instock cabinets

[Scott R.]

Does anyone have any stories, good or bad regarding instock cabinets from lowes or home depot.?
Im leaning towards the instock "American Classics" white cabinets from Home Depot, our lowes now requires there cheap white cabinets to be special ordered.
Prices seem to run about $1600 for cabinets alone, not including trim, crown, end panels, toe kicks, ect.

Im scared to put out $2000 for cabinets and then not being able to install them or them looking like crap, either because of the install or the quality of instock cabinets. It's a small old house, cabinets have to be replaced, but im also not willing to spend $5000+ on custom cabinets. I do most of my own work on my houses, am very handy just have never experienced leveling cabinets and stuff like that. Any advice!? dont want this to turn out like my sewer line replacement plan! :)

U shaped kitchen, laminate countertops would be used, if it matters.

[Ingrid Nagy]

I found a carpenter who makes plywood grade cabinets at very similar prices to home depot/lowes. I only use him when I have time for a job. Usually we are in a rush and have found the Lowe's cabinets work better for us right off the shelf. Not sure about the American Classics; have used the Mills Pride but they are a pain.
I've never done a U kitchen but have done L kitchens. Also have not used crown molding because my apts all have a soffit-straight run.

We hang top cabinets first, one at a time starting from corners and working out, leveling each. When the next one comes simultaneously we level it and also make sure faces match up. In addition to securing to wall we put very narrow nails through the facing to be sure they stay lined up. It is extremely important that you check your level before you even begin. You could have level cabinets but an uneven or out of whack room to work with.

Bottom cabinets are much easier since you can work pretty easily alone on it. With bottoms we screw the run of them together first, then put in place, then check level and raise/lower with shims and affix to walls. Just make sure you hit studs and not electrical or plumbing lines. The supply store may have done your layout so just be sure to insert fillers as and where needed. I've never attempted a U shaped countertop so this is out of my league.
In stock cabinets look nice and are functional. However they are only particle board. Shelves tend to bend if too much is put on them and of course sink base cabinets do get destroyed if there's a plumbing leak that no one tells you about. Aside from that I think they look great. A cute tile backsplash between the uppers and lowers can run you about $50 between material, mastic and grout and you end up with what appears like a professional kitchen.

[Scott R.]

Kind of what I wanted to hear! :) thanks for the quick reply.. American Classics is home depots new brand, they clearanced out the other brand they used to stock awhile back, but of course i had no need at the time.. dang..
Im going to be living in this property for awhile, hopefully 2 years for tax reasons and then selling, so I'm not too worried about super longevity of the cabinets, just need them to continue to look good for a few years..
Laminate counters were my first though.. the more i think about the shape of the kitchen, with the U and all, i might go with tile, I think it'd be easier for me.. more experienced with tile counters then laminate..
Tile backsplash was the plan! does wonders for the kitchen for the price IMO
The reason I've decided against lowes as it stands is they do not stock white cabinets which is the color we chose to go with the laminate flooring. Dont want to have to special order incase i need to take something back or switch something..

[Ingrid Nagy]

Sounds like you have a great plan!! You might want to try craigslist too and search under kitchen cabinets. Sometimes you can find something to fit. I found a woman who was planning on gutting her kitchen and then when the market went upside down she couldn't afford it. I bought 17 brand new cabinets for $1200 including toe kicks, fillers, lazy susans in boxes. They were straight from Lowe's brand new. She had all the sizes listed and I was able to make each one fit. I searched for 5 months so I guess it all depends on your time frame. Good luck with the Kitchen!

[Sally Strumbo]

Assuming this is a rental and you want the best bang for your buck check your local Habitat or Humanity re-sale store. Or possibly some of the bigger cabinet places resell the cabinets they have taken out of homes that are still in good shape.

[Don Hines]

This is my Wife's department. So, I have been present only once when she was with a Home Depot rep laying out a kitchen design. Our very first one was a "U" shaped design. We took measurements after the framing was complete. She took those to Home Depot and they created a picture for me to use; complete with measurements. I used this to lay out the plumbing and electrical outlets. My son who is a framer by trade actually did the installation. They turned out great. I would not hesitate to use Home Depot again. We went with a laminate top. They used our measurements for a quote then sent the installer out do check the measurements. We used him to install the top for just a few hundred $$$$ more. He even cut the sink opening out for me. I would use them again when the time comes.
Don

[Jeff B.]

I inspect the Home Depot cabinets as I want to stay away from the particle board ones if possible. Open up the cabinet door and look at the jam and feel the inside corner areas to see if it's solid wood or not. Take a drawer out and flip it over, look at the drawer base, how thick is it does it bow with just a little pressure(cheap).

Then step back and look at the drawer and door fronts are the square to one another and inline? How do the drawers roll in and out on the track. These are all an indication on how the cabinet was made.

[Account Closed]

There is very rarely any reason to replace cabinets, unless you want to change the location, or the old ones stink of mouse pee.

Patch any damage with wood putty and then spray paint them, inside and out. Buy new fancy hardware. They will look like brand new cabinets.

If you don't like the style, paint the bodies and just replace the doors. You can replace the upper cabinet doors with glass fronted doors if you like the look.

You can put wood doors on painted cabinets to get a country look or a modern look, depending upon the color you use for the paint and the style of the pulls.

I really like tile counters and I've never had any problem keeping the grout clean. But some people don't like dealing with the grout.

[Scott R.]

Cabinets are just so old I don't think there salvageable, water damage, weird lay out, the top cabinets are mounted so low there only about 14 inches higher then the counter which makes it look very awkward. Plus the cabinets don't match.. Which is why we decided to replace them.. Normally we don't..

[Marc Freislinger]

Just a tip for hanging the upper cabinets that I didn't see anyone mention:

Hang a 2x4 at the height you want the bottoms of the cabinets. Make sure it's level. You can then rest the cabinet on the board while you hang it. Makes installing them solo a lot easier. First, loosely screw the cabinet into the studs. Then, like someone else said, make sure the fronts line up, and screw them together. Then, if needed, install shims and tighten the cabinet to the wall.

[Eric Wang]

Try looking on Craigslist, you'll see independent store advertising sale. Prices are cheaper than the big box store. I wouldn't buy second hand, your layout is different. Don't waste your time finding cabinets to match. The laminate counter top you can buy at the big box store.