Cabinets - Kitchen &
Bathroom Cabinet Tips
Install Cabinet Boxes - Behind the Cabinet Door
 Kitchen Cabinets - Bathroom
Cabinets - Cabinet Installation - Install Cabinet Boxes
First you should understand what lies behind the cabinet door — the cabinet box. Your response may be a smug, Duh! But cabinet construction can get complicated rather quickly. There’s more going on than you might think. It breaks down by:
Kitchen &
Bathroom Cabinet Installation - Install Framed Cabinet
Boxes
In framed cabinets, wood joinery holds the parts together. Horizontal rails and vertical stiles secure the
cabinet door to the cabinet box. In frameless cabinets, special hardware fittings do both jobs. Because no rails or stiles block the way, frameless cabinets offer slightly easier access to their interiors.
You might be surprised to learn that solid wood rarely forms the cabinet box. It’s more often used in face frames and doors than in the larger side panel parts. That’s because it tends to warp—a special concern in the kitchen where the moisture level changes frequently. But in the
cabinet doors, using multiple strips of lumber in a variety of sizes can reduce the warp factor. A “floating” panel might also be used. The panel floats because instead of being glued to the doorframe
of the cabinet, its edges sit between wooden grooves, allowing the wood to move more freely with changes in the kitchen’s humidity.
Cabinet Box materials typically contain wood chips, other wood by-products, and synthetic additives to make them especially strong and warp resistant.
Your cabinet options for box material include:
All have solid reputations for durability and screw-holding power, particularly plywood. Medium-density fiberboard has gained a following for its ability to be formed into
cabinet door and drawer heads and other decorative cabinet features. Furniture-grade flake-board offers a stronger alternative than particleboard, which you’ll pay the least for.
Often the
cabinet door and cabinet box will be constructed of different materials. A cabinet door might be solid maple and the sides plywood covered with a maple veneer. The same finish would be applied to both, unifying the look. Or you may decide you want different tones on the door and the sides to add contrast.
Kitchen & Bathroom Cabinet Finishing Tip -
You’ll want to make sure you know if the finish you like requires a certain base material, and you’ll want to check out examples of your
cabinet manufacturer’s work. Beware of staples! Staples will pull apart. You want cabinets with thick panels that have been corner blocked and glued or fastened with screws.
Cabinet Options
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Kitchen
& Bath Drawers
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