Refacing kitchen cabinets

Every time you buy an old house, or rent a house which someone had inhabited for years on end with little care for renovation, the giant task of re-building from the scratch falls upon you. Is it always judicious to spend a hell lot on renovating your new apartment to the very last detail? Perhaps there are certain things which you can take care of without hurting your pockets. For instance the old greasy, chipped out cabinets in the kitchen can look much better if you replace the coating and install new doors. It is easier to reface those cabinets which come with a partial-overlay door by replacing the doors and then covering the bare portions of the cabinet with easily procurable self-stick veneer.

Step One:]

The old, worn-out cabinet doors need to be removed. The cabinet must be cleaned with an old cloth and then scrubbed with sandpaper. Finally Carpenter’s glued has to be applied to the plywood panel on the original frame.

Step Two:

The stiles and rails have to be measured out. The veneer needs to be cut into fine strips using a utility knife such that each strip is half an inch wider and two inches longer than the original measurement. These strips need to be aligned against the stiles and rails such that it overlaps the edges. The self-stick backing of the veneer strip needs to be peeled off and the same must be pressed onto the stiles.

 

Step Three:

A wooden block must be used in order to press firmly against the newly applied veneer strip to drive away air bubbles and ensure complete adhesion.

Step Four:

The veneer strips have to be fixed on the rails such that it overlaps the stiles on both the sides.

Step Five:

Once the veneers have been fixed on the stiles and rails, excess trimmings have to be removed with the help of a razor.

Step Six:
The new doors have to be aligned with the cabinet frame and the hinges have to be screwed to the doors temporarily. The door must be closed to adjust the position before the screws are tightened and they are fixed permanently. Finally using a drilling machine the knobs need to be fixed on the newly-attached doors.