Remodeling your kitchen is highly significant in terms of your house aesthetics. Not only that, but its functionality at the same time is both a need and challenge to homeowners.
Now, if you are in the process of remodeling or updating your kitchen, then you may already have learned that one of the things that makes kitchen renovation expensive is the cabinets.
These kitchen staples don’t come cheap. One can say that the kitchen cabinetry consumes a big portion of both the kitchen’s wall space and budget, which usually makes it a burden for many homeowners.
With this said, homeowners resort to looking for inexpensive kitchen cabinets with good quality, and one of them is RTA or ready to assemble cabinets. RTA cabinets have become the most favored kitchen cabinets among homeowners because you can assemble them yourself, which controls the remodeling costs and help you save hundreds of dollars.
So, before you start looking for your new ready to assemble cabinets, you definitely need to know the basics about them first. Read on to learn more!
What exactly is an RTA cabinet?
RTA stands for “ready to assemble”. These kitchen cabinets are considered as do-it-yourself cabinets that are similar to those that you can buy from a local home center or supplier.
Since it is DIY, then you need to assemble and install the cabinet parts by yourself with some instructions or guides provided by the manufacturer or dealer. However, there are also RTA kitchen cabinet companies that offer assembly service. With the assembly service, you only need to wait for the assembled cabinets to be sent back to you by the dealer.
Once you receive your already assembled kitchen cabinet, you only need to unbox and install them at your desired space in your kitchen area. However, note that you might pay for quite an amount for the labor and another fee for the shipping cost.
Are there many designs to choose from?
When the ready to assemble cabinets were still young in the industry, the cabinets were limited in styles and colors.
It was also mostly constructed of medium-density fiber (MDF) and is incorporated with thermofoil and melamine. If it was made with real wood, then the choices of wood types, styles, and finishes are also limited.
Fortunately, ready to assemble cabinets are now available in different types and colors, which ranges from plain wite thermofoil, sleek contemporary veneers to exotic hardwoods.
How much will RTA cabinets cost you?
You might like ready to assemble cabinets because they cost less than the regular cabinets. And the cost is even less if you assemble them yourself.
If you want to compare costs, the benchmark in measuring is the standard 10 ft by 10 ft — kitchen footprint. The total price includes the overall feature of the cabinet (cabinet boxes, drawer, front, side pieces, pull-out trays, and shelves.
Now, if you want to compare the expenses of cabinets to cabinets, then we suggest that you prepare or layout the costs and credits on a spreadsheet, especially if you are comparing between different dealers or shops.
How to spot good quality RTA cabinets?
RTA kitchen cabinets are just like any other pre-assembled cabinets. It covers the full spectrum of quality, which ranges from poor to excellent. Now, you can buy ready to assemble cabinets that are the same as other good quality cabinets – sturdy and aesthetically pleasing.
However, the crucial part here is knowing how to differentiate a good quality RTA cabinet from inferior ones. With this said, you should avoid ready to assemble cabinets with stapled drawers, integrated rail guides, and doors made out of veneered particleboard.
The features of a good quality RTA kitchen cabinets include a solid wood drawer with dovetail joinery, fully extended drawer guides, a solid wood frame for doors with panels made from plywood or solid wood, and finishes or coating that is applied using a brush.
Now, when you buy online, you can check the quality by requesting a door sample. With this, you will be able to choose the variety of your ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinet. Also, you might have to pay a small amount of refundable deposit and shipping.
But then again, it is better to ensure the quality that you get from what you are buying rather than blindly choosing a product unknown of its quality.
Takeaway
Ready to assemble cabinets are one of the most important innovations in the kitchen furniture industry. Although these products help lessen the cost in your kitchen remodeling, do remember that you should not compromise their quality.
Thus, ensure the quality and research of what you should look for in ready to assemble kitchen cabinets. Not only that, but you should also make sure that the company or dealer of the cabinets is credible and trustworthy in terms of creating quality cabinetry.
