RTA Cabinets: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

A dozen years ago, when I was a product development manager for a large cabinet component manufacturer, we used to talk about what affect China would have on kitchen cabinets. Many of us were naive and considered it ludicrous that China would ever be able to mass produce and ship kitchens of such quality that US buyers would take them seriously. Plus, logistical nightmares such as replacement parts and 'out of stock' situations kept us feeling safe from the threat of imported cabinets. As time went on and we saw what was happening to the furniture industry, we realized how wrong we were and that it was only a matter of time before the US market was flooded with such cabinets.

You know what? It has come a long way! There are literally dozens of manufacturers who have set up operations in China to build and ship very decent RTA cabinets back to the US. The quality has improved over the years as well.

However, as a savvy buyer, you still need to be aware of what makes a quality cabinet (regardless of where it is made) and what you may be sacrificing when you purchase imported cabinetry. I want to stress, there is nothing inherently wrong with Chinese cabinetry, but you need to go into the purchase with your eyes open because sometimes the 'super low, factory direct pricing' can have you giddy and you never consider WHY the price is so low.

Lets take a minute to describe how Chinese cabinets are typically constructed:

Cabinet Box: The cabinet box is generally touted as 'all plywood' and it is. However, the plywood itself is purchased with low price in mind, so it is common to experience peeling veneers and severely warped panels. Furthermore, the interior coatings used to finish the plywood are of low quality, so the interior generally has a 'starved' and coarse look/feel.

Assembly: Chinese cabinets are manufactured with absolute ease of assembly in mind. Therefore, most of them use a cam lock mechanism where the cabinet face frame and cabinet sides/top/bottom are held together with a hook type faster that engages the opposing piece when a screw is turned. A common application of this that we all grew up with can be found in Sauder or Ikea furniture. There are usually some plastic blocks to assist in keeping things square as well. Some manufacturers suggest the use of glue and advise that the client not depend solely on the cam locks.

Finishes: In an effort to keep things inexpensive, most importers stock a selection of 6-8 cabinet doors, styles/finishes. You can't mix and match. If you are fond of the 'Brighton' door, you had better reconcile yourself to the finish it comes in. The finishes are typically water based or use atypical solvent properties, so repair can be a problem if you need to touch up a scratch. Its not uncommon for the finish to wipe right off with your rag that has the repair material on it. Stains are always applied with spray equipment as opposed to wiped on with a rag, an issue which often leads to color drift from batch to batch and different colors from piece to piece (such as a filler compared to a door). Glazes are applied with a marker pen as opposed to true glazing which is wiped on the whole surface and then wiped back off and left to hang in the profiles.

Door Styles: As indicated above, you are generally limited to the 6-8 door designs that are in stock and you must take them in the color they come with. There is no allowance for glass doors on ANY cabinet. You have to choose from a small assortment of wall cabinets that are able to accept glass. Wainscot panels for backs of islands are generally not available, so you must use either standard door panels or plywood. Doors always come hinged one way. If you want the door hinged on the other side, you need to flip the door over. This is no big deal except with cathedral door designs where there is a distinct left/right. In these cases, the manufacturer supplies plastic plugs to fill the unused hinge holes on the non-hinged side of the door.

Wood Quality: Most often, the cabinet face frames and doors are made of solid wood, but it is generally Russian Birch, even if they advertise it as Cherry. Some manufacturers offer real Hard maple, Oak and even Cherry, but the quality of the lumber is below our domestic select grade. They are basically using the least desireable cuts of lumber that the domestic cabiney and furnture markets cant or wont use. There is nothing wrong with this approach. Just be sure that if its Cherry cabinets you are after, its real Cherry cabinets you are getting!

Accessories: What makes cabinetry these days so different than it was 15 years ago is the interior storage items that are now available. Plate storage, spice pull outs, towel racks, mixer lift outs and adjustable roll out trays have made cabinetry so much more user friendly and modular. With the imported cabinets, you will be forced to accessorize your storage needs yourself, hoping that the roll out you bought at Lowes fits the cabinet you bought from China. Any storage items that do come with your cabinet are of lower quality, typically a white coated wire.

Overall Fit and Finish: While most Chinese cabinets are touting dovetailed drawer boxes, you generally need to assemble the drawer boxes yourself. This often results in rough, unfilled dovetails and out of square drawer boxes - as well as a huge increase in your assembly time. Slides are often marketed as full extension soft close, but the manufacturer is typically another Chinese low bidder and the quality is quite suspect. Hinges are generally fully concealed, but the hinges themselves are of a cheap stamped metal variety and do not have longevity in mind.

Installation: Chinese cabinets install as any other cabinet would, but since they are often out of square and require so many fillers to complete the install, the end result looks fairly rough around the edges if proper care is not taken.

Other Considerations: Be sure to ask your cabinet retailer about things such as replacements, out of stocks, damages, etc. For instance, if your son breaks a door after 6 months and you request a replacement door, do you have to purchase a whole cabinet? Probably. What happens if your sink base cabinet is out of stock and you need everything installed next Wednesday? How long will you need to wait for the replacement?

I want to stress the point that imported RTA cabinets have been a huge success in recent years. They have placed the power of cost control in the hands of the DIY homeowner and the quality and options seem to get better every year. They fill a special place in the price spectrum for many Americans and in these tough times, this is a good thing.

However, there are other alternatives that homeowners need to be aware of and the rest of this lens article is devoted to helping you determine what to look for in your cabinets. In the end, you'll have a better understanding of what you want in your next kitchen and where to buy it.

When looking for your next cabinet for your kitchen or bath, take a look at the following and make sure it's what you have in mind for your remodel. Just because its advertised as an 'all plywood box with a Cherry stain' does not make it a quality cabinet any more than a Chevrolet advertised with '4 tires and an engine' is the same car as a BMW.

Assembly: While the cam locks are somewhat avoidable in the import cabinets, there are a few that offer a true dado assembly and require glues and fasters that are nailed or screwed on. Some even use pocket screws to hold the cabinet together. While this seems like a minor point, it's actually huge. Over time, as wood expands and contracts and cabinet contents shift, inferior construction will almost always lead to separation of cabinet panels, cabinets peeling from the wall and other shocking developments. There is one American Made RTA cabinet(made by Conestoga Wood Specialties) that even offers a really unique sliding dovetail technology where the wood panels (top/bottom and sides) dovetail together so that the cabinet literally cannot fall apart once assembled. Also look for a cabinet that uses a captured back or hanger rail. In other words, does the back panel or the hanger cleats that will hold the cabinet to the wall tuck into the side panels or are they just cam locked or pinned on to the back? Remember, the cabinet with your contents in it can weigh several hundred pounds. Over time, the cabinet can start to peel from the wall leaving the back panel still attached to the wall. A captured back or hanger rail will ensure that the cabinet sides are integrated with the cabinet back so that everything stays where it should.

Doors/drawer fronts: Does the line offer the level of door selection you may need? Do you require a special color? Maybe even unfinished where you can finish it yourself? Chinese imported cabinets are rigid in this area, so look at a domestic line like Conestoga's if you are going to require unique doors or want a special door overlay like full overlay or inset.

Finishes: Look for something that uses coatings made in the US if possible. One of the most prevalent things we have seen in the RTA industry is horrible coating quality. Unless you buy from a manufacturer like Conestoga, you will most assuredly receive a spray applied finish and penned on glaze. This is not necessarily bad, but compare brands as some of the finishes out there are quite poorly done while others are quite beautiful. Remember, hand wiped stains cost more because of the labor and material expense, but the difference is the most noticeable thing about your new ready to assemble cabinets. The hand wiped stains add a level of depth and richness you just can't get with spray stains.

Hardware: Make sure the glides are of a good quality and are soft close (a standard these days). Ask your retailer how they handle requests for broken glides and hardware a year or years down the road. As for hinges, are they self closing? Are they of good quality? The hinge on your door actuates a lot in the course of its life and you do not want to be constantly adjusting the hinges or replacing them. Conestoga's cabinets use Blum slides and hinges, all with a lifetime guarantee. Blum is the high end hardware leader in the industry and is the originator of many of today s 'standard' features such as concealed hinges and soft close doors/drawer slides.

Replacements/Damages: Ask your retailer how stock outs, damages and replacements are handled. If you can't get the cabinet when you need it, every other tradesman is held up (counters, tiles, plumbers, etc) which can cost you weeks in your project schedule. Conestoga's program is build to order and allows for replacements to be shipped in as little as a day and because everything is built in the US, there is no issue with out of stock, etc. Furthermore, if you only need a shelf or a cabinet side, it is no problem. You don't need to replace the whole cabinet. Just get what you need. Best of all, replacements are basically 'no questions asked'.

Now that you have seen the differences in the levels of quality you can expect in RTA cabinetry, you should be able to confidently purchase your next kitchen or bath. The trick is knowing what you NEED to have and what you can live without. If the project is an investment property, a secondary kitchen or bath, or perhaps for a house you know you'll be selling soon, the imported RTA cabinets are a great buy. They offer sound value and great window dressing. However, if you're looking for something for your dream home or remodel, consider a higher end American Made cabinet from someone like Conestoga. I keep using their name primarily because they are the only well known American manufacturer who makes a DIY cabinet that meets or exceed the quality of a custom built cabinet. There is literally nothing that their program can't offer you, including custom size modifications and unfinished cabinets as an option. Conestoga's program is only available to the homeowner through a select few on-line resellers. Check out www.thecabinetjoint.com (our company), www.thecabinetauthority.com, or www.cabinetmakerschoice.com. Any of these three outfits would do a fabulous job on your new kitchen!