I have built several sets of kitchen cabinets and always saved big time.
Last week I finished a 7 foot long base cabinet with 9 drawers and a formica top.
It cost me around $175 to $200. Exact cost unkown since I used some left overs for the interior bulkheads and formica top.
The only catch for me is door or drawer front style since that can call for special tools or milling from a shop. I generally go with something simple if I can talk SWMBO into it. One set had doors that were grooved on a table saw using a molding head. My last project had oak plywood drawer fronts with oak trim surrounding the edges.
I'd saw go for it if at all possible. Another big plus for me: I used the latest project as an excuse for a Dewalt mitre saw and am extremely happy with that also.
"Todd Fatheree" wrote in news:W46dnTOE3pQVxc7fRVn- snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:
So, I'm wondering if anyone who has
We completed (OK, mostly completed so far) a kitchen remodel that was estimated to run $5K plus. By doing all the work ourselves, we got new floors (laminate), sink/DW/disposal, lighting, three new cabinets, new counters, etc. for under $1,000. $450 of that was the DW. New counters-- we ripped out the old tiled ones and started from scratch -cost about $120 including the MDF, formica, and oak trim.
We didn't build new cabinets from scratch in this case; we saved about 80% of the originals and added one antique we were able to match by creating a new top to blend in. It was all pretty easy though, enough so that I plan on doing all the cabinets in our next house myself, probably in hickory. I'm guessing we can save about 80% on the package if I buy rough lumber to start, and the whole mess would be designed just as we want it and for our space.
Of course, I have 3-4 months "off" each year to work on such projects. I'm supposed to be writing then, but I can only write productively for 3-4 hours per day.
Personally, I was completely underwhelmed by the doors. Splitting already. I also have no idea where on the scale of HD products their selection sits... if there even is a 'higher-end'. I find everything expensive at HD. My favourite, here in Kanuckistan, is 1/2 a sheet of 5/8" MDF is 27 dollars, a whole 4 x 8 sheet is 29 bucks. (Or something along those lines..please don't flame me, folks.) the half sheets measures 48" x 48" not 49 x 48 1/2" I just don't know about that place. I much prefer Lowe's across the river in Port Huron MI...10 minute drive..tops.
I'd be careful with that line of reasoning. You might wind up having to build some things that you really don't want nor need to be building. e.g. termite-puke bookstands
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I am in the process of building a kitchen as part of building a house. By myself, from scratch. So I love pain, so what. I happend to stumble onto a few things that have helped my decision to build my own kitchen cabinets,
1: The cabinets that I can affort at HD/Lowes and the like are JUNK.
2: Using "standard" cabinet sizes would waste a lot of space in my kitchen.
3: I got access to a source of $0.32/bf red oak about 1/2 of which is quartersawn.
4: I found in a scrap pile from a granite cabinet manufacturer enough granite to make my own counter tops, backsplash, and island top.
I'm getting close to done and I believe that if I had to pay for custom cabinets, countertops and such it would have spent well over $15k as it stands now I have about $3k spent, which includes a table saw upgrade, new thickness planer, afterall, the oak was rough sawn, and a couple of other tools to make working with granite possible.
I have got probably 150 man hours invested in the kitchen so far. Some of that was education, after all it takes a long time to polish granite edges, and since we have a functional kitchen in another part of the house, I'm in no real rush.
From my standpoint, I have the time to throw at it, and I don't have thousands of dollars to throw at it. It seems to usually come down to time or money. Sometimes you throw money, sometimes you throw time, and you hope you made the right choice.
I am building my house, by myself, and I do everything from rough carpentry to electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and cabinetry. I can say I built this, and if its not what I want, it's my fault. I just go back to the builder and make him fix it. Although doing things 3 or 4 times gets to be a real pain.
If you have the desire, and some level of skill, there are sharp things involved that will hurt if you don't pay attention, and blood is real hard to get out of raw wood, read a couple of books, go look at the home shows and see what you like, then go build stuff. Sometimes you get to beat on things which is real good for the blood pressure.
Well said ... I'd like to meet and shake your hand because doing what you describe was an attitude, and a way-of-life, in the culture where I grew up ... South Louisiana.
.... hard to believe an OS/2 guy can be that smart! .
Hey, I'm a computer guy and I truely dislike Windoze, I ran OS/2 until there was basically nothing left that would run on it. I used to have a PS/2 with a Cherry case, nice frame and raised panel sides, My dad was a jack of all trades and I enherited some of that ability. And I hate to pay someone to do something that I can do better. So it takes longer but it's nicer.
Does anyone know if the granite countertop folks put some kind of sealer/filler on the stone, or just polish it to death? I'm a bit concerned with the small pits in the surface gathering nasty stuff.
Been there, done that. Very pleased with the results. There's nothing like the feeling of accomplishment of building something so large and complex.
I remember when I finished framing the roof (rafters, hip roof). I climbed up to the peak, and sat on the top ridgeboard, looking out into the distance. Pretty cool knowing that a few months earlier it was just a field there, and that I'd done it. I used the insulated styrofoam forms, so I did everything but dig the hole (didn't have the backhoe/loader then), the well, septic, and concrete flatwork. I did every nail, every board.
I'll never do drywall taping/mudding again.
EXACTLY! I know where all 3 bent-over framing nails are, and I know there's no surprises hidden waiting to be a problem. Took longer, saved money, but WAY easier on the sanity. Just dealing with the concrete contractors to get someone there when I wanted them, to do what I wanted, was nerveracking enough.
Yup. It's a big job, made up of a bunch of little jobs. None of them are all that complex, by themselves.
And a waffle-faced Estwing framing hammer makes a really interesting pattern on a thumbnail. DAMHIKT.
My parents built their retirement house (had it poured and framed). A tip for the OP and anyone else starting from scratch: Make a copy of your blueprints on gridded paper. Mark in different colors every wire, pipe, coax line, fiber optic, whatever. Keep this map up to date.
And LOTS of pictures. With digital cameras now, there's no excuse not to. More than once I've used the construction pictures for things like "OK, which side of that outlet box is the stud on?", or "Where in the floor is that heat tube", or "how did I route that cable?"
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