Kitchen and bathroom cabinetry
When a kitchen or bathroom remodel is under way in Davie, cabinetry is usually one of the most noticeable parts of the project.
Moisture Problems
Humid summers, driving rain, and the threat of hurricane season makes Davie a bit of a challenging environment for cabinetry. Before ordering new cabinets, thoroughly check the condition of existing ones, especially the bottom of the base cabinet under the sink.
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Slow leaks from faucets, disposals, drain connections and water supply connections can soak cabinet bottoms for months. There’s rarely an obvious puddle to point out the problem.
Look for swollen edges or dark stains in cabinet bottoms. Sniff for a musty smell. Feel for sponginess in the floor in front of the toe kick. Take out cleaning supplies stored on the bottom shelf, then push on the shelf to see if it bows. Items should sit level. Particleboard and MDF are popular cabinet materials. Both take water poorly, especially along unfinished edges.
Leaks in sinks and disposals often soak subflooring as well as cabinets, so you’ll likely need more than just new boxes to remedy the problem. Nearby walls may be stained or sagging from water as well as adjacent baseboards. Fixing these items takes priority, since the leak’s source must be corrected.
Exterior Walls
Cabinets along an exterior wall can also pick up more than their share of moisture. Bathrooms with exterior doors to patios, laundry rooms with an exterior door, kitchen cabinets along the wall that opens to the garage, and other spots deserve extra attention.
Condensation, poorly-sealed exterior door thresholds, missing caulk around window trim, wind-driven rain and other factors can soak cabinets. Check for discoloration, swelling, or softness.
Bathroom vanities along an exterior wall may reveal problems with peeling laminate close to the floor, swollen sides, or discoloration behind towels and baskets. Solid plywood cabinet construction, laid out without much jargon at https://britannica.com/technology/plywood, offers the best resistance to moisture.
Solid plywood construction and properly sealed edges provide more resilience than thin, unfinished engineered panels in areas of concern.
Fit and Clearances
Cabinet measurements and clearances
Out of square walls and ceilings aren’t the norm, but older homes and additions in Davie may not be so neat and true. Walls may not be perfectly plumb (true and vertical from top to bottom). Floors may not be perfectly level. Corners aren’t always square. Ceiling heights can vary.
Cabinets may be designed to fit neatly, but installation is another story. Upper cabinets may be crooked. A pantry may not lay flat against the wall. Countertops may be a challenge to make appear straight; the practical side of where cabinet work goes wrong most often in Davie starts with these fit issues.
A thorough inspection should include checking for levelness in the floor and cabinets. Check the walls for width in multiple spots, not just where cabinets will be located. Ceiling height and angles deserve attention, especially where soffits may be added to cover plumbing and electrical.
Check for squareness of walls, especially where cabinets come together at a corner. Check for electrical boxes, plumbing, air conditioning ducts, and other items that could impact cabinet layout. Hidden items behind cabinets are discovered during removal.
Allow for unevenness of walls and ceilings in cabinet plans. Minor imperfections are solved with filler strips and trim pieces. Major ones may be corrected during cabinet layout or require some remedial wall work.
Flooring and Approval
Removing existing cabinets can reveal unexpected surprises with floors. Homeowners may have thought they had wall-to-wall tile, but removal of the cabinets reveals a few inches of subfloor where the tile actually stopped at the toe kicks. New cabinets may be a different size than existing ones, revealing more or less subfloor.
Some remodelers prefer to install cabinets, then install floors. This means that finished floor heights are unknown when cabinets are ordered. Floors may end up higher than anticipated, complicating the ability to remove dishwashers for service, limiting full access to oven compartments, or impacting the ability to properly level cabinets.
Bathroom vanities may be ordered and installed during framing, only to discover that drawers hit towel bars when floors are installed. Or maybe the vanity will interfere with a door’s ability to open all the way because of door casing added during finish work.
Waiting to install cabinets until walls have been repaired and flooring heights are confirmed helps avoid gaps or spaces that can’t be corrected.
Approval Questions
- Are cabinets under sinks showing any signs of water damage?
- Are floors and walls level and square?
- Are cabinets being specified that are resilient to moisture for locations of concern?
- Have full-size cut sheets been obtained for appliances? Have clearances been confirmed in tight kitchen layouts?
- Will new flooring interfere with cabinet openings? Will it complicate leveling of base cabinets?
- Who’s responsible for correcting water-damaged walls discovered once cabinets are removed?
Before Ordering
A final check of measurements, floor and wall conditions, appliance specs and other considerations helps prevent costly corrections during cabinet installation. Take your time with a pre-remodel meeting before cabinets are ordered. Making sure cabinets fit well means checking for more than just aesthetics.
