Have you been shopping for kitchen furniture and are not satisfied with the selection of big box stores and import furniture distributors? Well, maybe you should take a closer look at considering custom kitchen cabinets as an option for your kitchen remodeling project. Here I will discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of stock and custom cabinets.
Kitchen cabinets in stock
What are standard kitchen cabinets? Stock kitchen cabinets are cabinets that are pre-made to a specific size and then resold by a cabinet dealer. Stock cabinets are typically produced in 2-inch increments. In some basic kitchen designs, like an L-shaped kitchen, you can fit the cabinets without much trouble. But what do you do when you install cabinets between two walls? Well, in this case, your cabinet dealer can provide you filler pieces to cover any large spaces that eventually occur by using cabinets built in 2-inch increments. These cabinet filler pieces can be cut to fit the remaining space relatively well. The main disadvantage of the kitchen cabinets in stock is the incremental size mentioned above, but also the quality. Although, as with anything, low- to mid-priced stock cabinets are generally made from thinner materials and have inexpensive hardware such as cabinet door hinges and drawer slides. There are some advantages to using stock cabinets, the first that comes to mind is cost. Since stock cabinets are mass produced, they can be quite affordable. Another advantage is speed, in most cases distributors have access to larger warehouses where the cabinets are stored, and you can order your cabinet from stock in a few weeks or, in some cases, days.
Custom kitchen cabinets
Custom kitchen cabinets are cabinets that are built just for your kitchen layout, taste, and design needs. Custom kitchen cabinets can easily be built to fit between two walls or to match odd angles, something that is not possible with standard kitchen cabinets. There are many advantages with custom cabinets that you cannot have with stock cabinets. The advantages that are at the top of the list are the selection. Since a custom cabinetmaker will produce your new kitchen cabinets, you can have them do just about any style imaginable. You can also have them produce rare or exotic wood cabinets. You can also have a much larger selection of cabinet doors and drawer fronts. Some custom cabinetmakers choose to outsource their doors and drawer fronts, in this case they will generally have a very large catalog of doors for you to make your selection. With custom-made cabinets, you can select the type of hardware, such as cabinet door hinges and drawer slides. Most are currently opting for drawer slides and hinges with the soft close feature. Not only is this very popular, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it becomes the standard for years to come.
Custom Cabinet Cost
Most people want to know how much more custom cabinets will cost compared to stock cabinets. This is almost impossible to answer with any degree of precision. The real truth of the matter is that custom cabinets will cost more than the bottom lines of comparable stock cabinets. But we’ve seen that custom cabinets are very competitive with mid-to-higher-end stock cabinets. Despite the higher prices for custom kitchen cabinets, it is almost always worth the additional cost. The cabinets are built in a much more solid way, just as most custom cabinetmakers will use a ¾-inch thick cabinet box material, it doesn’t get much more solid than that. All cabinet stores will have varying prices, so we recommend that you always compare the exact same kitchen design from store to store to get the most accurate estimates.