I'm looking at adding some cabinets to my kitchen and having a new counter installed.

Is it easier/cheaper/preferred to keep the existing cabinets and just add new ones in addition (and change the doors and hardware on the old ones) or to rip out the old ones and just install all new ones?

I’d fight like crazy to avoid trying to match finishes. I added two new cabinets and put on all new doors and hardware then painted everything.
Trying to match stains and finishes gives me the heaves. YMMV
P.S. get the wife’s finish approval first. Finishing cabinets is not like moving furniture around.

The old ones are painted white right now and will just be repainted white.

The new ones are going to be painted white as well so hopefully it wouldn't be too hard to match.

quote:

Originally posted by KevH:
The old ones are painted white right now and will just be repainted white.

The new ones are going to be painted white as well so hopefully it wouldn't be too hard to match.

I guess as long as you're going to be painting all the cabinets. Just be aware that there are hundreds of different "whites"

https://www.hgtv.com/design/de...aint-colors-for-2017

https://www.elledecor.com/desi...right-white-a-70889/

quote:

Originally posted by KevH:
I'm looking at adding some cabinets to my kitchen and having a new counter installed.

Is it easier/cheaper/preferred to keep the existing cabinets and just add new ones in addition (and change the doors and hardware on the old ones) or to rip out the old ones and just install all new ones?

Depends on how much you're going to change the layout when adding cabinets.

Also depends on the quality of the old cabinets and if you are planning on adding pull-out shelves.

When I did my last kitchen, I went with all new cabinets rather than re-facing the old ones, because I wanted to go with "frameless" boxes and Danish (hidden) hardware...plus the old cabinets weren't very level anymore

I totally gutted my house out in 2011. To save money I was very close to refinishing the existing cabinets I had. I wanted drawers on the lowers, not doors. I ultimately didn't think the old cabs from 1964 would look good in a totally new kitchen. I am so glad I did not do that and spent the money on new cabinets. They are so much nicer than what I had. Just my .02.


https://imgur.com/a/Ukd5Fom

A cabinet is just a box hanging on the wall before you put doors on them. Keep the boxes, add new boxes, then paint and reface with with new doors and hardware.

Well, there are some questions....

1 - Are the old cabinets in good shape?
2 - Are the old cabinets cheap or quality (i.e. mostly particle board)?
3 - How long do you plan to live in the house?
4 - Do you just want more space or do you want to add value to the house as well?
5 - Do you have a budget adequate to replace all the cabinets? (Replacing with quality boxes isn't cheap.)

I've owned a bunch of houses over the years and a kitchen is a terrific place to add value to a home...assuming you go about it correctly. It can also be incredibly expensive depending on a number of factors.