DIY Kitchen Cabinets - More Kitchen, Less Money
Any time you're looking at a kitchen remodel, you're looking at big bucks. New cabinets alone will cost half of any remodeling budget which is going to run into as much as $20,000 to $50,000. Do you also realize that the largest percentage of the cost of any cabinet installation is labor? That's why many people who are thinking about remodeling their kitchens also consider DIY kitchen cabinets. With a few basic carpentry skills and tools, you can save yourself a pile of money or have enough left in your budget to upgrade to much nicer cabinetry.
Save Money With DIY Kitchen Cabinets
The installation of kitchen cabinets probably isn't a job you can do in a weekend, because it takes time to do the job right. In addition, you're going to need at least one person to help you, because lifting the heavy cabinet boxes into place and holding them there while trying to screw them to the wall is a difficult, if not impossible, job without assistance. You could also probably use some helping removing the old cabinets from the walls. Don't just use a crowbar and jerk them down. Take your time so that you don't damage the walls. If you end up needing wall repairs, any money you've saved by doing the project yourself will be gone.
Start by measuring and drawing a straight line parallel to the floor or countertop. Use a stud finder to locate the studs so that you can screw 1” x 3”s onto the wall temporarily. The top of the board should run even with the line you drew. When you start cabinet installation, do any corner cabinets first. Drill pilot holes and then hang the cabinet by a couple of screws while you check the top of the cabinet to see if it's level. If it is, go ahead and add enough screws drilled into the studs so that you know the cabinets will hang securely. You will attach adjacent cabinets to the corner cabinet using clamps so that you can make sure everything is plumb. Once you have an entire block square and even, you can screw cabinets into each other and into the wall to make them secure.
Make sure the screws you use are long enough and that they are placed into the studs. After all, these cabinets are going to carry the weight of things like sets of dishes and shelves of canned goods, so they need to be able to carry a heavy load. Years ago I knew a gal whose husband was remodeling their kitchen. Unbeknownst to her, he nailed the cabinets to the walls instead of using screws and just nailed wherever he chose without looking for the studs. Needless to say, once she loaded these cabinets with her dishes, one of them fell off the wall smashing everything inside. DIY kitchen cabinets is one of those jobs that can be done on your own as long as you know what you're doing and do it right.
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