Upgrading your space has never been easier with replacement cabinet doors. Instead of opting for a pricier full cabinet replacement, replacing only cabinet doors lets you elevate your kitchen with a smaller price tag and a minimal impact on your daily routines.
That said, there are structural limitations and compatibility concerns to consider. So, let’s discuss the pros and cons of kitchen cabinet door replacement to determine if it’s the right approach for you.
Is It Possible to Replace Only Cabinet Doors?
Yes. Cabinet door replacement involves swapping out only the doors and drawer fronts while keeping the existing cabinet frames and boxes intact.
Door replacement spruces up your kitchen without investing in a remodeling project. It’s also perfect for when your cabinets are still in good structural condition but you want to improve them without breaking the bank.
If just replacing cabinet doors and drawer fronts won’t be the complete appearance overhaul you were hoping for, there is another option. Kitchen cabinet refacing goes another step further, usually covering cabinet face frames and sides with new material and often replacing hinges and hardware as well.
The materials used in cabinet refacing can vary in quality and cost, from veneers and laminates to solid wood. The best refacing companies will use high-quality solid wood and preferred construction techniques and offer options such as new drawer boxes and shelves, crown molding, and more.
Pros of Replacing Only Cabinet Doors
Cost-Effective Kitchen Upgrade
Have you always wanted to revamp your kitchen? Here’s your chance. Instead of a complete cabinet replacement, consider getting custom cabinet doors to elevate your space’s interior design.
It’s generally cheaper than full cabinet refacing or cabinet replacement since it involves replacing only cabinetry doors and nothing else. If you want to go the extra step and upgrade the existing cabinet boxes, cabinet refacing can also provide significant savings over a complete tear-out of existing cabinets and replacing them with new cabinetry.
Faster and Less Disruptive Installation
Full replacements using stock cabinets take at least two days, assuming no other upgrades are made, and requires removing countertops, fixtures, and all appliances, considerably impacting your daily routines.
Meanwhile, getting new cabinet doors is quick and easy. After all, you only need to replace doors, so the process takes less than a day and won’t cause much downtime.
Wide Range of Customization Options
Replacing only your cabinet doors might not seem impactful aesthetically, but you’ll have access to a wide range of custom door styles, materials, and colors to elevate your space.
For instance, you could switch from recessed to raised panel doors to update your cabinetry’s look without changing its entire structure.
Cons of Replacing Only Cabinet Doors
Structural and Hardware Issues Remain
Remember, replacing existing cabinet doors only switches out the door itself. If your cabinetry is warped, damaged, or outdated, this approach won’t fix it. You might have to replace cabinet boxes, knobs, and hinges, which come with a hefty price tag, as well as more time, labor, and expertise to pull off successfully.
Mismatched Appearance
The problem with replacing only doors is that your new ones won’t match the rest of your cabinetry’s appearance, especially if it’s an older setup.
Repainting or refinishing the frames to match your new doors is one way to address the problem, but it involves a significantly larger investment of time and money. Painted finishes on frames can show wear very quickly in a heavily used cabinet. You should also consider your skill level, as sloppy work can have permanent appearance defects.
Functionality Issues
Replacing doors may change the cabinetry’s overall exterior appearance but doesn’t improve its ease of use or storage. For example, if some shelves are inaccessible, changing doors won’t fix the problem.
On the other hand, full cabinetry refacing may offer the option to improve the cabinet’s storage system and add new cabinet features to make it more user-friendly and increase accessible space.
Important: When choosing a refacing installer, find out what services they offer that can provide these improvements.
Fit and Alignment Issues
Finding the right door size that suits your cabinetry can be challenging, especially if cabinets are nonstandard and you’re looking to DIY.
Things like distinguishing between frameless and face frame cabinets and ensuring the correct overlay are crucial considerations. These aren’t small details—mistakes related to these can be costly. Custom doors are typically nonreturnable, and if you order them without having taken these things into account, you will end up with expensive doors that don’t fit.
Door misalignment is another common concern. It can be corrected with six-way adjustable mounting hinges, but you must have the right tools to install them, especially if you have to replace standard hinges.
How American Wood Reface Goes Beyond Just Replacing Cabinet Doors
Replacing cabinet doors has its pros, but cabinet refacing is more practical in the long run, especially when you consider that you’re upgrading the doors, the cabinet faces, and the hardware, with the option to modify their features.
| Door Replacement | Cabinet Refacing |
| Potential for mismatched components | Consistent matching appearance across all cabinetry |
| Structural and hardware issues remain | Fixes structural and door alignment problems |
| Doesn’t improve storage | Improves storage with organization features |
| Doesn’t improve functionality | Skilled refacing contractors can install usability features or modify cabinetry for a specific use. |
American Wood Reface is here to address all your refacing needs. Not only do we upgrade cabinets with handcrafted solid wood doors, but we also cover face frames with premium 1/4″ solid wood.
Additionally, we cover all exposed parts of the cabinets, including sides and bottoms, so that all finishes match. We do not use laminate products or veneers. We install new doors with six-way adjustable hinges and replace pull hardware with new ones.
We offer doors in eight different woods along with endless customization of style and finish, including high-end features such as distressing and glaze highlighting. Better yet, we also do cabinet modifications, which can involve resizing cabinets, altering their function, adding new cabinets, installing organization features, and/or changing the kitchen’s layout.
If you’re also hoping to change countertops, backsplashes, and under-cabinet lighting, the experienced, full-service refacers at American Wood Reface can assist you with those upgrades as well.
Takeaway
Replacing only cabinet doors is affordable and won’t interrupt your kitchen routines. However, it’s an imperfect solution to your aesthetic, structural, and functional needs—something that cabinet refacing can directly address.
Start your refacing journey with American Wood Reface. Request a free consultation with us today!
