Thread: Building your own Kitchen Cabinets

Yeah, the price paid for the minipress makes me a bit jealous. The line boring head is worth it's weight in gold. Mind you, I picked up an immaculate Hettich mini PM with the drawer stops and insertion die pretty cheap so I don't have much to complain about. You've just got to be in the right place at the right time.

Which Bessey corner clamp is best?

Thank you WoodPixel, yes it was a fantastic bargain at that price. I don't think too many people realise just HOW USEFUL the Blum Minipress is. I have used it for various other holes other than just the line boring and hinges. It works a treat for some of the knockdown fittings. I think it could handle the drilling requirements for all the fittings on this Google search results page. All that is needed is the correct size bit. All of the fittings I have tried work with the same 12mm depth so I don't even have to adjust the machine (from the standard hinge drilling).

Originally Posted by woodPixel

Which Bessey corner clamp is best?

I don't know if it's the best but mine is an old WS-3 and works great.

Originally Posted by MrFixIt

Hi

I would NOT choose ply because it is NOT cost effective. You'll pay a fortune for no real gain. I would NOT choose chipboard as it is not really very strong/tough. Moisture resistant MDF IS the way to go. For me personally I would not choose vinyl wrap as it (to me) does not seem as durable as proper laminate edge banding. However doing you own edgebanding does take quite a lot of time, having to trim ALL the edges )

Particleboard gets a bad rap, somewhat undeserved. It's acceptable for structural use in flooring at 19mm, but for some reason gets criticised in non-structural use in cabinetry at 16/18mm, which I don't get. The modulus of elasticity is in the same ballpark as MDF (E0 is 2800, vs 2500-3000 for MDF), and its moisture resistance is better. The main benefit of using melamine MDF is it is less prone to chip out when cut, and the smoother cut edge gives a better bond with hot air edgebanding. The uniform density means it's slightly more resistant to bending under load, but you'll never notice it in a kitchen. Melamine MDF is about 25% more expensive, which in my view puts it in the same position as plywood, costs more for no real gain.

I hardly see vinyl wrap used any more, it was popular in the 90's but went out because it yellowed with age and heat would soften the adhesive and the edges peel and curl, and it lacks impact resistance. Gloss polyurethane finishes have made it largely redundant. Laminate edgebanding is usually reserved for laminate bench tops, cabinets I edge in 1mm ABS and doors in 2mm ABS or PVC. Melamine edgebanding will chip easily and should be avoided.

Trimming edgebanding with a handheld router will be time consuming, a pivot arm trimmer will make it much easier. You can buy these from commercial suppliers such as SETM-I (and I'm not recommending this, it's just an example) or make your own.

OK. A new entrant into the mix. I'm leaning this way: Online DIY Custom Cabinets Solutions | goFlatpacks - Australian Made

edit: Wongo - Is this who you used?

This seems the perfect mix of DIY and getting it made..

Looks like I could get the cabinets cut and delivered in a flatpack with all the good Blum hardware for ~$3 - $5k max ( just did a rough quote online with them ). It's easy like the Ikea kitchen builder, but you can specify custom sizes for all cabinet types. Also a bit cheaper than Ikea by the looks, and you can specify your hardware/hinges etc.

Obviously I'll need to put it all together, but that should save me $20k, given we had a quote come in today for just cabinets made and installed for $25k.

As mentioned above, labour seems to be a huge aspect of the cost in a kitchen.

No. I used this one in Sydney Cheap Custom Flat Pack Kitchen, Wholesale & DIY Kitchens Companies Sydney NSW

It is great you can have whatever size you want.

Like you said, mine were cheaper than Ikea and Bunnings. FYI I went back to Bunnings and Ikea multiple times, I checked everything inside and out, I even bought samples. In the end they just weren't good enough for me.

Originally Posted by ian

......I'm not saying that $60k is reasonable, what I'm trying to say is that as a buyer, you have to be prepared to allow a supplier to cover their overheads and make a profit. and comparing $15k to $60k is ignoring the labour overhead and profit components

Good point, Ian

Conversely, I was careful not to say that $60,000 was unreasonable.

But it did provide the opportunity/challenge/impetus to do it my way without the design or materials compromises.

And those quotes all include 10% GST.


Cheers

Graeme

Personally I will not do it myself. It is far too much effort for too little gain.

Wongo, that was your comment, but my reply is not aimed at you.

Building a kitchen if you are a woodworker is generally about how one might save money by doing some or all of it yourself. This might range from buying in flatpack carcases, doors, hardware, etc. The question of saving money does need to factor in your time, but this is only an issue, in my opinion, if you have to give up work time (when you would be creating income). Giving up recreational time is a choice - this is where one can save money by building as much as one is capable of doing. I worked at my part of the build over weekends. The remainder was done by specialists over a period of a few weeks. It was not a significant intrusion into our lives.

I chose to keep the carcases (installed by a professional kitchen specialist 25 years ago) that were already there as they were still as new. We changed a little bit of the layout (removed a few overhead cabinets to create a lighter feel), but otherwise the original layout and carcases remained. What I changed was the tiling (for a glass splashback), the laminate countertop for granite, and changed electrical outlets - all these were done by specialists. I removed the tiles and prepared the walls ...

The main work I did was to build all the new doors and drawer fronts, and install these. I used the existing Blum (or similar) hardware and bought in new handles. The wood was imported hard (rock) maple from the USA, and the cost for this came to about $3500. I splashed out on a new Festool Domino 500 for the mortice-and-tenon joinery. All the doors were Shaker style with solid hard maple frames and panels. There were about 22 doors and about 8 drawers.

The granite (including a costly waterfall) came to around $7500. The glass splash back (stunning - highly recommended!) came to about $2500.

There was also a new Fisher & Paykel french door fridge and Bosch extractor and induction cooktop that replaced tired white goods, which came to about $5000.

So the minority expense was the wood for the doors. I estimate that they could have cost several times what the material cost if they had been made and installed by a specialist firm. The other "real" expense was the granite countertop and the glass backsplash. You cannot cost in the appliances as these will vary among people. So the kitchen makeover cost me $13000. I really do not know how much I saved by doing the work myself. I just assumed that it was significant. I also did not mind doing it - actually, it was fun.

Before:



After:



Regards from Perth

Derek

Hi Seb

Yes, this a good alternative. Better than IKEA and Bunnings options. I did review the option myself with a local cabinet maker that does the same thing. Take your plans in, describe what you want and they provide a quote on a custom flatpack to your "design". Very good and quite cost effective, especially for those without tools/workshop etc. It is faster too, at least form when they start YOUR job )

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Originally Posted by richmond68

Im old school like skot in that I build a plinth base as well, instead of using plastic legs. You inevitably wind up with wastage from breaking down melamine sheets, so it's a good way to use what you've paid for instead of buying legs while throwing good stuff away. And I find it much easier to level than fiddling with 20+ adjustable feet on a wall of cabinets. You can also incorporate drawers for extra storage.

Absolutely! You saved me from having to say the same thing. ) I thought of using the plastic feet but the plinth is so much easier and QUICKER to implement.

Originally Posted by derekcohen

Building a kitchen if you are a woodworker is generally about how one might save money by doing some or all of it yourself. This might range from buying in flatpack carcases, doors, hardware, etc. The question of saving money does need to factor in your time, but this is only an issue, in my opinion, if you have to give up work time (when you would be creating income). Giving up recreational time is a choice - this is where one can save money by building as much as one is capable of doing. I worked at my part of the build over weekends. The remainder was done by specialists over a period of a few weeks. It was not a significant intrusion into our lives.

Apart from the kudos and props to Derek for a really amazing kitchen refurbish, I'd just like to say that in today's cost-driven world and return-on-investment thinking and all the... claptrap that goes with all of that... it's incredibly refreshing to hear this kind of thinking and reasoning about "cost" and "opportunity cost".

I'm planning on doing a kitchen myself some day (after getting a few other projects done and learning much more than I know now).

Sometimes, building a kitchen has nothing to do with cost, and everything to do with the self-satisfaction and pride that comes with looking at something and knowing you did it yourself.

Especially if others look at it and admire it. Like all the kitchens shown in this thread to date - seriously impressive and very inspiring!

Hi Seb,

I went down this rabbit hole about 18 months ago and reckon I did it for about $25k - about 1/2 of which was expensive appliances.

1. Cabinets - I found a local kitchen guy, with a CNC. I provided the exact dimensions of the cabinets and he cut them out flat pack on his CNC. This price was about 8-9K for a large kitchen and comparible to IKEA in price, but way better quality. This included heaps of wide soft close drawers and was mm perfect. There are about 22 drawers!

2. Drawer/door fronts - I bought a shaker router bit set from McJing and used DAR Tassie oak and marine ply. More expensive than MDf, but better in moisture. Then I sprayed them with with satin oil based enamel using a cheap HVLP spray gun.

This was a perfect excuse to pick up a drum sander, to quickly sand the doors which saved a heap of time. Never pass up the chance to get another tool

3. The bench top was timber slabs from a tree we cut down in the front yard and got slabbed by a guy with a lucas mill. This took the most work

Plan to do the job at a time when you can live without the kitchen. We chose summer and did everything on the BBQ

photo 1.jpg

Hope this helps

Another reason why I choose the build things myself is because I will back my workmanship over a builder every time. I only call someone in when I have to. For example plumbers and electricians.