New Cabinet Installation

Cabinets Are the Stage Everything After Them Depends On

When cabinets go in, a kitchen finally starts to look like a kitchen again. It is also the stage where small mistakes get locked in. A base run that is an eighth of an inch out of level becomes a countertop that rocks, a dishwasher gap that looks crooked, and a backsplash line that wanders along the wall. So we install cabinets as a precise step, not as a quick one.

Before the First Box Goes In

Cabinets come after the walls are closed and the rough-in has passed inspection. We also check the floor. If new tile or wood is going under the cabinets, it is installed or at least planned first, because setting cabinets on the subfloor and running flooring up to them changes the height of the countertop and the dishwasher opening.

We snap a level line around the room at the height of the base cabinets, find the high spot of the floor, and mark every stud. Riverside homes vary widely here. A 1920s bungalow can be well out of level from one wall to the other, while a newer home in Mission Grove is usually close.

Ordering Cabinets That Suit the House

Cabinet choices are made at the start of the job, long before installation, because lead times are real and the plumbing and electrical are laid out to them. A few decisions matter most.

• Box material. Plywood boxes hold screws well and tolerate a slow leak under the sink better. Good quality particleboard is flat and stable and costs less, but it swells if it stays wet.
• Framed or frameless. Framed cabinets have a face frame that stiffens the box and suits traditional and craftsman kitchens. Frameless cabinets give slightly more usable space inside and a cleaner modern line.
• Inset or overlay doors. Inset doors sit inside the frame and suit older homes, but they need careful fitting and more adjustment over time. Full overlay doors cover the frame and are more forgiving.
• Hardware. Soft-close hinges and full-extension drawer slides are worth the money in a kitchen that gets used every day.

If your existing cabinet boxes are solid and the layout works, it is fair to ask whether you need new cabinets at all. Refacing with new doors, drawer fronts and hardware can make sense and skips a large part of the schedule. We will tell you if that is the better call.

How We Set the Cabinets

Upper cabinets usually go first on a ledger board so nobody is leaning over base cabinets to reach them. Each cabinet is shimmed to the level line, clamped to its neighbor, and screwed through its rails into the studs, never only into drywall. Base cabinets follow from the highest point of the floor outward, shimmed level front to back and side to side.

We check the aisles as we go. Around 42 inches of clear space between counters works for one cook, and 48 inches is more comfortable when two people share the room. Openings for the dishwasher, range and refrigerator are measured against the actual appliance specifications, not a typical number.

Once the boxes are fastened, fillers, end panels and toe kicks are scribed to the walls and floor, and doors and drawers are adjusted so the gaps are even.

Handing Off to the Countertop Stage

This is where the sequence pays off. With the cabinets set, level and fastened, the fabricator templates the countertops from the real installed boxes. That usually leads to one to three weeks of fabrication. We use that window for crown molding, light rail, hardware and the under cabinet lighting connections, so the finish stage can move quickly once the counters are set.

Call (951) 307-9861 to talk through cabinet options and where they fit in your schedule.