Foreign welcome to around the House with Eric G. Your trusted source for all things home improvement.

Whether you're tackling a DIY project, hiring it out, or just trying to keep your home running smoothly, you're in the right place.

With over 30 years of remodeling experience, certified kitchen designer Eric G. Takes you behind the scenes with expert advice, industry trends and the latest innovations for your home.

Home it's everything you need to know without the fluff.

Now here's your host, Eric G. Welcome to the around the House show, the next generation of home improvement.

I'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.

This hour is brought to you by my friends at Monument Grills for that awesome barbecue.

If yours is just barely making it, we've got an answer for you.

Check them out@monumentgrills.com it doesn't matter if you need something small or something for that big neighborhood end of summer party coming up.

Check out the latest in barbecue technology@monumentgrills.com Today's episode here is a little different because I was talking with my buddy Corbin Clay.

He is actually the administrator, the founder on Facebook of the Ask a Cabinet Maker group.

And him and I are always messaging back and forth about how so many issues with homeowners that are working with custom cabinet shops or cabinet shops out there that are building cabinetry and the same mistakes happen every single time.

You can see it over and over again.

And I said, I think I'm going to create my top 10 commandments of buying cabinetry for your home.

What are the top 10 big mistakes that people make and really how do you prevent these from happening?

So I thought let's dive into that today.

Let's talk about the top ten commandments for me because I've been doing cabinetry for about 35 years as a kitchen and bath designer.

I've done everything from really just designing kitchens and bathrooms to running cabinet shops to everything else out there from working with major manufacturers like craft made or wellborn to that local small custom cabinet shop.

And so I've seen all different sides of this, from entry level to high end customers, brands that you've seen in Architectural Digest.

So I thought, hey, let's download some of that information for you out there that maybe you're thinking about building a home or redoing a bathroom or maybe that kitchen remodel this fall.

Here are some of my rules that you should be following so you don't end up like so many people in that group where they post up their problems and they got A heck of a mess going on.

So first up here, hire an experienced kitchen and bath designer.

This is number one.

So here's the thing.

First thing, you can't replace that expertise.

I don't care if you've done two other remodels in your past of kitchens or bathrooms.

Hiring a qualified designer, one that is certified, is even better.

From the National Kitchen and Bath Association.

So a certified kitchen designer like myself, or a certified kitchen and bath designer, you can find out more information about that over@nkba.org so let's skip those rookie mistakes.

A good understanding of design is big, and they're going to stop those mistakes.

If you sit down and drop your own kitchen, you're going to make all those mistakes that the rookie designers that went to design school for four years still made.

So for me, and if you've heard me talk about cabinetry here before, a good designer takes a couple years out of design school to really get good at what they're doing.

So you want that on your team.

So really, you want to get everything dialed in with this designer, lean on them, have them work through the process for you, and that way you get a better end result.

And I promise you, it's going to save you money in the long run because you have a budget to work with.

You want to make sure everything fits.

All those things going on, it's a really big deal.

I've seen so many projects go south because a couple little things get missed, and that quality designer probably would have caught that and help you understand all the nuances to making this work well.

So you're going to save thousands in the long run.

Trust me on this one, it will pay for itself.

And many times when you're working with a cabinetry company, that designer might come with it for free.

They're already in the cabinet, the package price of the cabinetry.

So use that experience, choose someone that knows what they're doing, and you're going to save some serious money.

Now, the next one here is important, and this is number two here, and this is understanding cabinet construction.

Here's the thing, not all cabinetry is created equal.

You've got a face frame.

You've got frameless.

You got hybrid styles, you have flush inset.

Each one has its pros and cons.

Face frame cabinets are pretty sturdy, but you lose a lot of space in a small kitchen.

Those face frames between the boxes, that traditional American face frame, you lose a lot of space.

So if you have a lot of drawers, you can lose on an average kitchen.

About 18 inches.

So you could actually gain a drawer base.

That's a huge deal.

Why lose 3 inches between each cabinet when you can really get some more space?

Because with a frameless cabinet, you just have that five, eight or three quarter side and so you only lose an inch and a half.

So you gain an inch and a half per cabinet, basically the way it's working.

So the thing with this is know what you're buying.

Check the materials.

Plywood vs.

Particle board vs. What's the cabinetry?

Box construction.

Because what happens is with a frameless cabinet, the strength is in the box itself, the sides.

On a face frame, most of the strength is in the face frame.

So you've got different materials that are going along now.

Yes, sometimes particle board will last the same as plywood if it's built correctly.

But a lot of people like the plywood because there is a perceived value.

The only problem with the plywood is that if you're doing frameless with plywood, you can run into some issues because that cabinetry could be.

I've seen it actually add length because nobody actually mics out the width of that plywood.

And a plywood that's three quarters or five, eight or half inch is not actually that dimension.

It's close.

It's a nominal size.

If you've got a long 10, 12, 14 foot run of cabinetry you can have.

If they guessed big or guessed small, you can have some creep on that.

I've had cabinetry show up inch and a half, 2 inches longer than what I thought it was because all those sixteenths of an inch started to add up between boxes.

So be careful.

This is where that designer working with you is going to save you some serious money.

That can save you a ton of cash.

So think about that.

So the cabinetry construction is always the backbone of that whole kitchen or bathroom.

So don't go on flimsy.

And that's where you have to run into some of the RTA stuff that's ready to assemble, that's already built, that kind of thing.

So think about those details.

The they really matter.

So understand the construction.

And here's the other thing too, with the flush inset where the cabinetry is flush with the face frame, that's a big one.

It gives you that classic look.

But in areas where there's high humidity or you're not controlling humidity, like if you were in Hawaii or if you're in the Gulf coast states, that can be problematic without the right.

Basically you need to have a humidity control environment in There.

So I want a dehumidifier.

I want somebody that's really got a good H vac system in there because those will like to warp and you don't have a lot of control with the adjustment.

So with a door frame that's overlaying the frame, like most cabinetry these days, you've got a 16 way adjustable hinge.

You've got drawer fronts you can move around and so you can adjust that seasonally.

But with an inset, you've got a very similar space around the entire door and you don't have that adjustment.

It shows every little detail.

And so that's one of the things with cabinet construction.

And yes, solid wood isn't always better.

You're like, oh, I want hardwood cabinet boxes and all this stuff.

No, you really don't.

You just want something that's going to be sturdy, that's going to hold up to the elements that they're in and that's going to be a good supporting product really for that countertop, the drawer system, everything else.

So think about that.

That's really going to walk you through.

Understanding cabinet construction and how they're made is really big.

And sometimes you can see boxes that are just horribly made out there.

And this is why I always want to say that understanding cabinet construction, if you're dealing with a custom shop, go into the shop, see what they build.

Understanding go to a job site, see what shows up.

Because they could be building it okay, but they could also have a guy that doesn't know how to run the table saw or, or have the right tools with the table saw so the edges are blown out and things look bad at the job site.

So you want to see that earlier than later.

Now major brands, they have that stuff figured out.

When you look at the craft maids, the Wellborns, American woodmarks, all the different brands out there in the big brands, they have that part basically dialed in, especially at the home centers.

We'll talk more about this, but these home center brands do make a good cabinet because they have to give that many times a lifetime warranty.

I worry less about construction there, but understanding what you're getting when you write the check is important.

When we come back, we'll be talking about more of my top 10 commandments for buying cabinetry and putting that in your home.

Just as soon as around the house returns, don't go anywhere.

To find out more about the show, head to aroundthehouse online.com Eric G. Will be right back.

Time for an around the house nugget.

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And thanks to Aerobroom for sponsoring this nugget.

Welcome back to the around the House show, the next generation of home improvement.

I'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.

This hour is brought to you to you by my friends at Monument Grills for that new barbecue.

Check them out@monument grills.com we've been talking today about our top 10 commandments of buying cabinetry for your home.

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Check it out@aerobroom.com today we've been talking about my favorite things with cabinetry.

Here, my top 10 commandments.

How do I keep you from having issues?

We'd already talked about hiring an experienced kitchen and bath designer.

We talked about understanding cabinet construction.

Now here is, in my opinion, the number one issue over in the Ask a cabinet Maker page on Facebook that we were talking about earlier.

It's a closed group over there.

It's really great.

I think there's 38, 39,000 people over there.

The number one issue that I see over there every single week, every single day, just about are finish issues.

And here's what's interesting.

The finish issues aren't from the brands you would think.

It's not from the home center brands.

It's not from these major national companies every single time.

It's from a small local custom cabinet shop.

Now there are some amazing high quality local custom cabinet shop options out there.

There are, but there are equally as many ones out there.

That haven't figured out and they have a hot mess going.

Now, the first warning sign that I would tell you to walk away from one of these custom cabin shops.

And here's the thing, guys, we talk about this a lot on this show, but the word custom means absolutely nothing other than they're building it for your project.

Is craft made building it for your project as wellborn or any one of these other major companies?

Usually, yeah, they're building it for your project.

They're putting it through with your sticker with your name on it, and it shows up and they're building it for your project.

So custom has no meaning on quality.

And quite frankly, many of the custom brands out there that you see that are made locally custom don't have the same quality of finish.

And that's why I wanted to talk about prioritizing high quality finishes.

This is one of the biggest things.

This takes the beating every single day of you in your kitchen or bathroom or anywhere else you're doing cabinetry.

Now the biggest warning sign out there is a custom cabinet shop that doesn't do their own finishes.

I would walk away.

I would not do business with them.

That is like going to buy your favorite car from the brand new car lot and then you have to take it to a shop to have it painted.

No, you want somebody that's going to do the project completely.

Now, there are areas across the country where the trend is if you're painting cabinetry for them to send out, the cabinetry gets assembled and painted in place.

That quality of paint that's out at the job site is not as good as what's coming off a commercial finish line of cabinetry.

It's not.

It's a softer finish.

It's not as good.

Now you will have cram molding details and things that'll look a little cleaner because you could fill and sand them.

But guess what?

That will wear out sooner than that.

Factory baked on finish.

And that's the big thing.

So first off, if they're shipping it out, I want to see them primed before they show up at the job site.

Because when cabinetry shows up at job site, it's a high humidity zone.

Many times the things are drying.

You've got flooring, you've got wallboard, you've got all the different sheetrock mud painting, all these things.

It's usually a high humidity environment, which means if you send out rock habitry, they're sucking that up and you're gonna have a battle.

So prioritizing high quality finishes I never want Rocky at a job site ever.

It's just going to be a problem.

So finishes matter.

Look for a high quality conversion varnish or one of the modern water based finishes for durability.

So that way that resists wear and tear, keeping your cabinets looking fabulous for years.

Now when you order stuff, this is another issue that I see out there.

We're going to talk about this for a minute or two more here because it's important.

So many times I have questions come up in that group that I help answer and the consumer, which is the end user, is sitting there going, I want to do this stain, color.

No, don't get involved in what is going on.

If they have a conversion varnish finish or one of the Poly 2K finishes, whatever you're using, if it's a high quality modern, if it's lacquer, I walk away.

I don't need a lacquer finish.

That's old technology.

But if they're using the right finish system, I want to sit there and meet really and understand what they're going to prove for you.

What does that mean?

I want to make sure that they're the ones creating the finish.

You're getting a sample, you're signing it off, it's that simple.

So I don't want you getting involved in the finish process of what materials are being used.

They either use a good finish or they don't.

So let them come up with the samples for you.

Say, hey, I want to look like this.

Let them match it.

Let their finish person do that for you.

That way you're good.

That way you can get it dialed in.

So you want to make sure that you don't insert yourself too much into this design process.

On the finish, you want to say, hey, I need this color, I want this sheen, I want this great.

But don't be saying, I want you to put this Minwax finish from Home Depot on it.

You're going to create your own problems.

Find the color you want, have them match it, have them come up with it.

You sign off and approve it and then they make it that way.

You let them do what they need to do and you get the material you want.

You want to see a door sample?

You want to see a color sample?

I preferably if it's a big project, I want to see a door sample with the finish on it that's made to match.

So I can sign off on it and say, this is what I approve.

So when the cabinetry shows up, you can hold the sample next to it and go, this is exactly what I was looking for versus what happened.

This is not what I was looking for.

So make sure you've got these things dialed in for that beautiful kitchen.

The finish is everything in this.

It's probably one of the most important things.

And don't let it be done poorly.

Make sure that if it's a custom cabinet shop, they're doing it right with the right materials around the house.

We right back after these important messages.

Don't go anywhere.

We're just getting started on my top ten commandments for your cabinetry.

Welcome back to the around the house show, the next generation of home improvement.

I'm Eric G. To find out more about us, head over to aroundthehouseonline.com for our website and everything going on over there.

And make sure you follow us on social media, the YouTube channel, all those different things out there for you to track us down so we can help you with your next home improvement project.

And of course, this hour is brought to you by my friends at Monty McGrills for the best barbecue out there.

Check them out@montymcrills.com we've been talking about my top 10 commandments for buying cabinetry in your home.

The things you should pay attention to, the things to watch out for.

And we're gonna have to put our foot into this here a little bit more because we're only through three of these things, but they're three important ones.

Hiring a kitchen designer that's experienced, understanding cabinetry construction and of course, prioritizing those high quality finishes, that's one of the most important things out there when it comes to kitchen, bath, cabinetry, Any of the cabinetry in your home for that matter, check it out.

That is one of the biggest ones.

Now the next one is big and I see this more with the rta, the ready to assemble cabinetry and some of the lower quality things out there.

Check hardware quality.

Don't overlook the hardware.

Drawers and doors get a daily workout.

Cheap hinges or slides can lead to sagging doors, stuck drawers.

You want to have some reliable brands out there like Bloom, Hafala grass.

Some of these are really great stuff.

The problem though is if you're buying that overseas branded stuff, the issue we have is a lot of that is knockoff stuff.

So it looks just like it.

But the problem is when it fails, you won't find something to replace that.

So you now you're going to be rebuilding stuff out of your new kitchen.

Many of these upwork brands of hardware, which is not A really big difference in a kitchen, it's probably hundreds of dollars of difference between the knockoff stuff and the real thing.

But you're not going to be paying hundreds to have somebody come out and try to custom make a drawer box to work with the newer drawer slides, because everything is engineered today to work together.

So you want to start out with the best hardware you can.

I like Blum.

That is one that I've used for decades and that's why many of the larger manufacturers use it, because they have a lifetime warranty on many of these major brands.

They want a hardware that's going to hold up because it costs them money to have to take a phone call, deal with a warning claim, ship out hardware, and maybe even pay somebody or a rep to come out and swap out hardware.

So that's an issue.

So those are things you really want to take a look at.

Hardware quality is a big deal.

Ask your cabinet maker or your designer or if when you're working with your designer to say, hey, I want Blum hardware, great, that'll take you into the brands that you want.

There's some other brands out there for it.

But really stay away from the knockoff stuff, the ready to assemble stuff.

A lot of it doesn't use that.

But ask those questions about hardware and it's got to perform well under pressure.

So make sure you get the right one so you're not rebuilding things later and having to pay twice that ends up costing you money.

Now, we talked a little bit about this earlier, but it's still on here as number five.

Custom doesn't mean better.

And I tell you what, we talked about it earlier with finishes, but the Ask A Cabinet Baker group is a great test of cabinetry issues across the US and if you go down through that page after you've joined, I tell you what, all the finish issues, every single one of them are from custom cabinet shops out there that have stain or top coat finish issues.

And this is a big deal.

So custom only means that it was built for you on your project.

Now if I order brands like craftmatter, considered semi custom, probably because they don't all do all the custom finishes, they don't do all this stuff, but really many of the things that they do are higher grade than many of the custom cabinet shops out there.

And here's why.

These big manufacturers that crank out hundreds of cabinets a day, what are they doing?

They have high end finish systems that are robotic that put on the exact same finish on each door or drawer front.

They've Spent a ton of money because mistakes cost them big money.

So that's why they have a lesser amount of mistakes.

They really have it dialed in, so they have to be consistent.

If I order a drawer front from a kitchen that's 18 months old, when it shows up, it needs to match.

It needs to bolt on and look great.

So that's the issue.

Custom cabin shops have a hard time with consistency because there's probably one or two people in that finish room, and if they leave, if they change, it's a huge, big mess.

It's a mess.

It's a huge mess.

So make sure that you sit there and work with this.

Make sure that you get the right cabinetry for your project.

Custom could be a guy in a table saw that barely can run it in somebody's garage.

Building your cabinetry, it can mean somebody that has a CNC machine that's making it down to the thousandths of an inch that makes perfect cuts every time.

So be careful when you say, oh, I'm having custom cabinets built for the people that know they might be going, wow, that's not a good thing.

There are some great custom cabinet shops out there, but you have to find them, because many of them are people that kind of know how to build cabinetry, but they sure don't know how to finish them.

So be careful out there.

Buyer beware.

When you're working with custom, you're gonna have to do four or five times the work to make sure you find what you're looking for to find the right company versus some of the major retailers out there.

So be careful.

That can be a big problem.

So make sure you get that dialed in.

Custom doesn't always mean better.

Number six, get the details and the contract and the approved drawings before the order is placed.

Make sure that everything is spelled out.

The construction method, the doors, the finish, the sheen, all the different things that go onto this.

If you're ordering cabinetry before there's a stain, color picked, or you're working on the wood species, that door, everything should be at 100% on the cabinetry when the order is placed.

And if you haven't seen a door sample that you've approved, if you haven't signed off on a color sample and you don't understand what the wood species is, that's a big deal.

And understanding this stuff and working with a designer is big.

You can say, oh, I want white oak.

That's great.

Is it riff cut?

Is it just rotary cut?

What kind of cut is it?

It's going to be a completely different look.

Are you grain matching?

These are all the things that need to be written down.

And if it's not in the contract, you're probably not getting it.

So this is where having that designer working with you to understand the specifications, to make sure it's dialed in.

This is the game changers of these projects.

That contract is a communication device to make sure you're getting exactly what you want and they're producing what you want.

Many times mistakes happen.

I'll tell you why.

This is why I do sign samples back in the day.

And I'll say this about Wellborn cabinetry.

They make a nice cabinet.

I used to be one of their dealers.

But one of their biggest problems they had when I was a dealer back then is they had natural, which was a clear finish.

They had light that had just a little bit of a tint to it, and they had dark, which was not their darkest finish because they had an ebony finish that was darker.

So what happens is you can be talking about the light finish, which the consumer you thinks is natural.

Natural is natural.

It's a clear coat that one has a little bit.

If you're dark, that could be ebony.

They think it's the darkest finish, but it's a medium finish.

So those names can lead to issues.

And so that's why I always say, sign off on the door sample, sign off on the colors, sign off on the sheen, make sure everything's sign sealed, delivered before the cabinetry is done.

And then that way you've got a sample when it shows up so you can see exactly what you get.

And that way you're clear you're not getting ripped off.

And big mistakes don't happen.

Yes, even I as a designer a couple times had the wrong finish come out.

One of those two times that I've ever had a problem with was because of that, the nomenclature of the brand.

And it wasn't accurate to what the perception was of that color.

So you got to think about that.

Make sure that you're on the same page.

Make sure that you have the right colors, and that'll protect you in the long run.

Now, the next one here is an important one, and I want to talk about this really cool feature here before we go out.

Maple dovetail drawers are such a big deal with cabinetry, But I'm going to tell you why they're not needed just as soon as around the house returns.

Don't waste the money on this project if you don't need it.

We'll do that just after these important messages, don't go anywhere.

To find out more about the show, head to aroundthehouse online.com Eric G. Will be right back.

Welcome back to the around the House show, the next generation of Home Improvement.

I am Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.

To find out more about us and our social media channels, just head over to aroundthehouse online.com make sure you follow us and check back there for new content coming up.

We've got some great stuff coming up this year here, especially on the YouTube channel.

Lot of new stuff coming out there that I don't want you to miss.

This hour is brought to you by our friends at Monument Grills.

Check them out for your new barbecue@monument grills.com we've been talking about my top 10 commandments of buying cabinetry in your home.

These are the ones that should help you avoid the major missteps.

And this is an episode.

If you got a friend or a relative or maybe you're a contractor, make sure you send this over this episode over to them so they can learn this stuff.

You could save them some serious money and some headaches and plenty of lost time in a project.

Send this over to your friends that are working through cabinetry projects right now.

You could be their savior and stop them from a lot of headaches.

We went out to break.

We're talking about maple dovetail drawer boxes.

Now.

This is that really beautiful light wood.

It's usually got a clear coat on it.

It's got beautiful dovetail joints in the corners.

Now here's the thing.

If you're using a nice blum undermount slide, you're wasting money here.

If you're tight on a budget, I would step back and look at a nice finished plywood drawer box instead.

That's doweled or whatever else in there because all those drawer boxes are supporting from the bottom of the drawer.

So you can get a nice plywood.

Basically a plywood drawer box that's made, that's doweled and stapled or glued or however they make it, it's really not going to see any difference in use versus the maple dovetail because those glides do such a great job of supporting the bottom.

Now when you had side mount glides or you had some of the white epoxy ones that are on the edge of the drawer box.

Yeah, you needed that strength in the drawer box.

But really the maple dovetail is a perception thing.

And that's why many Cabma companies still use them as a standard because they go, oh, I Want to have these pretty drawers?

I get it, they look beautiful, they're heavy duty, but are they needed?

Not really.

If you're using good quality hardware, you don't need to waste the money on it.

Spend it on your finish, spend it on better appliances.

Spend it on it can cost you a hundred bucks or so a drawer for that upgrade.

And if you've got 30 or 40 drawers, that can be a pretty penny and you're not going to get any value out of it.

Other it's going to look and feel good.

So something to consider.

All right, here's the thing.

The next one here is a big one and it's a super important one.

We're going to lightning round through these things, avoiding overloading small spaces.

Here's the thing.

More isn't always better.

Cramming in too many of those accessories or cabinets into a small kitchen or bathroom can make it feel cluttered and chaotic.

Simplicity often leads to better organization and a much cleaner and refined look.

So spend some time with your designer, work with them, prioritizing what you need.

Where are things going?

I just saw a post this last weekend on this group.

It was really cool.

But the homeowner was struggling because I don't think they had a designer involved in it if I was going to guess.

And they couldn't store things in their corner cabinets like they did with their old kitchen.

And they were hoping to reuse the old hardware.

No, never reuse an old hardware in a kitchen.

But really spending that time to not overdo that small space.

Sometimes too many accessories, they get taken out and thrown away.

It's just like those tip out drawer fronts that you could put the little sponge and soap things in.

They're cute, adorable.

But many of the new sinks are so big you can't don't have space to put them in there so many times.

Probably the last 10 of those I sold later on even though I tried to talk the homeowner out of it.

Most of those were out in the garage in a storage bin because they didn't work so many times.

These expensive accessories can be troublesome.

Now corner cabinets, you're trying to get use out of those.

I get it all day long.

Tray dividers for cookie sheets and cutting boards.

Super smart.

But some of these other issues that you get.

I would much rather do drawers than pullouts, pull outs.

When you have a 30 inch wide rollout tray or a rollout drawer underneath there, you have to open two doors, takes two hands, pull a drawer out.

I would much rather just have A drawer front that I could grab with one hand and get to the stuff.

Less movement, less parts and you get more storage that way.

So that works pretty well.

Now I do like to have one cabinetry that you can adjust a shelf in or something for those goofy, awkward pieces.

But really having the right parts here of accessories, there's a balance of having too many things and too many tchotchkes in there.

You want it to work well, you want it to function, but doing too much, you can jump the shark in that kitchen and create bigger issues.

Now the next one here is important.

Budget wisely, but don't cut corners.

Cabinetry is a massive investment.

So set a realistic budget.

But here's the deal.

Cutting corners on quality to save a few bucks.

It's going to cost you so much more down the road.

If you're on a tight budget, consider that semi custom option.

And you don't have to go to the home center if you don't want to deal with the home center.

And yes, many home centers have inexperienced designers.

They could have been the garden expert last week.

There are some good ones in there if you know how to find them.

But many times that independent dealer, that is the craft made or American woodmark or whatever brand you're looking at out there, that independent dealer can probably get you the cabinetry for about the same price as the home center.

Now the home centers have, they have the buying power, but it's not all about the buying power.

Here's the secret with home centers and how they buy cabinetry.

They will work out a deal because they've got maybe a thousand stores.

Let's just pick a round number.

They got a thousand stores across the U.S. well, they demand of these national companies that you need to have a rep in the store two to two days each month or whatever the rules that they set for that.

But the problem is many, it's out many times out in the middle of nowhere.

Maybe it's out in a small town in North Dakota where the home center is.

They have to put a rep in that town or they have to fly one in and they're usually asking for free or very discounted displays that have to be updated every few years.

So many times that home center is buying at a price that's very similar to the custom cabinet dealer across the street.

They could be building their own cabinets.

They could be just a design firm that has four or five brands, any one of those things.

But that's what you want to work together with if you're under a Tight budget.

Take a look at those national brands.

And don't worry, that small retailer can probably buy them at the same or even better than the home centers because they're not demanding all those things.

So take a look, you might be surprised.

And the quality of finish of many of those brands are going to be better than some of the stuff that you're probably out looking at.

So be careful with that.

Now, the last one here is asking the right questions.

Don't be afraid to grill your designer about lead times, warranty, installation, maintenance requirements.

So these are things that you want to do and make sure you understand it.

At the end of the project when it's all done, make sure you understand what you can clean those cabinets.

Cabinets with.

Many times what happens is people go in there, they get out the magic eraser, which is just 1600 grit sandpaper.

They dull the finish up or polish it, depending on what the finish is.

And more importantly, what I see, and this is where it goes sideways, is they'll take Windex or something like that with Ammonium, that will break the finish down.

Some cabinetry finishes don't like ammonia.

That actually is what they can use to break the finish down and they clean their equipment with.

So you need to be careful, understand what you can do to clean that and what you can do to really get it dialed in without hurting it.

Many times, just a simple damp paper towel will go through and get it cleaned up and it's good enough.

But really making sure you're using your range hood, you're keeping the cabinets clean.

If you get water on them by the sink, take a towel and wipe it off real quick.

Don't sand those finishes down.

And you're gonna have a beautiful kitchen that could last you decades.

Nobody wants to do this twice.

And yes, I have had homeowners that have had their cleaning people go through and they use the magic eraser.

And after a year, you've sanded through the entire cabinetry and the finish is bad, and they call for the warranty and you're like, what are you using to clean it with?

And you can see they have that white piece of sandpaper, as I call it, and they've went through the entire top coat into the color coat.

And it looks like somebody wet sanded the car and you got a heck of a mess.

And the only way to do it is to put a lower quality finish out in the field.

So things to consider out there, things that we didn't talk about today.

And again, this is my ten commandments.

But really paying attention to the details and understanding that the cabinetry is beautiful.

But you also need to have a great installer to put it in that installation.

People are the people that are going to take those pieces and put together your Tinker toy set here of cabinetry.

They're going to put the crown molding in and that's where that designer should be working with the installer.

That's the one that you should have paid in the beginning to be as part of this project.

That installer needs to be high quality.

A good installer will put the cabinets in and you have a lot less issues down the road.

So take the time, have the right team, that's the designer, the installer, the cabinetry maker or dealer.

Then you're going to be good to go and understanding what goes into these cabinets and taking the time.

But don't force too many issues here.

You can be a nightmare client as well by trying to say, hey, I want this finish, I want that.

You want them to deal with what they're good at.

I never want to ask a custom cabinet shop to do something different in the finish department they've never done because there's an experiment and the more you push them with weird things, the more you could be responsible for and they might not have a good fix.

I'm Eric G. Thanks for tuning in to around the House.

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Thanks for listening to the around the House show.