consider a Cabinet Refinishing Project?

You should consider cabinet refinishing for your kitchen if the cabinets that you have in place are already functional and working within your home but you just need a refresh. In many cases a proper refinish with new hardware can dramatically remake the kitchen.  It can save you tens of thousands of dollars over the cost of a brand new kitchen.

Click here for the next article in our series.